Blast Off to Atlanta!- Human Trafficking and Women's Health

It was a cold and foggy Thursday morning... just kidding it was kind of hot and everyone was a little cranky because it was 7am. The ride to Atlanta was full of good jams and conversations about baby muffins and horse-sized ducks. We arrived at our housing site City of Light, and the perpetually amiable Reverend Paul greeted us and gave us a tour of the Spiritual Center. We bonded over grocery shopping at the local Walmart while picking out multiple flavors of pop tarts, break-and-bakes, and 8 pounds of ground beef. We shared mysterious medical stories and wondered how any of us are alive... or can see the world around us (because every last one of us has terrible eyesight). We ended the night feeling warm, fuzzy, and concerned for Owen's health with dreams of chair beds and crashing elevators. 

Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, we awoke to a wonderful breakfast of sugary cereal and Poptarts. We started off our day of service with our housing site - City of Light. We transported books and some unbelievably old computers to a storage unit. In the process, we managed to make a magnificent library and clean out an entire room to make space for a new office. The new library was #aesthetic once we were done with it. Next, we went to Covenant House for more service. Covenant House is a non-profit that houses 18-21 year olds who have been affected by human trafficking and homelessness. We split into two groups and did two different types of work. One group helped assemble furniture, including a desk and a dresser. The other group helped stamp and address OVER 1800 invitations to their largest annual fundraiser. The fundraiser brings in Broadway stars from New York and last year brought in $600,000. This year, the organization is expecting the fundraiser to bring in $750,000!!! Our small group had a big impact on this organization. The work we did would have taken one person weeks, but we tackled it in a matter of hours. We were proud to have been able to do so much for such a good cause. 

We had tacos and coffee for dinner (Fiesta Friday) with BREAK-AND-BAKE COOKIES. We ended the night by playing Clue and Cards Against Humanity. We had some serious Clue amateurs in our group. Overall, it was an amazing day full of laughter, hard work, bonding, and reflection of what we learned from the Atlanta community. On to the next day.. gotta blast!

AFB 2017: Human Trafficking and Women’s Health: Day 3, GETTIN’ DIRTY

This morning we woke up early after being woken up twice by Delaney. We ate some delicious Pop-Tarts and leftover tacos and hit the road to our service site! Our first service site was the adult home for Jerusalem house, an organization that provides long-term housing for individuals and families affected by HIV and AIDS.

We split into groups and tackled various yard work tasks. Some of us planted flowers, including beautiful pansies, while others pulled weeds and transplanted an invasive species. Others tilled a garden and planted head lettuce, mustard greens, and Georgia collards. Owen even used a chainsaw to trim hedges! We made friends with a man named James who taught us how to use a tiller, how to use a garden hoe, and other wisdom from his 21 years of experience with Jerusalem house. He also loves mango juice!

We finished ahead of schedule so after a quick lunch of PB&J’s and chips, we jumped at Sharon’s (the volunteer coordinator) offer to volunteer at their family site down the road. At the family site we met Ron who told us if we helped him rake and clean up the playground area it would put them 3 weeks ahead of schedule—wow! Ron, Owen, and Heather graced us with many leaf-related puns, such as “I be-leaf in you,” “leaf me alone,” and “I’m so re-leafed we finished.”

Next we visited the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic site, which included the King Birth Home, Fire Station No. 6, the King Center, and Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church. We learned about the impact Dr. King, Coretta King, Mahatma Gandhi, and Rosa Parks had on civ

il rights, the personal lives of the Kings, and the history of the church—Ebenezer Baptist only had 5 pastors in ~120 years! We also happened to see a historical reenactment of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech from the only Dr. King impersonator sanctioned by the King Center.  We saw Dr. and Mrs. King’s tomb and the eternal flame always lit to remember the continuing efforts to achieve equality in every generation.

Later on we showered at Emory for the last time and ate tasty soul food at "Who’s Got Soul?,” which we give a 10/10! Tonight we will continue our tradition of board games and going to bed way to late.

Leadership Legacy

As a leader, I hope to leave a legacy of kindness. I hope to encourage others to strive to be kind to themselves and to all that they come into contact with. I hope to inspire others to engage in genuine, thoughtful conversations and to learn all that they can from one another, with an open mind and heart. Ideally, my legacy of kindness will be used to encourage the growth of a diverse and accepting community

Legacy

My legacy is to love others to the best of my ability, to remain consistent to my faith and values, and to be an advocate for people and places in need. It is my hope that I helped others believe in themselves, remaining a constant encouragement. I hope to have showed others the true beauty of the outdoors and the importance of preserving it. If anything, I hope people know I care for what I am involved in.

Sam's Legacy

I believe that my leadership legacy that I will leave at the University of Tennessee will impact three primary organizations. I believe that my legacy will be reflected in Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, the Ambassador Program, and the Ignite Program. I have been incredibly passionate about these three organizations over the past four years, and I believe that the time and dedication that I have contributed to these organizations has hopefully left a lasting impact on future generations.

Legacy

I believe my leadership legacy is one that exists in those who I have interacted with throughout the past four years as a student here at UT, and through a commitment to growth in others and always leading with the utmost integrity and character, I hope I have positively affected others' lives. I hope I have inspired others to always work their hardest, strive to be the best version of themselves they can be, and believe in themselves to achieve great things.

Victoria's Legacy

My legacy and my mission statement I've worked on throughout all of my leadership classes continues to become more aligned. The more I have been exposed to people from all different walks of life and seen their legacies, the more I have solidified mine. 

I want my legacy to be one of care and compassion, and not just the surface-level unauthentic, compassion. I would rather be known and very well known and respected by a smaller crowd than known of by many. I want to be a person people always knew they could come to, a reliable person who they trusted. While many people are known for their success or title at their job, it's clear I value success in ways that exceed just attaining material objects and titles.

I want people to see this about me. I don't want any sense of artificiality given off in any of my actions. I put a huge importance on intentionality, and I hope people will always be able to see my true intentions and not doubt them.

I want people to see that I truly fought to give voices to people who have been systematically silenced. However, I want others to know that my contribution to the fight was never for self-recognition. When people talk about me I want to be the ally that actually helped, and stepped back when needed. 

I want my friends and family to know I always cared for them, and believed in them. I want to be remembered as a person who had wonderful relationships with others and who was always their number 1 supporter. 

I want to be remembered as a person who didn't accept things because "that's just how things are". I want to be remembered. And not just any memory, I want those long silly stories, as I always try to lighten a person's day. Through my leadership classes, I have learned that I don't just want to do this by gaining followers, but I want to be able to create solid leaders to instill our values into others.