Spring Break Service Trip Wrap Up
Wow, it’s been an amazing spring break. I went on a service trip to Wilmington, DE with a bunch of IV peeps. Our days consisted of volunteer work, playing/tutoring little kids, and really good religious discussions when there was a spare moment. Our group went on this trip through an organization called UrbanPromise, which works on educating and having after school programs for low income inner city children. We stayed in the staff house and actually lived with many of the full time workers of the program. I grew really close to the IV and UrbanPromise people in the week. I’ve gotten a lot of issues sorted out for myself, and I feel more inspired to get involved in some sort of community service/social justice organization when I get back to campus.
Saturday: Drove up to NoVa to stay at someone’s house overnight before going to Wilmington the next day. It was a pretty nice chill day, we watched Bruce Almighty, which was a pretty cool movie
Sunday: Good conversations in the car. Revealed my religious conversion experience with the people I was riding with. Then I asked them about how they felt God speaks to people, something I was unsure about. I hear people say it all the time, but it’s most often not from hearing voices in your head. They said there’s a whole variety of ways, but some ways can be certain passages of scripture pooping out at you, significant conversations with people, or events that seem to be more than just coincidence. Latter on that night before we went to bed our group studied the Sermon on the Mount passage about not worrying. I had been getting anxious that night about getting up at 7am the next morning (since I haven’t been getting up earlier than 10:30 this whole semester.) But reading this again reminded me how seeking to Glorifying God is so much more important than worrying about your personal needs. This really helped me relax and get to sleep that night. This is the first time I felt I’ve been aware of God speaking to me, and it was a good spiritual start to the week.
Monday: Woke up to go shower at the YMCA. The shower room the guys had was just one big open room without any stalls in it. Luckily there was only one other guy in the group, and there wasn’t anyone else there in the morning, so it wasn’t too awkward. But this organization wonders why a bunch of gay guys (the Village People) sung about having sex in their locker rooms, sigh…But the highlight of the day was a talk a black guy that had grown up through the Urban Promise Program. He gave a good picture of racial tension in America. He made us realize that white people still have advantages and much more privileges in our modern society. He still believes we’re all equal in Christ, but in the physical world the equality isn’t there. He said we shouldn’t be ashamed of our privileges, but we should accepted it and use it to help people that are less privileged. He also crystallized in my mind the differences between upfront racism and more hidden covert racism. Most blacks in America don’t have a “kill whitey” mindset. But many have a feeling of being oppressed by “the system” that is run by whites. He stated that in the poor black neighborhoods, the white people that are around are either cops, social workers that take away their kids, or crack heads. So the white people that they see are deeply resented. So even if they don’t hate a particular white person personally, there’s still a feeling of resentment many blacks have against whites. Of course not all black people think the same, just like any other race, but this was his opinion that seemed pretty convincing. Playing with kids was pretty cool in the afternoon. I brought my crow puppet that squawks when you squeeze it, and it was pretty popular with the kids.
In the evening the members of the executive board running UrbanPromise came in to talk to us after dinner. I was stuck away how they were so involved in UrbanPromise but held full-time suite-and-tie business jobs during the day. One member discussed how he felt called to hold both type of jobs, and is able to use his connections in his business to get UrbanPromise a lot of money. These people are a real role model for me. I want to do some sort of significant charity work, but at the same time still want be an economist. These people showed me how I can actually pursue both at the same time.
Tuesday. The director of UrbanPromise had a bible study with us in the morning about what it means to be “in Christ.” He’s such an inspirational speaker. He feels so passionate about making a difference for impoverished people in this city. He left his high paying leadership position in a chemical engineering firm to start UrbanPromise in Wilmington (it had already existed in Camden, NJ) He and other staff members have really gotten me to care more about charity and social justice. He’s a really nice person, but one point during the study he got really angry when talking about compliancy in the Christian Community regarding social justice. He angrily said a lot of people in the Christian community are hypocrites and no better than the sinful Jews of Israel that are slammed in the Old Testament prophecies. That moment made be realize how complacent I have been toward these issues as well. I hope that when I come back to William and Mary, I can give God more than just lip service and seriously pursue social justice through my actions.
