Community Service

     The major problem in society is not being ignorant of a situation, the problem occurs when some realizes that they lack understanding about something and choose not to do anything about it. When I was a child, I thought like a child.  I assumed that everyone had what I had as far as privileges & opportunities. I figured because I had clothes on my back, a roof over my head, and food on my table, others did too.  When I realized that was not true, I made an effort to make a change.

    I did not notice anyone else’s struggle until my family went through our own. On the 29^th of August, Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans. It didn’t only destroy my hometown; it took away the life of New Orleans. Because of that, my parents decided to relocate to Atlanta. My mother was seven months pregnant at the time and did not think it would be fare or health to raise a newborn in a gloomy city with no opportunities .It was near winter. My mom was 7 months pregnant with my little sister. Being that the hurricane destroyed everything, she had to depend on others, which was something she hated doing. It soon started to feel like American Red Cross & FEMA weren’t doing anything to help so my mom and dad had to find a way on their own. Winter was arriving and my mother had to get me and my sisters prepared for it. So that meant new winter coats, scarfs & gloves. I knew it was hard for my mother to get that for us. I started to think about how others felt, the ones who were less fortunate. 

     I attended Glenwood Academy in Decatur, Georgia. Everyone in the school always made me feel comfortable. Me and the school counselor were exceptionally close. She made the relocating very easy for me. One day I came to visit her in her office. I glanced outside the door and noticed a huge Christmas tree that was so bland, decorations couldn’t make it brighter.  I told her “That tree is too big to be so ugly”. We started exploring different ideas. I thought about how my family had problems with preparing us for winter and I had an epiphany.  I said, “let’s call it the’ Giving Tree’ “. From the name, I knew exactly what to do. Instead of decorating with lights, candy canes, and Christmas balls, I thought we can put winter items on it such as socks, scarfs, gloves & earmuffs. It was a great idea. We sent out flyers asking students and staff to bring items for the tree. We even got our knitting club to make some items .Closer to Christmas; we purchased bins to put at least 1 pair of socks, a scarf, and a hat. After packing up the bins, we had about 73. That meant 73 children that winter would be a little bit warmer.  Giving my situation, I still tried my best to bring things in to put on the tree. Surprisingly, when we were getting ready to pack up the truck with the bins, my counselor gave me three of them for my sisters and myself.

   Overall, I think that idea as a whole was great. Kids less fortunate than others had a chance to enjoy their Christmas a little better.  It wasn’t the latest Barbie doll, or those new Jordan’s, or a hot wheels track, but it was something. I’m not sure if all this is what the kids wanted for Christmas but, I know it was something that they needed and that’s what really mattered. That was my first community service project, & one of my most memorable ones. I plan to be in a position where I can start this project at different community centers , local schools and also my school.