The Last Blog

For a non Catholic person, this class still has a lot of value. Even though Francis was a Catholic, his views weren't only Catholic,they were universal. His life is something everybody can value for reasons other than religions. His love of nature and his respect for all human beings is something that everybody can benefit from. If everybody, Catholic and non-Catholic, lived even a little more like Francis, there would be a lot less problems. Learning about how these teachings apply to us today helps us realized that our lives can be way less complicated and that can benefit everybody even if they aren't a religion at all. I think Francis' teachings are reflected in a lot of other religions as well as simple humane actions, but they are more intense with his faith, which is why Catholics get more out of it, but everybody can benefit.

Dom's reaction

After volunteering at the community house, i felt like i really had accomplished something.  We were originally supposed to help with the garden but since the weather permitted it, we switched to the food pantry.  When Keesha told us that she had been meaning to send food out to people for Thanksgiving but just didn't have the time, I knew that she really wanted us to be there and help out.  At no time at all did I feel like we were intruding.  We stuck to the room with the food pantry and almost cleared the shelves of food within 2 hours.  During the process of boxing up cans and food, I enjoyed knowing the fact that this food probably wouldn't have been able to be sent out to people in need without our help and it really motivated me to work hard.

Bridget's post even reaction

I think this project went very well. We were able to package pretty much all the food and filled up almost all of the boxes. While doing it, I realized how much of a difference we were making. We were giving people food, a basic necessity. To a lot of us, the need for food has never been too big of an issue. This service project opened my eyes to how many people are in need in this community and how much a box of canned goods can really help them. I enjoyed this service project and thought it was a lot of fun.

Abby's post project reaction

I think our project went really well. It was too cold outside to dig up the garden so we ended up making up boxes of food for families in need for Christmas. I had a really good time and really felt good about the work we were doing. Keesha, the lady in charge of volunteers, kept saying how helpful we were to her and the other people that worked there because they had so much other work to do that they wouldn't have time to get their food pantry emptied. It also felt good knowing we were giving people food for the holidays. We got a lot done and made a lot of boxes for the people in need.

Jakes post project reaction

I felt that our group project went very well when we went to the community center. When we got there due to weather we weren't able to dig up the garden like planned, but got to do other nice work inside. The work that we did was packing food boxes for families in need in the Sioux City area. They were discontinuing their food pantry program our job was to clean the shelves and put things into the boxes evenly. We were able to finish our job by putting the canned goods in the boxes and the center will put some kind of meat in the box to finish it off and have it to the families by Christmas.

Dom's preliminary

My feelings toward our service project at the community center are kind of mixed.  I want to help and feel like I am actually needed, but also I don't want to feel like I am just getting in the way. I want the employees to see us as contributing not as dumb college kids just trying to get a grade. I hope our time at the community center will be productive and successful.

Bridget's preliminary

This service project excites me. Where I am from, we liked to live in a "bubble". Many people worried about themselves and only themselves. We didn't like to acknowledge that there were a lot of people needing help in our community, people who were not as fortunate. Although I did a lot of service through school, I still wish I could have done more. I am excited and kind of nervous for tomorrow. I am excited to do some more service in the Sioux City community and just be able to lend a hand, even if it's in the slightest. I think it will be fun and hopefully a great learning experience. Habitat for Humanity is a great organization and I am lucky I will finally be able to do service for them, I just wish it didn't have to take 18 years for me to get involved in their organization