Final Reflections

To me the most surprising part of my service is how grateful everyone is for the work that I am doing. Honestly, I didn’t think that my work was that great and wasn’t that much of a help to others. But the more work I do the happier it makes the people at Operation New View. They simply do not have the funding or the time to market their company to the people who can receive help from their programs. Without me making these brochures the company would remain relatively unknown to the general public. Even now when I tell people the company that I am working for, they give me a blank stare and have no idea what I am talking about. But that is the reason that I am there, to spread the word about a company that can do some good for the less fortunate. It is hard for people to find Operation New View if they have no idea that it exists, and impossible for these people to be helped by one of the many programs that Operation New View has to offer. The fact that I am in some way spreading their image has been the most rewarding part.

The most difficult part has been actually making the brochures, but I have gotten better at making them with each passing one. Overall the main thing that this project has taught me about service is that service doesn’t have to be something big to make a difference. I always feel like I can’t help much, or I will be making little impact. But the truth is that any impact helps and even if the service is something simple and small it can be very helpful. I will make sure that I go out and do more service after this class is done.

Charity

To me charity is anything you do that helps others. It is also something that you did that you did not need to do. When you perform an act of charity you should feel good knowing that you have done something good solely because you are a good person. Personally I feel that I am not a very charitable person. Up until now I have kept most of my possessions to myself and haven’t really done anything that helps others. I have performed various acts of service, but I haven’t really helped people on a consistent basis. I hope that when I am older I will have the means to be very charitable. I hope to someday become successful and then use my success to help the less fortunate. I suppose that part of the reason why I haven’t been so charitable up until now is because I feel that I lack the means to make much of an impact. Though any little bit of charity is important, I want to make a larger impact.

According to Merton, charity is something that we do that helps bring us closer to Christ. When we perform charity we are not just helping the other person, we are also helping ourselves. Through performing these acts we bring ourselves closer to living a life that Jesus would want us to live.

Charity leads us to contemplation. For when we are charitable we find our purpose or meaning in this life. Reflecting on what we have done is a lot easier when we have lived a charitable life, because living a life of charity allows us to be proud of the life that we have lived.

Group Service

For our group service project we visited Stone Hill and helped with the elderly. Our project was to listen to the elderly and overall just spend some time with them. We also ended up helping give out prizes at their Sunday night bingo. I ended up talking to an elderly woman who was about to turn 96 years old. She repeated a lot of things but she was very friendly and super happy to be spending time with us. She talked about how she has traveled all around the world, and in her travels she learned that most people are alike. We think we are all so different from one another, but across different cultures we like to do similar things such as playing baseball. She believes that the most important thing in life is to settle down and get married, because marriage is an important part of life. 

This project was different than my individual service project because it was a lot less work and was more enjoyable. The individual service project that I am doing is taking a lot of time and is related to my major. This project was a fun Sunday spent with the elderly, and it didn’t really relate to any business classes I have taken. Overall, I liked this service because talking to the elderly is always interesting. They have lived a long and interesting life, and learning from them is always fun. I enjoy hearing old stories, or listening to the wisdom that they wish to impart onto me. I hope that when I am 95 years old I am able to look back on my life and feel that I have done well.

Catholicism and School

I have been going to Catholic school my entire life, so honestly I feel that I learned a lot before coming to Loras. However, at Loras I have been exposed to people of different religions and backgrounds. In High School most of my fellow students were the same religion as me, but in college that number is less. I have learned that not everyone views religion the same way that I do, and that other religions have interesting beliefs. But just because those beliefs are interesting does not make them wrong. I have learned to respect and value other people's beliefs even if they are different than my own.

I think that Catholic college education puts a focus on learning and serving. Education is one thing, but helping other people in the community is just as important. Unless we are able to apply our knowledge to the rest of the world, learning is pointless. Learning something means nothing if we do not take it out into daily life. However, I can’t compare Catholic education to a non-Catholic education because a Catholic education is all I have ever known. I never went to public school so I can’t compare the two. I am thankful that I went to Catholic school because it helped me stay connected to my faith. Growing up my faith started to become less and less important to me and I may have lost it all together had I not been surrounded by people whose faith ran deep. 

