 The following is a post by Dae Smith, one of YVCKC's Spring 2012 Project Management interns. Read more about Dae and our other intern staff on our Who We Are page.For the past couple of weeks, the in-school project I work on at KIPP Endeavor Academy with their community service club has been focusing all of their attention on cancer, specifically leukemia, by participating in the Pennies for Patients fundraiser. This fundraiser started with information on cancer and lessons on what it does to your body and what kind of cancer leukemia is. For instance, did you know that one in three people will develop cancer in their lifetime? Or, that leukemia affects more children than any other type of cancer? After learning about the disease, the symptoms, how it has the possibility to affect everyone, we moved on to activities to deal with the heavy weight of cancer. In-class activities are important and crucial here at KIPP, as leaving the school to go off-site for volunteer opportunities is not easy or readily available for the community service club. First, we played trivia to test the students on what they learned. They were split into different groups and asked a series of questions, racking up points along the way. This trivia game happened to fall on Valentine’s Day, so treats were awarded to all, but the actual winners got an even bigger prize: money. As a former proud owner of two little vintage piggy banks, when one fell and broke I gathered up all of the loose change, divided it into five bags and awarded it to the trivia team winners, to get their homeroom started in the Pennies for Patients Fundraiser. KIPP has eight different homerooms, for all of their students ranging from fifth to eighth grade. Each homeroom is named after a different university, to really emphasize the importance of a college education for these children. A bottle with the homeroom’s name has been placed in each homeroom to collect change for the Pennies for Patients fundraiser. After all of the lessons on cancer, the activities we did, and a visit from a woman from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Kansas City, these students were ready to start raising money for the cause. There are incentives for each homeroom to win, an Olive Garden lunch for the winning homeroom, and other prizes, but the students also really learned how far the money they raise will go and are continually bringing in more. The fundraiser goes until the end of this week, so we do not yet know how much money KIPP will raise for Pennies for Patients, but we do know that they will be helping to further advance research in Leukemia, and help support people that are currently battling this disease. The Community Service Club’s participation in the Pennies for Patients fundraiser showed their ambition to learn and help their community.
_Inequalities exist in many forms in today’s world. Whether it is poor vs. rich or teenagers vs. adults, prejudice stumbling blocks affect everyone. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out on one of the biggest stumbling blocks of all: racial prejudice. His work and his determination saved many from losing their basic rights to people’s idea of a perfect hierarchy. Service is important on this day because it pays homage to those minorities that may not have a Martin Luther King Jr. to speak up for them. It’s a day to put aside all the prejudices and come together to volunteer as one.
 Something I quickly learned about YVCKC is that you never know what to expect; every project is different.
Over the years, I've volunteered with dozens of organizations through YVCKC and am extremely grateful to be able to give back to the community through such a fantastic organization. This MLK Day, I volunteered at the HALO foundation's (Helping Art Liberate Orphans) Kansas City location.
We started with an ice breaker, as usual. For this one, Paul had us break into two teams and then draw slips of paper out of a bag with something on it, like "wrench." The volunteers then had to guess what the word or object was from the leader's clues; the twist was the actual word that was trying to be guessed could not be said. The two teams ended up tying.
After, we got to work. We started by making frames for photos of some of the children HALO serves. This was a good time to not only help others, but also get to know the other volunteers better. As a 4-5 year YVCKC veteran, I knew some of the people on this project, but not everyone.
As we completed the frames, it become obvious that everyone had a unique style. This is something I love about YVCKC. People come from all over the city of different ages, from different schools, different backgrounds; people come together to achieve a goal. And to be able to do this through art was an amazing and fun experience.
And achieve the goal we did. Before long, our task had been completed and we moved on to helping the physical facility.
Jobs included sweeping, cleaning windows, organizing the sewing room, emptying trash bins and other small duties. Again, it's astonishing how quick people are to help out. Volunteers who had finished their duty, they would offer help to others right off the bat. That quality isn't something you see everyone, and is something to be grateful for.
At the end of the two hours, we all gathered in a circle and talked about Martin Luther King Jr. and why we volunteer, giving up time on our free day, on this holiday. Every volunteer said something they noticed, following a HALO tradition. Common themes were individuality, universal acceptance of others and various ways of working, good attitudes, and a cohesiveness volunteering magically magnifies.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day honors a man who did something without being asked to better his community. He did not do it alone, but called people around him together to push for something that was important to him, the country, and even humanity. And Rev. King did not ask for recognition; that wasn't the point.
I strongly believe the projects on the same day achieved these goals as well, and I have always thought YVCKC goes and above and beyond.
But I am writing about something I observed. And as a result, I can confidently say I truly think the MLK Day HALO project honored Rev. King and embodied what the day is all about.
At the last YAB meeting we learned about the importance of drinking water. We learned that Water.org goes to many different impoverished areas all around the world to get people the water that they need so desperately. Not only do they get clean water to people, they do it in a way that doesn’t disrupt their culture. This process takes a little longer, but worth it in the end. This talk was inspiring to say the least. The fact that people aren’t getting a basic need in life shows a lot about our world. Water.org steps up to help those who can’t help themselves.
The last few months, I’ve been volunteering at a place called Garden Terrace. It’s a home for Alzheimer’s patients that can no longer be taken care of by their families. We go down there and interact with them, doing different activities such as card making and gingerbread house decorating. I’ve had so much fun and would love to share the experience with all of you. It’s so uplifting going every week, knowing that I made their week a little more bearable.
