SMART Goal

My goal for this project is to look at the calendar of events and see what was planned last year at least once a week. I want to give notice to the group a week in advance before an event is planned. I want to organize the budget in excel with each month the expenses occured. I also want to make the budget include what the group member spent the money on and which project it was for. I will also email the group the budget bi-monthly so that everyone knows how much we spent as a group and how much we have left to spend.

I feel as though we can meet this goal as a group pretty easily. We just need to improve our organization and communication and our goals are reached! We all have a copy of the calendar & are aware of how much money we have to spend, I just feel as though it would be easier on everyone if it were organized in a different manner, ie what I mentioned above. I'm still very excited about our project and am lucky to be in a group with such great girls!!

Personal Accomplishment

Something I personally hope to accomplish before the end of the semester is to be able to play my viola at Ravenwood. When Candace played guitar and the residents sang along it was such a hit! This makes me really want to play Christmas carols on my viola for the residents either for them to sing along to or for them to just listen. I need to practice to get my Christmas carol songs back in shape but I think it would be a really neat thing to do for them.

¡Objectivos! (Goals)

Our goal was to increase communication as a group. It is difficult with all our busy schedules to keep everyone on the same page, but we know that it would really help our project. We hoped to improve our communication by meeting weekly for at least 10 minutes to discuss the project and by taking notes on the dry erase board in our apartment, so that everyone can have a visual of the necessary tasks. We will be starting this week and continuing until the end of the year.

Candace, Suzy and I went to visit the residents on Sunday and had fun conversation with some new faces while they finished lunch. Candace played guitar and we held a sing along of some classic songs the residents liked. This progressed into singing hymns together out of the books and Candace playing some current pop songs. Shockingly, the residents really enjoyed hearing "Baby" by Justin Bieber and"Timshel" by Mumford & Sons. It was so great to see their faces light up and sing with them. I am really enjoying to know some of the residents pretty well and reconnecting with them every time I visit. It's going to be great because I think I will be going on this Sunday again too and I'm really looking forward to it.

Goals

One of my main goals for this service project is to form a relationship with the residents of Ravenwood. The past few times that we have gone to Ravenwood, a resident will mention how they were expecting one of their family members who didn't show up. This is really upsetting to me because nobody should feel like they are forgotten about or a burden, especially not to their own families. This is why I want to form a relationship with as many residents as possible. I want them to look forward to us coming and get excited about an event that we have planned. Hopefully we will have a fun activity for them to do while they have someone to talk to and more importantly someone who will listen to them.

For a quick update, Brittany and Candace went out to Ravenwood today to volunteer. Sadly, I couldn't go with them. However, I'm definitely going to Ravenwood next Sunday with a few other volunteers to perform a magic show for the residents. I'm a little nervous about this and I'm really hoping everything goes as planned and that they enjoy it! I'm also potentially going either next Thursday or next Saturday. So, I'm really excited about being able to volunteer this week and bringing new volunteers with me!

Almost two weeks ago, I got the chance to be a part of Drury's Smart Mob with all of my Summit classmates and other Drury students! It was a fun, if short, trip down to Joplin. We laid sod at the Volunteer Memorial that Drury students designed, which is something I'd never done before. It was good to volunteer alongside others and bond as we worked. Then, while most of the other students headed off to work on the playground a little farther away, I stayed behind and swept sidewalks with Diane, a faculty member. We talked about urban poverty and how the economic downturn is changing homelessness. This was an apt subject, as many Joplin residents have been displaced by the tornado.
After we finished working, we all headed to dinner and got to peek at the houses being built. It was cool to see how many people are supporting the efforts there, both volunteers and businesses. We then loaded up on our buses and went back to campus. I was exhausted and went to bed at ten, which is super early for me!
Today, we went to Ravenwood and watched Roman Holiday, a classic Audrey Hepburn movie. We also popped popcorn, which was a hit!
For future events, I'm going to try to learn some songs on guitar that the residents would enjoy so we can have a sing-along. I'm super excited about that - it's not quite music therapy, but, nevertheless is right up my alley as a MT major. We are looking for lots of fun activities to do with the residents that will keep their attention, so hopefully that we be a good one.

Smart Mob & Audrey Hepburn!

Well these last two weeks have been a success! Two weeks ago Drury sent two charter buses full of students and a few faculty members to Joplin, Missouri to help with the Extreme Home Makeover efforts to build "seven houses in seven days" in an attempt to help rebuild Joplin after the tornado this May. Our assignment was to lay sod in a park that was designed by Drury architecture students in honor of Joplin's volunteers. I had a lot of fun doing this dirty work with my peers. I was however, severely disappointed at the waste of resources the show created by telling students to "look busy" when cameras were around, but not filming volunteers while they were actually working. I was rather annoyed when Michael Moloney swooped in for half an hour in his button-down shirt and stark white tennis shoes claiming he had been "working with these volunteers all day." Volunteering in Joplin was definitely a positive experience and I'm so glad I could help, however I will never watch Extreme Home Makeover in the same light again.