Wednesday. The Street leaders at Urban Promise spoke to us in the evening. They’re the teenagers that help run the after school programs in the afternoon. They spoke about themselves, their general experience with this organization, and growing up in Wilmington. I asked if the crime statistics I hear about really make growing up in the city a bad experience, or if it doesn’t affect their lives personally that much. They said that for the most part are able to carry out their lives normally without being in a constant state of fear. Some even said the crime helps to make them tougher and more mature. But when the discussion leader told the street leaders to raise their hand if they had been affected by gun violence, almost every one of them raised their hand. One had their father shot and killed last year.
Afterward we just had a discussion with one of the white staff members. He said 10% of Wilmington residents have been involved in some sort of criminal activity. But he believes that a far larger number have the potential to commit crimes due to the situation they’re in. He believes many could snap at any moment, and an event like the 92 LA race riots could happen in Wilmington. So even if only a fraction has committed a crime, most people could easily be triggered into committing one.
Thursday. Dinner was at the director’s house. His wife cooked an Indian Dish called Chicken Masala. It was amazing! At dinner he had each of us talk about our Christian background. I was surprised how many others in my group hadn’t grown up in a Christian home and hadn’t been Christian their whole lives. One person’s parents actually banned her from going to Church in High School. We also revealed what we learned so far during the trip. Most of the other people have seemed to have had a similar perspective changing experience that I’ve had. One person said they’ve learned to be more attached to God rather than other people, which I thought was cool. Regarding the racism issue, he explained how important the work of organization like UrbanPromise is. Young black kids seeing white people in this type of constructive environment can make a world of difference. The director again harped upon perusing social justice, but also stated how we were a really cool group of people that have been loved by him and the rest of the staff. He said seeing college people like us give him hope for the future.
Friday: We were going to have a speech contest for the kids, but it got cancelled because of the snow. I had a good discussion with one of the staff members about race. He made me realize how one bad experience with a member of another race can fuel racism. It was then that I understood how the mean, crazy mom of my Chinese ex has been able to cause hostility toward Asian culture in myself. The staff member said it’s understandable, but I need to realize this feeling I have isn’t true. With regards to having problems with certain parts of Asian culture, he said I should search whether these issues are due to believing it’s against God’s will, or merely if it’s against God’s will.
List of scripture we’ve studied
Matt 6-25-34; Luke 7:18-23; Micah 6:6-8: this was a particularly significant verse for me, stressing how acting justly, mercifully, and humbly is more important than any sort of monetary contribution one could make; John, assorted passages in the early teen section; 1 Cor. 3:5-11; Isaiah 1:21-26; Isaih 58:6-9; Phip 2:1-4; Eph 6:10-20
So in a nutshell, it was an amazing week!
Saturday: Drove up to NoVa to stay at someone’s house overnight before going to Wilmington the next day. It was a pretty nice chill day, we watched Bruce Almighty, which was a pretty cool movie
Sunday: Good conversations in the car. Revealed my religious conversion experience with the people I was riding with. Then I asked them about how they felt God speaks to people, something I was unsure about. I hear people say it all the time, but it’s most often not from hearing voices in your head. They said there’s a whole variety of ways, but some ways can be certain passages of scripture pooping out at you, significant conversations with people, or events that seem to be more than just coincidence. Latter on that night before we went to bed our group studied the Sermon on the Mount passage about not worrying. I had been getting anxious that night about getting up at 7am the next morning (since I haven’t been getting up earlier than 10:30 this whole semester.) But reading this again reminded me how seeking to Glorifying God is so much more important than worrying about your personal needs. This really helped me relax and get to sleep that night. This is the first time I felt I’ve been aware of God speaking to me, and it was a good spiritual start to the week.
Monday: Woke up to go shower at the YMCA. The shower room the guys had was just one big open room without any stalls in it. Luckily there was only one other guy in the group, and there wasn’t anyone else there in the morning, so it wasn’t too awkward. But this organization wonders why a bunch of gay guys (the Village People) sung about having sex in their locker rooms, sigh…But the highlight of the day was a talk a black guy that had grown up through the Urban Promise Program. He gave a good picture of racial tension in America. He made us realize that white people still have advantages and much more privileges in our modern society. He still believes we’re all equal in Christ, but in the physical world the equality isn’t there. He said we shouldn’t be ashamed of our privileges, but we should accepted it and use it to help people that are less privileged. He also crystallized in my mind the differences between upfront racism and more hidden covert racism. Most blacks in America don’t have a “kill whitey” mindset. But many have a feeling of being oppressed by “the system” that is run by whites. He stated that in the poor black neighborhoods, the white people that are around are either cops, social workers that take away their kids, or crack heads. So the white people that they see are deeply resented. So even if they don’t hate a particular white person personally, there’s still a feeling of resentment many blacks have against whites. Of course not all black people think the same, just like any other race, but this was his opinion that seemed pretty convincing. Playing with kids was pretty cool in the afternoon. I brought my crow puppet that squawks when you squeeze it, and it was pretty popular with the kids.
