Community Service... You Gotta Love It

Hey guys! I feel the need to talk and write about certain things today. I have a lot of writing and researching to do due to Mid-terms; however, you just need a hour or so break to alleviate any stress you develop. With that said, I would now like to present to you the second portion of last week's journey.

Lately, I have been excruciatingly busy with everything: my organizations, my academics, community service, social events. By the week of last week, I felt exhausted and I wanted a change in events. I don't like to be still so my friends and I went to the Common Ground Free Store just a couple of roads down from OWU to do some valuable community service. I have done community service in the past for OWU but I didn't know what to anticipate as this was my first time at the Common Ground.

We walked in and Bonnie Ristau, co-director of the Common Ground Free Store introduced herself to us. We were pretty delighted to see that the store was there in one peace and that business was going quite smoothly. Bonnie showed us the ropes of the store, from sweeping and vacuuming, stocking shelves, and unloading and loading customer's vehicles. My friends and I divided the amount of tasks between us to get the work done as efficiently as possible. All of us had exams we needed to study for and as good as the community service was going to be, we all knew that if we didn't get back to OWU sooner or later, we would probably have to pull an all-nighter, which is always very brutal on your spirit and health.

For the first half, I stocked the shelves and removed any hangers that cluttered the area. The clothes was given by people who didn't have any need for them anymore so they donated to the Free Store. There was all kinds of assortments- men's, women's, and children's. After bringing all of the clothes from the back of the storage room, I decided to go find another task that wasn't time consuming. For the second half, my tasks included helping load a customers mini-van with tons of clothing to give back to other Free Stores (how awesome is that- the gift of giving is still here), putting books and toys in the appropriate areas of the store, and sort any clothes that needed to be sorted out.

All of this time, I have waited to do community service with people that I can trust and know. Most of the time, I did community service by myself and I admit that service is a lonely thing. Now, I feel that having people helping makes service a lot better for me and for the community as a whole. Being able to serve in a capacity that will help benefit people that are less fortunate than I am is something divinely inspired. Personally, I chose this community service project as a bonding experience for my friends, not to mention that we actually had fun doing the project. I am obliged to serve under any circumstance if that is what I am called to do. This experience with my friends have opened my eyes to doing many more things with the community. I want to help out, one day at a time.

Well, I am glad this is off my chest. I think the pictures on the top explain the story better than I can despite some of the pictures being sideways. Take a look! On a real note, community service is something most people take for granted or do because they are forced to do it. I encourage people to step up without having to be forced- community service is a good way to build up your resume and to show that you care for your community. Prospectives reading this should realize that if you have community service on your resume, you are more marketable to future employers because you stand out when you put in the extra initiative of serving in whatever form. In closing, community service is just so valuable. I guarantee that if you do community service, you will receive something back tenfold and odds are you won't see it coming. This is just something I feel the need to share today.

Put yourself out here people,

Hasani Wheat

Class of '10