On another note, we went to Ravenwood today to socialize with the residents and had a good ol' time watching an Audrey Hepburn classic. It was awesome to be reunited with the ladies we had met before and come into contact with some that we didn't know. I love going to Ravenwood and look forward to the possibility of volunteering there again next weekend!

Smart Mob!

A week ago the Summit groups all joined together and went to Joplin in order to help with the volunteering during the Extreme Makeover Event. At first I was a little hesitant about going since I had to skip a few classes and had a lot of homework to do, but I ended up having a great time. The goal of Summit going and volunteering in Joplin was to be able to help with a good cause but also for us all to interact with the other Summit groups and learn about their projects. I felt like this was a success since I was able to talk to others who weren't in my Summit group as I was laying sod and while I was on the bus. It was also really cool to be apart of something that I've seen or watched on t.v. However, with the production aspect came a few frustrations. I felt that a few people showed up not to participate or help out the people of Joplin, but in order to be filmed and be put on television. I also didn't like how some of the things we did were staged. For example, at one time we unloaded a truck full of plants and flowers just so that the production workers could reload them onto the truck, to have them unloaded again while they could be taped. If you can follow that. I wish more people went to Joplin hoping and trying to help people in need rather than looking for a way that they could benefit from their good deeds, including the actual production crew.

As far as our project goes, I feel that Ravenwood is going pretty well. We are slowly picking away at our hours. We actually just got back from volunteering there today. We ended up watching an Audrey Hepburn movie called Roman Holiday. I was happy to remember some of the names and faces of the residents who participated in our pumpkin painting event, along with some new faces. Our group has talked about trying to go volunteer again next Sunday if we are able and then potentially trying to work during the weeks, also. I can't wait until our next project!

"I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people." - Mohandas Gandhi 

I chose this quote because I feel it is so true in any situation, and particularly in Summit. We definitely all get along, but it's important to remember that relationships of any sort require compromise, and to be a leader in a Summit project requires the ability to get along with your roommates and work together as a unit.
In my Music Therapy in Developmental Disabilities course, our professor made the comment that the most significant problems in life are not academic, but social. In leadership, having social skills is vital to being effective.
In our project, we visited Ravenwood last Saturday, and those social skills did come in handy! Some of our main topics of conversation were the resident's former careers and how they met their husband. I'm a complete sap, so it was fun to hear some of their love stories. I throughly enjoyed getting to know a few of them, and looking forward to going back!

Leading by example

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” -John C. Maxwell

This quote is one that describes my leadership style quite well because I do my best to lead by example whenever possible. People are oftentimes not receptive to receiving overwhelming instructions and I think leaders lose their validity when they are simply giving instructions and not completing the tasks themselves as well. Another way of explaining my leadership style that goes nicely with Maxwell's quote is, "You must be the change you want to see in the world. -Mahatma Gandhi" I believe in order to be a great leader one must be passionate about the topic and go above and beyond however possible so that the followers will be more inclined to listen and respect their leader. My leadership style is to lead by example.
In other news, our Ravenwood project is going swimmingly! I enjoyed myself very much when we volunteered by painting pumpkins with the residents next Saturday. We had another Drury student join us as well, which is exciting since part of our mission is to recruit more Drury volunteers. I loved socializing with the residents and am looking forward to our future visits and building relationships with these phenomenal ladies.

Leadership

"This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry, because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized Everybody wouldn't do it. So Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done."

Our assignment was to pick a quote that best described our leadership style or our approach to leadership. I picked this quote/poem because it seems like this scenario happens a lot in groups, nobody wants to accept the leadership role and coordinate who does what and when. Therefore, at the end nothing gets done. So, when I'm in a group or working on a project I try to make a conscience effort to know who in the project is doing what and when the deadlines are. Which speaking of deadlines, that is what my biggest problem has been so far, I can see Christmas break sneaking up on us! The whole planning aspect in this project is what is giving me the most stress. I'm the calendar coordinator, so trying to find a date when everyone is available to volunteer is a little difficult when you are dealing with three involved college students. The most stressful part about the planning is that any event date is subject to change, so it is hard to plan too far in advanced. However, if we don't have potential weekends marked on the calendar then something will be planned on every weekend. It's an endless cycle!

