Allison Blanning Reflection for Service Day 3

Today was definitely a different experience than the last service learning visit. Last time I spent the entire time doing office work far off from where the actual food preparation and distribution was occurring. However, this time I actually worked bagging and preparing food that would later be packaged into boxes for the hungry. We started off sorting and bagging frozen fish. This was a long and tiresome process because the fish smelled and were really frozen. The boxes of fish that needed to be bagged seemed endless but we all worked really well together and managed to get a large amount of work done in a relatively short time. After bagging fish, we were put to work bagging green beans for eventual distribution to the hungry. The challenge this time was the mold that was prevalent throughout many of the boxes and the requiring picking and sorting out of the good and bad beans. Finally, I helped sort and stock the huge amount of food donations given specifically for those who would ordinarily not have enough food to enjoy Thanksgiving. We sorted through a multitude of food and had to decide whether it was better to throw away some expired donations or keep them on for a little while. It was really comforting to see how much food had been donated in so little a time and how many people would be able to enjoy this food on Thanksgiving. This service visit definitely like a more hands-on experience than last visit and I am excited to continue making progress in my volunteering.

Robbe Simon Day 3 Reflection

Even though today was only my second day, I felt like I had learned so much more than I usually would have in one day. After ariving there at 9:00, I started my day by sorting deserts into bags that would later be placed in grocery bags along with other foods for our clients. I then moved to packing frozen fish for about an hour. Then for the remainder of the time I packaged grocery bags based on individual orders by our clients. Based on the number of people within a family, I would put together bags incorporating fresh produce, a combination of protein rich foods, canned goods, bread, and some sweet. It was my favorite job because I came face to face with the people I was helping. The instant gratification was such that my clients were immediately excited or upset with my work. After awhile I felt comfortable with my packing abilities, but it was already time to go. For the next service learning day I hope that I can continue to pack groceries and interact personally with the S.O.S clients

Leo Kim Service Learning Day 3

Today was my first day at S.O.S because I was in Korea last year. At first, Claudette and I were confused because it was our first time but we learned really quickly. Because it was my first time, I started at packing line. I learned to pack a bag so that the food nutrients are balanced, and to call the number out and hand the bags to the people. It felt really good for I was able to meet the people and see what kind of life they are living. Next, I packed fish and green beans which was less appealing, but was still enjoyable because I was able to work with not only Sage students but people from the neighborhood as well. After, I organized the shelf and later folded and stapled papers. Although it was tedious, it was fun and I felt accoplished as I worked. I really enjoyed volunteering to help the people in worse conditions and I hope that I will be able to ehlp them out even more in the future.

Claudette Vaught Reflection Day 3

Today was my first service learning day and I found that it was a really fun and I enjoyed working at SOS. When I first started I was bagging food for the food line with Leo. This was probably my favorite part because I got to interact with the people who requested food. By being able to talk and communicate with the people who were recieving the food it gave me great satisfaction to see my good work being put to use. Next, I bagged fish and green beans. This part was not as fun as the food line, but I still enjoyed this part. Finally, I had to cut, fold and staple papers with Maddie, Nickie and Leo. While this was a tedious process, the day was overall a successful day.

Ford Hanours awesome service learning post day 1

On my first service learning day, I had a very fun and informative time. I learned about how many people in our community are in need of help. I helped rebag fish for the bags which families receive to help them have food. It was nice because I was able to see many people receive their bags of food and see their faces light up. I like doing work for people that I can see and talk to personally because I make a connection with those people.

Day 2 Reflection Nickie Shojaee

At SOS we were all divided up into different groups. Maddie and I, were put into the group of food bagging. I personally did not know what to expect when we first got their but once we got started it was quite nice seeing our work helping others. We looked at the sheets everyone their filled out and would bag food according to their situations, and then finally seeing them and giving them their necessities. I think the best part about the experience was actually getting to see everything from start to finish. By that I mean that we started off with a little description about a family, and after putting in some work to make a bag of food for them, we got to see the people face to face and see our efforts being put to good use. Overall it was a great day and an even better experience.

Reflection Day 2-Maddie Culberson

Today's Service learning was very successful. We were able to help our community by handing out food to those in need.  We helped to package and serve food to those in need. I did not know what to expect upon arriving to SOS, but I was able to enjoy the work that we did to give back to our community. Ultimately, I feel we were able to accomplish our goal for the day and help and provide for your community.

Conner Ascher Day 2 Reflection

Working at S.O.S. for the first time really opened my eyes to the impoverished community around us. For my first task I prepared food and divided it into reasonable amounts for each family. It was awesome because I was able to see where the results were going as we handed out food to each person.It was also cool because we got to meet other volunteers who were all really excited about helping others, which provided a comfortable working environment. It was tiring but, in the end it was worth it.

