For our February 26th meeting of Bear Breaks Spring Leaders, Heather Blades of the Center for Dispute Resolution came by to speak to us on the best way to talk through conflicts. While we hope there won't be any fighting or too large of conflicts on our trips, sometimes people will disagree due to our discussion of different topics that come from our experiences. We also spoke … [Read more...] about Conflict Resolution and Countdown to Spring Break
I started my year off with a leap. I took a week of winter break and went on an immersion trip to Monteverde, Costa Rica. I left with little knowledge of what life in this area would look like on a daily basis, and returned with a wealth of knowledge and perspective. Costa Rican culture places a large emphasis on traditional families and the environment. The roles of family … [Read more...] about Coffee and Culture
Time flies in just a blink of an eye! Bears finished their last regular meeting for this semester on the past Wednesday. We were also having an awesome potluck in our “Ugly Christmas Sweaters.” I spent my last few breaks doing volunteer work with Bear Breaks and learned lots of valuable lessons through every immersion trip. Volunteering is demanding to some degree, it makes me … [Read more...] about Volunteers, a precious resource we can not afford to lose!
This week was our seventh meeting, and we were welcomed with a Non-Profit Panel. Representatives from The Kitchen Inc, Community Partnership of the Ozarks, Drew Lewis Foundation, and Be Civil Be Heard took time out of their day to come speak on the topic of Homelessness in Springfield. Each organization contributes in a different way to help with the issue at hand. Two main … [Read more...] about Leaving a Legacy through Service
Blighted homes: "Any dwelling considered unfit for habitation because it's "dilapidated, unsanitary, unsafe, vermin infested, or lacking in facilities and equipment required by the housing code."" Blighted homes are no new thing. They exist all over the world due to a variety of reasons; from abandonment, lack of funds for upkeep, or natural disasters. In New Orleans, there … [Read more...] about Empathy and Service in New Orleans