Hi everyone! I’m YiKen Jongerius and I’m the trip leader for this year’s Chicago Spring Immersion Trip. It has been an action-packed week, and I can’t believe it’s already over.
Service
Today at St. James Food Pantry, we helped pack food, organized the shelves, and distributed food to clients. People had various jobs throughout our time there, and I was kind of a floater and helped do any little job I could such as reorganizing boxes and putting food into the distribution bags.
Chloe and Min sorting shelves.
With other volunteers!
With Ms. Kathy.
Reflection
Ms. Kathy, the food pantry director, asked us questions throughout the day like “what do you think this person is going through” and she encouraged us to think about how their clients live. We also role played and some of us would only be eating lunch and have to wait 2 days for another meal, while others had to wait for their government assistance to come in, or others didn’t have to think about where their next meal came from. I really enjoyed the role playing because I never realized how a person sometimes has to make tough decisions if they are poor or homeless because they have to choose between food or heat.
She ended the day with telling us her story and reminded us that everyone has a story and that we should all love each other. She mentioned that everyone received a gift today, whether it was a smile or respect or love; and that everyone gave a gift as well.
During our group reflection after service, I had my participants fill out a few questions such as “What have you learned about yourself through this experience” and “What actions can you take to further service this organization, social issue, or engage in the community?”
I always like hearing what people have to say during reflection, and I think it’s so cool that reflection encourages people to think about this experience and how it has impacted them in such a short time.
Last team huddle.
Last Day Exploring the City
We took a quick stop to see the Navy Pier to take pictures of the skyline and the ferris wheel.
Skyline.
Ferris Wheel.
We went to the SkyDeck in Willis Tower for our last night here. It was really fun to see the city lights and it made for some good pictures! For dinner, we had Chicago deep dish pizza and everyone really liked it.
Deep dish pizza- a Chicago classic.
Gratitude
During every reflection we had this week, I mentioned service and learning as a process. I really wanted to emphasize that we’re all learning and that it was okay to make mistakes because we’re not perfect. Also, several times this week people mentioned that we all need to show more compassion and kindness to each other, and how we can do our part to better our communities.
Sometimes we do actions that we consider to be small or unimportant, but in reality they can make a big change in someone’s life. Sometimes all it takes it a smile or simple greeting to make someone’s day.
I feel very appreciative for my team’s patience, support, and love. I can’t believe this trip is already over, but I know our work can continue in Springfield and other communities.