Since I am a member of Dunn Sports and Wellness Scholoars, I am required to fulfill at least 10 hours of volunteer hours. To accomplish this I volunteered during the day of service, cleaned up the Schottenstein Center after a concert, and I participated in the DSWS day of service.
(Left: Evan Connelly, Middle: Tate Harnett, Right: Myself)
During the day of serivce, I helped pull weeds and clean up at Indianola Informal K-8 community garden for 5 hours. I learned about this program through the weekly emails from Honors and Scholars. We were tasked to pull as many weeds as possible, and that made it possible for more plants top be planted and flourish, making the garden more diverse. Looking back on my time at the garden, I realized how a community garden can affect a community. While we were working, a mom and her son stopped by and thanked us for helping because they love using fresh vegetables and coming together with everyone in the community to make this garden. As a leader, I recognized that leading a group to accomplish community service affects more than the community; when you volunteer you become more whole as a person.
https://activities.osu.edu/involvement/service_outreach/pay_it_forward/community_commitment/
Outside of DSWS, I am apart of Athletic Training Club as a pre-major member. Each year the club does one volunteering event, and this year we cleaned up the Schottenstein Center after a J. Cole concert, picking up trash and mopping the lower bowl for 2 hours. I learned that after an event at the Schot. there is a ton of trash, and someone has to clean up all that trash. I am now more aware of that simply making sure you don’t make a mess during a basketball game or a concert you are helping the people who are cleaning after. Cleaning up after a large event like this, it has taught me as a leader that whatever group that I lead should be environmentally well.
Finally, I also participated in the Dunn Sports and Wellness Day of Service. My group was tasked to move furniture art the Columbus Furniture Bank for 5 hours. My group moved over 200 beds to make room for future furniture. This helped them because if we did not do that chore, then it would have taken much longer because they have very few workers and volunteers. I learned that some people need some help after they come out of bad situations like domestic abuse so they need some furniture for their new place. The Furniture Bank provides beds, desks, chairs, cabnets, and wardrobes all for free to those in need. I learned that I can do much more for those in need than I was already doing. As a leader, I will now try to appreciate what my group has and try not to fester over what we don’t have.
Because of serivce learning I am now more aware of what I can do to help others and how other people are not as fortunate to be in the same position as myself.