Inter-Tribal Indians of NJ

Well my summer of service is probably a little bit different from everyone elses. I am the Vice President of a non profit organization called inter-Tribal Indians of new jersey. Originally this organization was created for social purposes. It was a way of Indians in NJ to gather, meet, and talk about issues. There are not a lot of American Indians in New Jersey, we could be described as being the minority of the minorities. Over time it has developed and grown. It is still an organization that encourages American Indians to meet up, however, we have dedicated a lot of our time in educating people about American Indians. In the past we have done presentations to boy/girl scout troops, schools, and nursing homes, about stereotypes, boarding schools, and traditions. However, we have been stuck in the past.

I have the unique opportunity to combine my summer of service with the per-research to my senior research project. I will be doing a ton of reading, researching the role of women in American Indian communities. However, while I am doing this, I am going to be revamping our presentations and trying to bring in a social media role into the organization. For example, FB page, twitter, etc. I also plan to put a lot of our presentations on power points. Because I am doing a heavy amount of research, I will be able to update our presentations. I also plan to put together a larger speakers bureau binder, where we will have access to academic articles about American Indians and their role in the media.

Week 2

So, I'm slowly but surely progressing on the list of projects. One thing I've been trying to work the details out for is a Parent Dinner for Orientation so that parents can feel free to ask questions while the incoming students are doing something a little more fun than Q&A. I'll also be working on getting together grocery lists and menus for the week so that we can either cook for them or plan nights out. I've also been working on the Service in Sports lecture idea. So far, I'm thinking we can have the DeLand Little League, someone from the Y, and make it a panel discussion about the different places and opportunities in DeLand for sports-minded people to volunteer. Also, I want to include someone from a professional organization to hopefully broaden the minds and see that service can be intertwined with work while not exactly leaving you strapped for cash all the time. Mary Kathryn and I also discussed having the other 2 lecture series' be government and environment this semester. Hopefully they'll turn out well!

Week 1

Well, even after months of planning and double-checking there are still things you can't account for. My housing has now fallen through and with no A/C it's looking like a bad week. However, I will just finish my work pool-side in Naples instead of in DeLand, who can complain?

This summer I'm working on program development for Bonner. Sounds fancy, right? Actually, I've got a few ideas for projects for Bonner in the fall that I'd like to work on before we all get back to school.

First, I am going through different literature to present to Bonners for either Friday reflections or just as other sources for meetings. I have a few interesting books, Outcasts United and Stones Into Schools, that I'd like to work in some way and also a few books that offer short reflections or essays that really make you think about why we do what we do. This aspect is a lot of fun because essentially I can log hours for reading books I've always wanted to read while taking notes so we can hopefully use them later on.

Next, I am working on ideas and planning for the new student orientation and the Fall retreat. I have a great ICEBREAKER for us to play (I know everyone hates that word!). I'm also working on some B-Love projects for the summer and Fall. One of my major goals is keeping everyone connected in whatever way that may be.

Also, I'm working on an idea that would allow Bonner to be featured in the newspaper every week. If anyone wants to write articles, please let me know! Hopefully we can feature service sites, issue areas, and opportunities for other students. This is all part of my master plan that incorporates Bonner into Stetson more.

Finally, I'm working on 2 academic projects: the first is a book feast that will feature the book Outcasts United, which is an amazing story of a refugee soccer team in Georgia and a series of lectures throughout the year that Mary Kathryn and I are working on. The first one will be Service in Sports, hosted with the help of SMA (Sports Management Assoc.).

So those are my projects, can't wait to keep you updated.

Two Weeks In

Two Weeks In. These past two weeks have been a roller coaster of ups and downs. This was our first week of activities that involved leaving the camp site. Monday the kids enjoyed the cool water of the Wes Crile Splash Park, Wednesday we saw Gulliver’s Travels on the big screen, topping the week off with a trip to Deleon Springs on Friday. Most all of the kids had a great time on these outing; there was only a couple of discipline problems on the trips that were correct right away. Nonetheless, the week was not with out its bumps; on Tuesday there was a series of behavior issues that required some restructuring, after which everything has been smooth sailing since.