In the evening the members of the executive board running UrbanPromise came in to talk to us after dinner. I was stuck away how they were so involved in UrbanPromise but held full-time suite-and-tie business jobs during the day. One member discussed how he felt called to hold both type of jobs, and is able to use his connections in his business to get UrbanPromise a lot of money. These people are a real role model for me. I want to do some sort of significant charity work, but at the same time still want be an economist. These people showed me how I can actually pursue both at the same time.
Tuesday. The director of UrbanPromise had a bible study with us in the morning about what it means to be “in Christ.” He’s such an inspirational speaker. He feels so passionate about making a difference for impoverished people in this city. He left his high paying leadership position in a chemical engineering firm to start UrbanPromise in Wilmington (it had already existed in Camden, NJ) He and other staff members have really gotten me to care more about charity and social justice. He’s a really nice person, but one point during the study he got really angry when talking about compliancy in the Christian Community regarding social justice. He angrily said a lot of people in the Christian community are hypocrites and no better than the sinful Jews of Israel that are slammed in the Old Testament prophecies. That moment made be realize how complacent I have been toward these issues as well. I hope that when I come back to William and Mary, I can give God more than just lip service and seriously pursue social justice through my actions.
Wednesday. The Street leaders at Urban Promise spoke to us in the evening. They’re the teenagers that help run the after school programs in the afternoon. They spoke about themselves, their general experience with this organization, and growing up in Wilmington. I asked if the crime statistics I hear about really make growing up in the city a bad experience, or if it doesn’t affect their lives personally that much. They said that for the most part are able to carry out their lives normally without being in a constant state of fear. Some even said the crime helps to make them tougher and more mature. But when the discussion leader told the street leaders to raise their hand if they had been affected by gun violence, almost every one of them raised their hand. One had their father shot and killed last year.
Afterward we just had a discussion with one of the white staff members. He said 10% of Wilmington residents have been involved in some sort of criminal activity. But he believes that a far larger number have the potential to commit crimes due to the situation they’re in. He believes many could snap at any moment, and an event like the 92 LA race riots could happen in Wilmington. So even if only a fraction has committed a crime, most people could easily be triggered into committing one.
Thursday. Dinner was at the director’s house. His wife cooked an Indian Dish called Chicken Masala. It was amazing! At dinner he had each of us talk about our Christian background. I was surprised how many others in my group hadn’t grown up in a Christian home and hadn’t been Christian their whole lives. One person’s parents actually banned her from going to Church in High School. We also revealed what we learned so far during the trip. Most of the other people have seemed to have had a similar perspective changing experience that I’ve had. One person said they’ve learned to be more attached to God rather than other people, which I thought was cool. Regarding the racism issue, he explained how important the work of organization like UrbanPromise is. Young black kids seeing white people in this type of constructive environment can make a world of difference. The director again harped upon perusing social justice, but also stated how we were a really cool group of people that have been loved by him and the rest of the staff. He said seeing college people like us give him hope for the future.
Friday: We were going to have a speech contest for the kids, but it got cancelled because of the snow. I had a good discussion with one of the staff members about race. He made me realize how one bad experience with a member of another race can fuel racism. It was then that I understood how the mean, crazy mom of my Chinese ex has been able to cause hostility toward Asian culture in myself. The staff member said it’s understandable, but I need to realize this feeling I have isn’t true. With regards to having problems with certain parts of Asian culture, he said I should search whether these issues are due to believing it’s against God’s will, or merely if it’s against God’s will.
List of scripture we’ve studied
Matt 6-25-34; Luke 7:18-23; Micah 6:6-8: this was a particularly significant verse for me, stressing how acting justly, mercifully, and humbly is more important than any sort of monetary contribution one could make; John, assorted passages in the early teen section; 1 Cor. 3:5-11; Isaiah 1:21-26; Isaih 58:6-9; Phip 2:1-4; Eph 6:10-20
So in a nutshell, it was an amazing week!