Day 2 Reflection Allison Blanning

After being reassigned to the SOS group for my second Service Learning day, I was really excited to be helping low income people and their families from communities right in Orange County. We arrived and met the volunteer coordinator, who gave us a tour of the facilities that SOS has to offer and gave us some brief volunteer training regarding confidentially and attitude. Initially, I was really apprehensive as our group walked through the room where people waited to be called up to receive boxes of food, financial counseling, or medical care. Robbe and I were soon put to work making copies of flyers highlighting various services for the homeless and low income families. After quickly finishing that task, we cut and placed stickers on vouchers that would be given to families and individuals who wished to have a hot meal on Thanksgiving. After a while, the cutting and labeling did get to be a bit monotonous but I felt really happy that my work was helping someone in need. What impressed me the most about my first day at SOS was how this organization has made such good use of such a small space. The facilities aren't very big, but they have managed to fit a food warehouse, kitchen, and medical and dental clinic in one lot. It really shows that even small facilities can really go a long way in terms of helping someone in need. 

Day 2 Reflections- Robbe Simon

Since it was my first day of working at Share Our Selves, I admit that I was a bit nervous. Based on my preliminary research that S.O.S was a pretty large organization that helped the homeless and working poor of Orange County by providing food, educational opportunities, child care dental care, and medical benefits. Upon arriving at S.O.S, we were greeted by Ms. Larson, who prepped us on the rules and workings of the facility, gave us a tour of the facility, and divided us up into different roles. I was chosen to complete secretarial work (copying forms etc.) along with Allison. Our job was to do anything that our S.O.S staff member (veronica) felt needed to be completed. We therefore began by copying financial and social aid forms for those who needed ideas for job opportunities among other things. Ms Larson informed us that one particular form listed a number of job opportunities in the area that hired ex-felons. I had never previously thought on the life of felons after their time in jail, and it was eye opening to realize the difficulties these people must face. For our next project, Allison and I worked on the sign up forms for families seeking Thanksgiving food bags. It was interesting to see how organized S.O.S was in distributing Thanksgiving food bags. Apparently a staff member that had worked in the facility previously was a rocket scientist who was quiet adept in designing plans of the sort. Each form was color coded by day of the week as well as time of day, and asked for the names and other information about the family seeking a Thanksgiving basket. This method allowed only a certain amount of people to seek baskets at a given time, minimizing the need for people to wait around. Although I learned new things from my experience today (working a copying machine) I hope in our next service learning day I will have the chance to connect personally with some of the people seeking food bags. RS

Post of October 27 (Day 2)

1.        Summarize your progress thus far on your Service Learning Project.  After looking at your original goals, have they changed?  If so, please elaborate.

Thus far, we have packaged food (today we packaged frozen fish), helped the S.O.S staff by making copies of handouts that provide information for those in need, and finally handed out food packages that were designed to supplement both the homeless and the families of the working poor. Our goal of creating a lasting bond between Sage Hill School and S.O.S has not changed, and we were successful in strengthening our connection with hard work today.  

2.        Describe some of the achievements/obstacles your group has encountered today/over the past month. 

The first obstacle our group faced was getting used to both the workings and the members of S.O.S. We were able to surmount this obstacle quite easily because the staff was helpful and allowed us to at ease. Another obstacle we faced was the language barrier when dealing with some of the clients. We hope that working at S.O.S wil allow us to appreciate cultural diversity as well as refine our spanish-speaking skills.

3.        How valuable has the feedback been from your Service Learning Panel?  Have the commendations/critiques been helpful?

Our group is comprised of members whose original proposals differed from S.O.S; therefore, we have not been in direct contact with the panel, but have been helped every step of the way by Mr. Gregory.

4.        What are your plans for the next Service Learning Day?  How do you plan to execute those plans?

We plan on visiting our SOS location and fulilling what is asked of us. Whether it is packaging food, serving the homeless and working poor, or doing something as small as copying social aid forms, we will be fully dedicated to our work.

5.        Post something that has been particularly meaningful to your group over the past month.  It could be a collage of pictures/short personal anecdote/short video/etc.

Service Learning Proposal

1. Ford Hanour, Conner Ascher, Allison Blanning, Nickie Shojaee, Maddie Culberson, Robbe Simon.
2. We are interested in helping the homeless and working poor have access to living essentials, specifically foods. We wish to work with an organization known as Share Ourselves, which provides underpriveledged citizens with medical care, childcare, supplemental food bags, and even legal help. We will be primarily focusing on providing food by helping with the bagging and distribution of donated foods to the clients of SOS.
3. We are affiliated with an organization known as Share Ourselves. "Founded in 1970 by a group of concerned individuals, primarily members of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Costa Mesa, Share Our Selves (SOS) has grown to become a model nonprofit organization providing the highest quality comprehensive safety net services to the homeless and low-income populations in Orange County." -www.shareourselves.org/about/
4. The needes that will be addressed are helping underprivleged citizens of Orange County have access to food, shelter, resources for jobs, and educational opportunities. Efforts to help the clients of SOS gain access to living essentials are vital because the state of the economy has rendered many people unable to access such goods.
5. There are a number of ways we can help SOS, specfically by doing office work and packaging food.
6. We hope to strengthen our connection to the organization.
7. Every Service Learning date, we will be assigned specific jobs such as working in the kitchen and doing secretarial work.
8. We will measure success by creating deeper connections between the Sage community and SOS.