Service Reflection

I am currently performing service for Operation New View. The most challenging aspect that I have faced while performing this service deals with communication. Most of the work that I am doing takes place away from the actual company, so I am not in direct contact with the other workers on a day to day basis. I have to communicate with them through e-mail and as we all know sometimes technology fails us. Sometimes I will spend a long time working on a marketing brochure for the company, only to have them e-mail me and say that they want it done differently than they originally specified. This is frustrating, but I just remember that I am doing some good work for them and that they are very appreciative. So far everything is going well and I look forward to continuing my service with Operation New View.

I have gained a deeper understanding of the organization by doing service for them. The work that they do is difficult and time consuming. Yet the employees who work there get paid just enough to be working at minimum wage. The amount of effort that they put in does not equal the amount of monetary gains that they get out. Personally, I would not be able to work as hard as they do for the small amount of funds that they receive. But that is what makes these people unique. They are not concerned with themselves; they are concerned with the greater good and helping the less fortunate. In their minds money is not important, and all they want to do is help others who do not have the tools to help themselves.

Voluntary Poverty

To me voluntary poverty is about giving up the things in life that you do not need and seeking things that will make you whole. By giving up material goods and things that society deems important, we can spend more time developing the self. People who practice voluntary poverty believe that by giving up the unnecessary, there will be more time to help the less fortunate. This goes along with what I have learned at Loras College. I have learned that we need to put ourselves in other people's shoes, and learn to look at things through someone else's eyes.

I think that voluntary poverty is understated in today's age of material goods and technology. Nowadays, I feel that there are more things to give up than there was a few decades ago. I do not think that all are called to this life. Not everyone is called to be a lawyer or a surgeon or a police officer. Everyone has their calling and voluntary poverty is for some and not all. If everyone lived in voluntary poverty, then other aspects of life would lose out on important people. If the world's greatest surgeon decided to go live a life of voluntary poverty that would greatly impact the field of medicine. Some are called to it, others are not.

Anyone can be called and it is not limited to just Christians. People can choose to live a simple life, and Christians are not the only people who give up material possessions. People of all religions and races have chosen to give up the life of excess and will continue to do so throughout time.

Exemplary Character

I do not really have a story at my service site where someone showed exemplary character. I have only visited my actual site for a few hours, and most of the service I am doing I have to take care of on my own. I do however think that everyone who works at Operation New View has an exemplary character at times. In order to do this difficult work for such low pay I think that you have to be a good person and really believe that what you are doing is virtuous. Most of these workers could have gotten higher paying jobs, but they chose to do work that helps the less fortunate. Everyone that I met was very nice and willing to do what it takes to help others. They all had a positive attitude even though their jobs require them to work long hours for a lower wage.

I think that Courage is a virtue that people working in the non-profit industry must have. To me, it takes a lot of courage to do work and not get paid an adequate amount. Life is expensive, especially if you have a family. It takes a lot of courage to give up the finer things in life in order to provide a great service for others. I think that if you are going to be courageous you need to believe that what you are doing is truly for the greater good of society. If your heart is not completely into the work that you are doing then you will not be able to accept the minimum pay.

Service Project

For my service opportunity I am working for Operation New View as their marketing coordinator. New View provides different head start programs for the less fortunate in an effort to help people in need. They have programs such as weatherization which helps people who cannot properly heat their homes during the winter by getting them a new furnace. They also have programs that allow people to file for their tax returns for free. My job is to work on different brochures and other marketing tools in order to help spread the word about the different programs that New View offers. My service has entailed meeting with the heads of each department in the organization to determine what they want said in their brochures and how they want their information portrayed to their potential recipients.

My service calls several issues to mind. The main thing is that some people are so poor that they cannot afford to heat their homes during the winter, or they can't afford to do their taxes and earn back some money. The main issue is that people who qualify for help don't realize that they qualify. A lot of people don't receive the help that they need because they simply don't know that they can be helped. At Loras I have learned that many people come from different walks of life and that a lot of people are different than me and have different views and opinions. But Loras has also taught me that everyone should be given a level of equality and respect, and just because someone has a different view doesn’t mean that they are wrong. It is my job to get the message out to people who qualify for help; these people may be a lot different than I am but that does not mean that I can’t help them. This service allows me to give several people a bit of hope, that someday they can work their way out of poverty and have a better life for themselves and their family.

