Individual Narrative Essay

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    My group chose the topic of homelessness pertaining to parolees and ex-cons. We our main focus on them because e felt that they are very underrepresented when it comes to providing support for the homeless. What surprised me the most while researching my particular area was the amount of new information that I found out and was never aware of. I learned many things such as how there are thousands of people who get out of jail each year but often times they do not have a home to go back to. I found that information to be very intriguing because it was something that I never necessarily thought about up until recently. With the group work, I learned a lot about contributing as well as working together to equally get a job done. For instance,, I was very important that everyone did their part so that we could all succeed. I also enjoyed how we were all on the same page as far as brining awareness to the issue we were trying to advocate for. There some pros and cons that come with group work though. Such as some individuals not contributing as much as others, or even not doing some of the work. This can cause many roadblocks within the group and even set us back a bit.

    For my service learning I decided to go to a Youth center that helped yung kids get off the streets. They provided them with food and even transportation as well. This experience was vey memorable to me because I was able to take part in such an act by volunteering as an art instructor, in which I gave the kids a chance to partake in an expressive but fun activity. I also recently volunteered at the Gleaner’s Community food Bank, where I helped package different foods such as apple and asparagus, in order to be shipped out and sent to soup kitchens and such. My involvement in my project has also shaped my perspective on the issue a bit more.

 

      Since we put so much time into learning about homelessness, I found out so many different things that I did not know before. I feel that the issue of homelessness is also a lot more of an awareness now that I have gotten the chance to step up first hand and voice it as well as take action. There are many things that I have learned this semester that will stay with me. Such as learning how to voice my opinion, and advocate for change as well. I learned that it is not difficult take action against something you feel o strongly about. I also learned a lot about politics and how the government works to make changes as well. I do consider this course a large part of my intellectual development because it brought to e a new perspective and ideas on how I can advocate for change. Before this class, I was unfamiliar with getting policies together, researching them, and even trying to get them reformed or changed. Therefore, in conclusion this class was a great benefit for me. I have been opened up to an array of new things, which will stick with me in the long run as well.