Day 8 Placements Huan

Today at Family Promise, we got a chance to interview a client there. Her name was Jessica, and she was the mother of Marquise and Daniel. We asked her many questions about her view on homelessness and how she felt about it. She told us her story and how she ended up to be homeless. She was just a normal person that you could find anywhere. She told us that she had faith and hope in God and that she would find a home. She didn't mind that she was homeless. I could tell that she was a strong person because she didn't see herself as homeless as long as she had a roof over her head.

Other than our interview with Jessica, we sorted papers into folders and I helped Barbara with her iPhone because she didn't know how to import stuff.

Day 8 Shepherds of Independence Bultsma

At Shepherds of Independence there are many people that rely on the services that they provide. I always knew that there were shelters out there for people who were homeless, but I had never heard of Shepherds of Independence. I've learned many things over the course of these last two weeks, but I think one of the most significant things was learning about a new place like Shepherds. By learning about what they do my perspective of the homeless has changed. I didn't know mental disabilities were such a big part of why people became homeless. I thought that the homeless were people that had just given up on trying and didn't have any motivation to do anything. Stepping into SOI's building every day made me realize that every person in that building gave extreme amounts of effort to keep themselves afloat and that every day is a struggle. These wonderful people that I've never talked to all had a story to tell. I wish that I could have heard them all because I'm sure that it would have changed my perspective of the homeless even more.

Day 8 Shepard's of Independence Van Tol

Today the work was easy, but the janitor wanted Yazmine and I to do much more than usual. When we got there we put our stuff away and Jessie and Amanda started to peel apples. Then he told Yazmine and I to vacuum the 2nd floor. So after we finished we went downstairs and waited for him to tell us what to do next, but instead he went upstairs to see how we did. The next thing we knew, we had to redo what we just did because we didn't do a good enough job. Yazmine and I went downstairs to get the vacuum and then the janitor told us that we also had to mop the floors and the bathrooms. He thought if one of us mopped the floors and bathrooms and the other moved the couches and vacuumed it'd go faster. So I quickly got new water and grabbed a mop while Yazmine grabbed the vacuum again. When we got back upstairs Yazmine helped me for a second then started vacuuming until she realized she is too weak to move the couches by herself. She ended up waiting around for me, so I quickly tried to finish so I could help her. I didn't end up finishing because she wanted me to move the couches. Once I finished moving the couches for her I told her to finish vacuuming, but she told me to do it. It wasn't that bad, but it got kind of frustrating because he wanted us to do more and more. I tried my best to just do it because I know whatever we do helps, but it was a harder day than usual. The very end was the best though because we could finally relax, but it was also great because we got some soup, cupcakes, and something to drink. :)

Day 8 Hope Community Vis

I have loved spending the last two weeks going to Hope Community. Just getting to know the people better and better every day has been amazing. I came into this course knowing there were more homeless people out there then the typical stereotype of a homeless person. Honestly, though, I didn't really think about them at all. They aren't the ones shown in movies and TV shows. I have learned that just because not all homeless people flag doesn't mean they're not all around me and easy to see. Everyone I have met at Hope Community has been very nice. Even though I don't know their stories, I can see they have been through a lot.

Day 8 YWCA McLemore

Today at the YWCA we organized files and refilled the bathroom supplies. Going to YWCA everyday for two weeks has made me learn so much about homelessness. I learned so many valuable lessons that will help me for the rest of my life. I think taking this course made me realize how fortunate I am, and it makes me more grateful for what I have. After taking this course I want to continue volunteering at the YWCA and other homeless shelters in Grand Rapids. Taking this class really changed my opinion about homelessness, and I want to continue to help out the best way I can.

Day8 YWCA Taylor

Since we started this experience about 2 weeks ago I learned alot! Plus I think I'm going to take this homeless thing more seriously then I did before. The first time I came into our placement I was nervous, but I was really doing it to make myself look and feel good. But now that I've learned and seen other peoples' experience of being homeless, I realize I shouldn't be doing it for myself, I should be doing it from the kindness of my heart to help people out of those situations. I also learned that someone is not always going to want your help, but you have to show them that you're going to stay right there and show them that you care. Just doing little things can mean a big part in most peoples lives. From these women in the shelter, I can tell they have been hurt when they come near me just by their actions. But tomorrow we are making breakfest for them, so I really hope they will feel cared for.

Day 8 Hope Community Fethke

I have been helping out at Hope Community every morning from 8:30 to 10:30 every school day since last week Tuesday. I have babysat awesome kids, moved boxes, and cooked for the residents at Hope. I think something kind of amazing that I realized today was that when I am there, it doesn't feel like service. It doesn't feel like I'm volunteering or working, it feels like I am now a part of their community. I guess what I am trying to say is that usually when I do service work it actually feels like work and that I sometimes treat it like I am better than the people I am helping. The winterim course has changed my view on service, and some of the things I have learned about the homeless have helped me at Hope. At Hope, I don't feel better than the residents. I feel like I am their friend and they are mine. I also feel very grateful for what I have there, and, like I said, blessed.

day 8 Degage Ministries Marquez

Today was bad day for Gabe because she was feeling bad. And it was only me and Gabe because the other lady went to go help in Kyle's office. For some reason George had to leave early, but first he did the laundry because that was his job. Most of the people that came today were the people I knew, and they asked for the same thing: for mail, for checks, and for clothes. Some people here and there asked to pay their locker or when they could work here, and some of the answers I didn't know. Fortunately Gabe did. It was busy in the morning, but at like 9:20 no one was asking for anything--just a bunch of people sitting down in chairs waiting for the housing office or the id office or the resource office. It's sad that tomorrow's the last day, because I already made a lot of friends there and all of them are great. I hope that I see George or Mike or Ron again.