Last Saturday, nine YVCKC volunteers bundled up for the cold and went to Shawnee Town, an adorable little "old-timey" town in the middle of a park in Shawnee Kansas. Despite the rain and the cold these volunteers went out with santa and reindeer hats and helped little kids take sleigh rides, and enjoy fun christmas games.
Every year Shawnee Town host "Christmas Around Town," a time for kids and their families to meet Santa, make cool Christmas toys, see live reindeer and horses, drink hot chocolate, and have lots of fun.
Even though it was super cold, rainy and muddy, the holiday spirit wasn't dampened. YVCers had a few fun get-to-know-you games and Rahul read an amazing story about the importance of giving back. The night had a great turn out and everyone had lot of fun!
Just wanted to write about all the great work the in-school projects are doing. At some schools we are working in they are working together to plan their own service projects. As a team they are deciding where they want to volunteer and making calls. They are learning how to plan and organize a group, even to the point of doing their own service learning.
At another school, the group is grower in numbers to raise money for international water systems through water.org. They are selling bread, planning an event, and standing outside local business to gain funds. They are also adopting families over the holiday families by taking donations to support their community.
Another school, just finished a shoe drive to be sold to raise money for basic needs in other countries. They went around to businesses and talked with the owners to let them put out collection boxes to help raise awareness in the community.
In a few other schools, we are working on starting service clubs to bring the experience to the students and the school. So much is going on in the schools at YVCKC! Let's remember all their hard work!
Saturday night youth spent the night outside to be in solidarity with homelessness. They went through the night meeting basic needs that a homeless person might have to face. They learned that we are fortunate for the things we were given and we should cherish what brings meaning to life.
We were in the paper for the event, so check out more details here.
Going about our daily lives, we may see homeless people when we exit the freeway or while we walk through the Plaza. In just a moment of a busy day, we seem somebody living a different lifestyle than us but then continue on with our day. After a few times of seeing the same man at a certain intersection, we often stop noticing the loneliness in his eyes.
But when we are removed from our comfortable environment and get a chance to step back and look at life differently, it just might change the way we think about these moments. A Saturday Project at Hope Faith Ministries can do this.
On October 15, three Youth Volunteers were up not long after dark to serve at Hope Faith—a local day center for homeless people in downtown Kansas City. We swept the nearby streets, picked up trash and helped with countless loads of laundry. But most of all, we met the faces we’ve all grown accustomed to passing.
Working alongside Hope Faith staff members, they introduced us to the clients of the shelter. We met such a huge variety of people in just one morning and greeted everybody. We were instantly welcomed into this community of homeless people, who all thanked us profusely for helping them clean up their area. Picking up trash on the streets may seem like an insignificant task, but we soon realized that we were cleaning up these people’s home.
And there’s no better way to get to know someone but spend some time with them in their home.After we’d cleaned up the nearby streets, we went back in the shelter to help with several loads of laundry. With most of us lucky enough to have a washer and dryer in our houses, we wouldn’t consider laundry a luxury. But by helping with this task, we could imagine how difficult it would be to wash your clothes without access to something like this.
After four hours of hard work, we all went home to our warm houses with fully stocked kitchens a little more grateful than when we’d left that morning. And we just might smile at that homeless man at the intersection instead of ignoring him.
This past weekend we had an extremely informative meeting based on the idea of philanthropy. Three speakers came and talked about their job and why they are so passionate about it. The speakers came from Synergy, Salvation Army, and Hallmark. All of which have a drive and love for philanthropy. The one that stuck out to me the most, however, was the speaker from Salvation Army. He talked about the process of what they do, alongside with why he loves to do it. He talked about how he doesn’t want recognition for what he does, but he just wants to make a difference. To me this is should be the very basis of social work. With social work, it’s not about the person volunteering, but the reason they are volunteering. The way he spoke about his job really struck a chord with me. Here’s a person who doesn’t want huge amounts of money, but is still extremely happy. This was the case with all three speakers. Each and every one of them had a huge smile when talking about their jobs. It’s because they are doing something they love, not something that will make them rich. I believe that this is what philanthropy does to a person. It makes them see the bigger picture. It makes them appreciate life and the people living it.
This, and last month's YAB meeting was focused on Philanthropy as a lifestyle....
This month, three guest speakers were invited to share with us how they contribute to the community through their career.
-Jessica Miller, a former Team Leader talked about her work with Synergy. Synergy is a non-profit organization that aids people of all ages living in unsafe environments. Jessica works with teenagers in their transitional living program. Community service has helped Jessica get to where she is now, after Synergy, she plans to become a High school enlish teacher in the inter city.
-Andy Wheeler also talked to us about all the AMAZING things the salvation army does for the community. Last year the salvation army collected 1.7 million dollars!
-Amy Winterscheidt (my mom!) also came to talk to us about corporate philanthropy. Amy works for Hallmark, a company that believes it owes the community. Hallmark does a lot for the community, anything from giving money to sending out their employees to volunteer. Amy is in charge of organizing a lot of the philanthropy Hallmark does.
I would like to thank all of the guest speakers for not only taking time out of their Saturday to talk to us, but also for all the amazing contributions they have given to our community. It's truly inspiring to get the chance to meet so many people who have done wonderful things with their career.
For our icebreaker, YABers discovered they knew quite a bit about each other.
We got a few free t-shirts too... It was pretty cool!
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