Character Development and Service to Others

I viewed an interview of Dr. Morris Dees on YouTube. Dr. Dees described how when he was first starting out in the civil rights movement he had to go against the establishment to help the poor and African Americans. This turned the community against him because he made a decision that he felt was right but many did not find popular. I think that this relates to what we have been discussing in class in regards to leading a virtuous life. In order to develop your own character and be virtuous, you need to do things as an individual and not just because society believes it is the right thing to do. You need to keep the dignity of others in mind when you make your decisions, but that does not mean you should blindly follow what other people believe is the right thing to do. You need to make your own decision. In this case, Dr. Dees went against the popular sentiment at the time and instead defended those who needed help. He did what was right for human dignity and went against what was popular.

Dr. Dees provided a great service to others by defending African Americans and poor people during the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. Many members of the community turned on him after he defended people of the opposite race, but Dr. Dees continued his service to the less fortunate. He said that many types of people get blamed for things that are not their fault, and that often times people are just looking for someone that they can blame. By doing what was considered by many to be unpopular, Dr. Dees managed to help many lives that otherwise would have been unfairly discriminated against.

Social Issues and Catholic Social Teaching

A social issue that I find very compelling is the issue of obesity. We live in a country where too many people are overweight and continue to eat horrible food. While many of us recognize that this problem exists, people continue to get larger and larger with almost no end in sight. I think it is compelling because so many people are impacted by it yet the problem continues to get worse. People still continue to go to McDonald's and other fast food places even though they know how bad that food is for them. Many people sacrifice their health for convenience and cheap prices.

The Catholic Social Teachings say that consumption is an important part of experiencing life. In order to feel like a human being we all must take in certain amounts of things in our everyday life. Whether that be food, drink, or memorable experiences. The Catholic Social Teachings do say that over consumption is a major issue and is one that must be addressed. They speak of obesity as a great evil because of the amount of lives it ends.

I think that it is important that this topic is addressed by the Catholic Social Teachings; however there is not a lot that can be done. People need to get into a mindset where they realize that they must eat healthy or their quality of life will suffer. My experiences at Loras have shown me that many people have different viewpoints. Eating healthy is important to me, but it may not be that important to somebody else. Until everyone comes together and tries to eat healthier obesity will continue to be a major problem in the world that we live in.

Catholic Identity

As Catholics at Loras College we have a sense of justice and charity that must be given to the surrounding community. We recognize that we are fortunate to be at this college, and some people are not so lucky. Rather than focusing on ourselves, we realize that we must go out into the community and provide charity for the less fortunate. Simply focusing on ourselves and the life that we live is not enough, and as Catholics we recognize this. We strive to help others and do our best to provide justice where it is needed.

At the same time, this Catholic identity can hinder or inhibit student development. Sometimes as Catholics we tend to focus on our own views and perspectives and see other people's beliefs and decisions as incorrect ones. Often times we don't put ourselves in their shoes; we don't understand their beliefs or we think they are wrong.

Finally, I think that Loras has given me many tools that will help me serve my community in my service project. They have given me the ability to understand the viewpoints of people whose background may be different than my own. Using this ability I will be better equipped to not only understand what someone may be going through, but I will also be able relate to them and try and help them. I have also gained knowledge in many different fields as a result of the Liberal Arts program, and thus am able to help serve the community in a variety of ways.

Character and Liberal Arts

When you receive a liberal arts education you are not only developing your mind, you are also developing your character. By gaining knowledge in several areas of study, rather than just one subject, you learn to approach problems by several different angles. This helps develop your character because you stop focusing on one viewpoint and put yourself in other people's shoes. You stop being selfish and egotistical and start listening to other people and respecting their opinions.

This is the best value that a liberal arts education helps students cultivate. You stop focusing on your own viewpoint and consider the needs of other people as well. By learning to accept people who have different viewpoints than you do, you become a more well-rounded individual which helps you become a better person. Once you learn that the decisions you make impact everyone around you, and not just you yourself, you become a better person.

I believe that Loras has helped me see the world through other people's perspectives. By doing this I am able to see things in a different light, and am able to use this to gain more knowledge and make decisions that are better for those around me. I have learned more about myself as a result of attending Loras than I would have had I gone to a state university. By gaining a more well-rounded view of the world I am also able to better understand myself and the way that my actions impact others.