Introduction
Community service is being involved in work done by community based that is non-profitable to the organization or to an individual with the need of helping people in the community. Community service cuts across a range of services that include information and advice, advocacy, counseling and support that targets a diverse range of people and area of interest. This paper seeks to give a reflective thought on my experience doing community service at Lafayette Urban Ministry.
Lafayette Urban Ministry (LUM) is an organization that serves as a societal safety net for Lafayette’s needy families and children. LUM works with the aim of giving hope, a future and self-respect to the less fortunate in the larger area of Lafayette. It takes the role of changing injustices to improve the quality of life for the poor in Indiana. I worked with the Lafayette Urban Ministry Emergency Shelter which provides short term, an overnight shelter, meals and showers for homeless individuals. The LUM Emergency Shelter can accommodate number of 44 adults each night. These individuals may be ones who require shelter due to a number of reasons as inability of paying rent, loss of job or health problems.
My reason for choosing to work as a volunteer with the Lafayette Urban Ministry Emergency Shelter is that is gives a chance to give back to the community in which I have lived in. It also gives an opportunity to personally connect with the people I assist. Being a volunteer offers an experience larger than myself. It teaches life principles such as humility that are crucial in human living. I wanted to interact with various peoples in the community who may be experiencing various problems in housing or looking for job and also assist them with advice and also learn their opinion of how they view life. Indeed, it is true that by our giving we receive more. The more we give our talents, skills, time the more we will be able to connect with others and in turn these connections enrich our lives and also create more opportunities for us. With this view, I was enthusiastic about serving in the LUM Emergency Shelter.
The staff in the organization was very welcoming. The organization, being built on a Christian foundation, employs staff who possesses virtues and is fully equipped for good work. So this helped in my interaction with them as they were warm and accorded me help where I needed. They were able to orient me well such that it took me less time to call the place home as they were very hospitable.
LUM Emergency Shelter plan in utilizing me was to promote their mission which is to restore human’s dignity. The aim of the organization is to fight poverty that deprives human of food, shelter and warmth. The organization incorporated me to aid in achieving its goals of giving back hope, future and self-respect which all God’s people need and deserve. The work entailed coordination of helping food to be served to various persons and also admission of people into the organization to provide them with accommodation. Also provided advisory services to those who were entangled to various issues in their lives and teaching them Christian values.
I enjoyed my stay in the organization as the staff of the organization was supportive and helped me deliver my services well. The external customers that came to the organization for help were understanding and patient to be provided with the services. Their attitude about the organization was good and therefore this offered a smooth interaction with them, since they had a noble foundation about LUM. Lafayette Urban Ministry retains its staff by offering them accommodation services within the organization. Also LUM is assisted through aids from individuals that help in its running. Since it is a Christ based organization, staff in LUM provide their skills, services and time on a voluntary basis as they live as sacrificial life just as Jesus portrayed.
The organization gives a selfless service to its customers as they put interest of their customers first to theirs. The organization is a Christian Ministry that welcomes peoples of all faiths. It witnesses of God’s saving love and the power in loving neighbors by seeking justice and empowering the least in the community and renewing the Christian social ministry. This is done by having a personal connection with the clients and getting to know the problems they are experiencing and helping them out by providing possible solutions.
My overall experience was awesome because I was able to learn quite a lot from the organization and also the clients I interacted with. I learnt on having a strong Christian basis influences one’s decision majorly on giving back to the community and also in ones values and characters. It is important to solve issues based on Christian values and principles because we get to understand God’s plans in our lives and trusting him for our lives. Another virtue I learnt is selflessness. The staff of their organization was selfless and offered their skills, time and talent to the achievement of the organization’s mission and goals without expecting pay. The love also they showed to their customers was also amazing.
The organization work was good that I gained trust with them. They help in building individuals who have lost hope in their lives by assuring them that they can still find hope and have a future. They also provided services that help in accepting various individuals into the community who are less fortunate with high levels of poverty. In doing this, the individuals feel appreciate and part of the community. They also have a different perspective of life when they get to the organization, which is the role of community based organization in transforming the lives of the lesser in the community.
The lesson that I took home from the organization was the principle of humility that the organization portrayed. Other principles include care and concern for the community irrespective of the faith one has, support to individuals without expecting pay that is offering free shelter services and food.
The similarity of Lafayette with other organizations is that they offer services to their customers without expecting pay. They both offer advisory services to individuals that are suffering with various issues in life. They both offer assistance to children in the community that are less privileged.
There are quite outstanding differences that LUM has comparing to the other community based organizations. One being that LUM offers services to both children and families while most organizations only offer aid to the children. Another important one is that the principle and mission of LUM is based on Christian values that trains individuals on key Christian principles on how to handle life issues, while the other organizations help individuals with just providing materialistic needs. LUM majorly depends on selfless individuals to work as their staff in achieving the mission of the organization without much depending on financial aid to pay the staffs while most organizations they depend on financial aid from sponsors to pay their staff.
Conclusion
I generally had a wonderful time volunteering in the organization by offering my services and as well as giving back to the community. The organization’s job is commendable and working as a volunteer in an organization equips one with important life skills in handling people and also solutions in handling various issues in life. Community service gives us a wakeup call to serve the community with what we have acquired over the years in our lives. I enjoyed my time with the organization. Having to meet with various people and giving them hope about life and assuring them that there is a future ahead. Also through working in the organization I was able to build my confidence when relating to the clients and also the people working in the organization. The friendships that I made are lifetime that also strengthens my ties with individuals in the community. In summary, Community service provides one with psychological benefits that include life satisfaction, feeling nice of oneself therefore reduces stress and depression, social benefits which creates a bond with the people in the community and cognitive benefits that enhances one’s knowledge, development of new skills and experiences. Also one learns how to participate in team building activities within the community.
