Home Sweet Home

I woke up 5:45 am and realized today was our last day in New York City. No more freezing cold showers, sharing a room with 13 other people and get to sleep in my own bed later that evening. As I started to pack my stuff into my suitcase I began to reflect on all the all the different things we have done over the past week.  Our class has volunteered at 8 different service sites and have gotten the opportunity to listen to the stories of many different people.   We had also done all of the tourist stuff including 9/11 memorial, MOMA and the Natural History Museum. We would be traveling to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island later this after noon.

            The first week of class we learned about some of the factors that cause poverty.  At every location we asked, “ What do you think are some factors that can cause poverty and what can we do to help.” One commonality between all the answers was motivation and the lack of motivation people may have. I never realized how this could cause and continue the number of people in poverty.  One of the ladies we met said “ We have plenty of resources for everyone not to be hungry they just need to get up and find them.”  At the Hour Children, the lady told us this organization motivated her to turn her life around and now she is one of the top people in the organization.  You never realized how big of a role of motivation plays in everyday life. The people who have that sense of motivation to turn their lives around or even have that person to push them to go out and find those resources to make a better life for themselves.  One of the main goals of this class to learn about what we could do to help change the cycle of poverty.  I began to think what I could do to motivate people to change their lives for the better.  As a future educator, it made me think what I can do to help my students motivating them at a young age and to be another role model for these children.  

            As we traveled to the Statue of Liberty, it made me think deeper of the meaning of the statue.  The statue represents freedom and desire for a better life.  People came to this country for a better life and all of the obstacles they had to go through.  Once we got to Ellis Island, we went through a guided tour to describe step-by-step what most new arrivals experienced. Ellis Island’s main function was to screen out those considered undesirable-the ill, impoverished, the disable and criminals.  You had to have a certain income level before even entering the United States. The government was more concerned about how immigrants would either help or hurt our economy rather then helping those immigrants get a better life.  It made me wonder if those immigrants knew how different their lives would be, would they have still traveled here.

            On the night of the dinner we cooked at YSOP, I had a conversation with one of the guests on why he decided to come to the United States.  He had no family here and was not doing that well.  He wanted a better life in the United States but in the end, he is not happy here.  The cost of living in New York City was way to high.  The man discussed that the average cost of living in a one bedroom apartment was about $1500 a month not including utilities.  He worked two jobs and still struggled to have enough money for rent.  It made me think about how hard this man had to work in order to survive. We learned about in class how cost of living varies from place to place.  This then caused me to think about for my future career path salary, could I even afford to live in a giant city like New York. 

       I was very nervous on what this trip had in store. I was pushed out of my comfort zone, I got to learn  about many different successful organizations and heard the stories from many different individuals. Some other activities including budgeting on $2.50 for a meal, taking public transportation and even sleeping in a church with 13 other people. This trip made me want to further my involvement in the community and to continue my learning about these issues in our community.  This class has opened my eyes to not what I can do as an active citizen as in my community but all the factors that are cause poverty. One of the biggest take from this trip is even the smallest things will make a lasting impact. From a simple smile, making eye contact and even making small talk could make someone's day.  I am very thankful for this opportunity and can't wait to go back to New York City.

-Sparkley Gray