I decided that this semester I wanted to volunteer at my local YMCA. The YMCA is a non-profit organization that looks to strengthen the local community. The Y brings people together, and over the last 160 years, they have worked day-in and day-out everyday to bring people together regardless of age, sex, orientation, and income level, in order to learn, grow as an individual and community, and thrive within it. The YMCA believes themselves to focus on three categories: youth development, healthy living style, and social responsibility (YMCA 2015).
http://www.ymca.net/about-us
On Friday, April 25th, I volunteered to help out with Healthy Kids Day at the 95th Street location in Naperville. At the event, many other organizations had set up tables to inform "event-goers" about the three categories mentioned above. My table, which was sponsored by the Compass Church in Naperville, chose to do a promotion within their cafe where 20% of the proceeds went to help stop human-trafficking around the world. During the event, a volunteer could hold three separate positions: supervisory (watching the kids to make sure they didn't hurt themselves), teaching and demonstrating (telling and showing the kids how to live and eat right), and promotional (overlooking an individual table respective to the sponsor and providing information on the social interaction). I took part in two out of three positions. I was a supervisor and a promoter. After the kids had gone through the learning activities held within the gym, they were allowed to participate in the bounce house and bouncy slides. As a supervisor I was tasked with making sure none of the kids got hurt and followed the rules. Making sure they waited patiently in line for their turn and providing an equal time slot for all the kids were some of my responsibilities. As a table promoter, I was asked to promote the organization, the Compass Church, and provide information on what the church was doing to to combat human-trafficking. The Compass Church was in the process of their April mission where they looked to strengthen the relationship between two parties each week. One week for siblings, one week for parents, one week for children, and one week for the Church itself. One of the most important interactions I experienced was my conversation with the pastor. He stated the being socially responsible is a job we all must do. Helping people without second thought on how it affected you was his main point. All around the world there are people suffering. Here in America, we are in what he called a "giant bubble". In human rights terms, nothing detrimental really takes place anyone with the Civil Rights Movement in the 1900's and the LGBT movement happening this century. Most the people of the world do not have the resources to help themselves and their families survive in their current conditions. Who takes care of these people? Who comforts them after a bad dream or a painful experience? Usually it's nobody since they have nobody; they are sort of lost within the world. It is our job as humans to become socially responsible for these "lost" people, creating hope where this none and providing them the means to better their current situation. The event was held from 10:30~2:00. I learned a lot from this experience, not only about healthy living and social practices, but about myself and how to properly communicate with people. During the supervisory period, it was hard to demand the children do something without sounding threatening or aggressive. Being clear and sincere in your convictions broke down the barrier between stranger and stranger and created a sense of belonging among the people within the event. I also learned that I should do more to assist those in need. From my experience there, I came to the realization that I have taken parts of my life for granted. Things three meals a day, a bed to sleep in, and roof to live under are some of things I thought to be commonplace throughout the world. As I said earlier, most people do not have access to things we do. My world revolves around pursuing more knowledge and enlightenment through games, education, and family life. Their world however, the ones the "lost" people belong to, revolves around finding something to eat for that day, finding a dry spot to sit when it's pouring rain outside because they do not have a "home" to go back to. I realized that it was our job as a community and as individuals to create a new "home".