Day 8 Family Promise Sims

Homeless people aren't really homeless, they just don't have their own house. Today we interviewed Jessica & she told us her story.  She had a really good life (she was spoiled). We asked her how did she become homeless & she said it was a choice. She could have either stayed in her apartment (she said it was an issue when it came to her children's health) or went to stay with her mom, and she didn't want to because she knew she had to grow up and not be dependent on other people. She said she's  NOT homeless because when you're homeless you don't have a roof over your head, and she does.

My perspective on the homeless has changed over the past two weeks. They are regular people. Some choose to live on the streets and that's their home. Me volunteering at Family Promise made me realize there a A LOT of people trying to get people the help they need, and if they cant work as hard as they are to help them then no one can help.

Day 8 Family Promise Banaszak

When I signed up for this class I expected mostly hands-on stuff, like playing with little kids, talking to homeless people, making meals, or anything like that. But the first few days at Family Promise we sorted their donation room. Then, we brought mattresses to and from churches and storage rooms. After that, we copied papers and put them in folders. But now that we're pretty much all done, I wouldn't trade my experience there for anything. There were times when we could play with the kids, and we did make a meal for the families, just not as much as I expected. Which is fine by me! I think something that most people don't realize is that most of the work you're going to do if you chose to live your life serving is behind the scenes work. Even though it may not seem like it, stuff like that sometimes helps even more than interacting with the people. I mean, yeah, playing with little kids and making like six boxes of macaroni is fun, but having fun isn't the point of serving. It's just an added benefit. And I don't even think we did the hardest work there! People are there everyday doing things like typing up papers, cleaning the donation room,  transporting donations back and forth from different shelters, etc. Help is help.

Day 8 YWCA Workman

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about this class was volunteering in the morning. My placement was one of the places where we didn't get a lot interaction with the residents, but that didn't bother me that much. We did a lot of cleaning and organizing, and at first it really bothered me, but as the week went on they told us about how thankful they were for us and how they were really grateful for us coming and doing the things that needed to get done. When they said those things it made me feel better about doing the things I didn't want to do. I also really enjoyed getting to know the girls in my group and making new friends. Overall my morning experience was a pretty good one, because I was able to help the organization even though we didn't get to meet a lot of  the homeless people that lived there. It felt good to give them the help they needed.

Day 8 YWCA McKeever

Today we took a bunch of file folders and used white out on the numbers they had written on the folder. After we were all done with that we restocked one of the closets by the bedrooms with things the women may need for their daily use.

Going to the YWCA has been such a great experience, because instead of going there just to volunter I have come to reflect on how blessed I am to have the things I need, to not have to worry about what I'm going to to do for money or how im going to eat, or even if my boyfriend/husband is looking for me.

I love knowing that helping others with even the small things helps them out so much, and seeing how much they appreciate it makes me feel better inside. Learning about homelessness is a very interesting topic, and it has been a great and fun experience for me.

Day 8 Guiding Light Mission Barendse

My experience at Guiding Light has taught me a lot. I have a new perspective on homeless people. I used to have stereotypes about them, but know I know that they're the same as me on the inside. It's hard to tell about my experience there. It's hard to explain--it's one of those "you have to be there" storys. I think that Guiding Light has made the community much better.

Day 8 Hope Community Adrianse

My morning experience was really good. I had lots of fun and it made me kinda see how some of the  moms trusted us, like when we had movie day they kinda thought that they could leave their kid and we would watch them. Some moms stayed and left and came back. That was okay, but we kinda wanted them to stay to get to know them, too. The kids were good. I love having the kids there because it shows how much the moms trust us. Tomorrow we plain on doing a little breakfast thingy, with coffee, muffins, and donuts. I hope more people come tomorrow  because not that many people came today, but it wasnt like there was no one there. I can't wait for tomorrow.

Day 6 Stuart and Ricky McLemore

I really enjoyed Stuart and Ricky talking talking to us. Hearing Ricky tell his story meant a lot to me because telling someone your story takes a lot of guts to do--especially if you hardly know them too. So I really appreciated Ricky sharing his story to the class and opening up to us . I also enjoyed Stuart talking to us and telliing us more information about helping homeless people. I really learned a lot when Ricky and Stuart told us more about homelessness. And once again I really appreciate Ricky telling us his story and I thought it was really cool.

Day 6, Hope Community Adrianse

Today there was this guy from Guiding Light whose name was Richard. I thought that I learned how easy it is to lose everything just from ONE choice you made. It makes me think a lot about it. Kinda makes me think about the choices I make and if they're the right ones. Richard was an alcoholic and now he has been sober for 30 days. It worries me that you may stop one bad thing but then start another one that doesnt seem like it's bad. I don't know, but it makes me think a lot.