So far my favorite part of this S.O.S is the bonding relationships me and the other counselors are forming with the campers. My volunteer experience at Woodward Elementary helped in this sometime difficult process, the main concepts being listening skills, never labeling, and realizing it can take time for a child to open up. I look forward to week three, which includes a trip to the Deland Skating Center and the movies. Not to mention a feature article in the News Journal, will posted the link as soon as it is up.

First Week Excitement

First week excitement. Over 100 kids of all ages, races, and social economic class attended the first week of summer camp at DTA. This unique blend of children made this weeks experience very humbling on several levels. First, as a counselor of the 9-13 age group, the task of keeping and getting them involved in camp activities proved to be difficult at times; however, as the week went on this become easier and easier. I contribute this to the numerous ice breaking activities along with learning about their unique backgrounds and daily life. During this process flash backs of There Are No Children Here discussions from Dr.Sapps class; give me a strong foundation of realizing not all children come from a nice home environment. Thus, their behavior and attitude in some cases is a result of the community in which they have been raised not of choice. Knowing and accepting these differences on day one made for a smooth week, filled with classic games such as dodge ball, kickball, and rally races. It’s hard to believe one 40 hour week is completed; next week should go by even faster.

Monday we will be visiting the splash pad, Wednesday a field trip to the movies and Friday Deleon Springs. Monday is also the start of the summer food program, because more then half of the campers receive free and reduced lunch during the school year it is continued through the summer. If any one else is doing an S.O.S with a summer camp and needs game ideas let me know, would love to trade ideas.

Blog 1

For my summer of service this year I am staying in DeLand and working on a few things for Bonner. I just completed the planning of the First Year Trip which I have to say I am a little jealous of how cool their trip is going to be :) For next year the students are going to be going to the Florida Everglades for Fall Break and working in wildlife conservation, green sustainablity, reclycing, and fun! During my time working at the CSL to enhance our Bonner program as well as to strenth the connection with our community partners, I have really found my "sweet spot". I love planning and I love the administrative side to service. Sometimes I miss doing direct service because working behind the scense does not give you the connection you get when working to servce and help people face to face. But I am begining to see that my talents and strenghts are best utilized by putting the pieces in place for other students to go out and do that direct service. I never realized how much planning and organizing it takes to keep up with communication with everyone and find new ways and oppourtnities for students to serve.

My next project is Bonner101 Training for our community partners. We are going to be focusing on what bonner is, how bonner students can help communitity partners, what bonner webbers are and how to navagate the site, as well as helping the community partners see were they could use bonner students in there orgainzations. Along with this I am also going to be talking with them about this next year's Freshman Exploration Program ;)

I am really excited to get going and will check back in after the workshops :)

T-Minus two days

T-Minus two days till summer of service officially starts with the Deltona Tennis Association (DTA) summer day camp program. DTA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to severing the youth population of the West Volusia region. Throughout the year DTA provides low cost/ free tennis instruction for those interested. During the summer it offers the lowest priced camp program in Volusia County, helping those who can’t afford the cost find and apply for scholarships. As a result about one third of the campers are attending at a discounted rate or totally free.

Located at Wes Crile Park in Deltona Florida, campers will have the opportunity to experience and engage in many exciting activities. The park is composed sporting fields, tennis courts, a large playground, a splash pad, and an indoor reaction center with a gymnasium. On Mondays campers will be able to use the splash pad with Wednesdays and Fridays reserved for field trips. As a camp counselor it is my job to insure the safety of all campers at all times, develop and implement activities, build mentoring relationships and most import act as a team member with the other dedicated staff of the camp.

I look forward to starting on Tuesday May 31, 2011; I will be blogging each weekend after reflecting on the numerous events and feeling for the week.