While planning the event dates are a little bit of a stressor, we did have our first event last weekend! We all went to Ravenwood and painted pumpkins with the residents. I had a great time and really enjoyed getting to meet all the residents for the first time. My favorite part of this event was getting to hear all the stories that the residents had to tell us. For example, one woman named Shirley, told us about her life living in the small town of Dearborne. We also got to learn how another woman met her husband at a hoedown. I had a great time and loved decorating the pumpkins to set around the facility! I'm excited to plan another event with Brittany and Candace!

Where it all started...

Hello all! Everything has been going swimmingly in the Ravenwood Assisted living Summit group. I am so excited that our dream has become a reality. The application process was quite a feat and now we are here to help Ravenwood!

I chose to live in Summit because I wanted to be a more active community volunteer and attempt to have a positive impact on people’s lives. I thought it was such a neat opportunity that I jumped at the chance to be a part of it. I enjoyed the thought of being committed to an organization for an entire year so that you could form relationships with those that you are volunteering with. Summit was also appealing because the budget provided to us allows us to go a lot farther in helping Ravenwood than what would have been possible without these funds.

I am so excited to volunteer at Ravenwood! Our on campus event with the viewing of Andrew Jenks, Room 335 was such a smashing success and got everyone pumped to volunteer with us. The documentary gave a look into what we may encounter while working at Ravenwood and what we can look forward to. It was awesome to see so many potential Drury volunteers with us curious about our plans for Ravenwood. It’s going to be a great year getting to know the residents, and I can hardly wait!

--Brittany

Hello faithful blog readers!

So, our group has settled into Summit and we're loving it! As a former Smith Hall resident, I really enjoy having my own room, and a kitchen to cook meals in. But moreover, I'm getting excited for our project!

As a senior in high school looking at Drury, I scoured the website trying to find out all I could about what it was like to be a Drury student. One of the things I stumbled upon was the page about Summit, and I thought it sounded so cool. I loved the idea of living in a community of students who were actively trying to better the Springfield area by partnering with an organization. It's an incredible opportunity for those who put in effort.

When our group was deciding on a project, we decided we wanted it to be centered around people, as opposed to animals or the environment. I am so excited to be working with Ravenwood Assisted Living; I can't wait to build relationships with the residents and do fun activities together. So far, we've held a movie and pizza night to recruit volunteers for the project, and it was a success! We had about 15 people there, and we watched Andrew Jenks, Room 335, a documentary about a 19 year-old guy who lives in an assisted living facility for a month as sort of a social experiment. It was a great movie - heartwarming, thought-provoking, and funny. We had some people who were planning to only stay about 20 minutes, but got so caught up in the film that they stayed the whole time. Watching the movie also got Katie, Brittany and I psyched for our project. We can't wait for our first event, coming up soon, which is a birdhouse painting party! I look forward to a great year of Summit.

- Candace

First Post!

Ravenwood Assisted Living is off to a great start! We just completed our first event earlier this week, and it was a great success! My group has decided to partner with Ravenwood to help liven up the weekends and increase the social activities that occur at the Ravenwood facility. Our goal was also to get more Drury students to come volunteer at Ravenwood and assist us with the amazing projects that we have planned for this upcoming year! So, we decided that our first event should revolve around recruiting some new volunteers for our project. We planned a movie night event in Lay where we watched a documentary titled Andrew Jenks, Room 335. For those who haven't seen this documentary, it is about a college aged boy who decided to live in an old folks home for three months. He and his two friends film all the craziness, sadness and happiness that goes on while living in the old folks home. My group and I were very pleased with the amount of people who joined us in watching this film and who signed up to help volunteer with us for this semester. We took down every volunteers' email address and are planning to send them emails before we go to a planned event and see if they would like to join us. Now, we are working on making an event to paint birdhouses with the residents one weekend in October.

I love working with the community and volunteering, which is one of the reasons I chose to live in Summit. I liked the idea that you would work with one organization or group all year, so that you could spend multiple hours with a person and really make a difference in someone's life. I am glad that my group and I decided to apply for Summit and honored that we made it. I am very passionate about our project and watching Andrew Jenks helped reawaken this enthusiasm to work with the residents of Ravenwood. In the film there is one resident who isn't happy about living in a home, her family doesn't visit her, she has nothing to do, no one to talk to and she feels like she was given up when she was placed in the home. She is basically waiting to die. When Andrew came to the home she was able to talk to him and he would listen. He was not only able to develop a relationship with her but many other bored residents. That is exactly what my group hopes to do. Get the residents out of their rooms and develop relationships with them, hopefully getting the privilege to learn about their amazing and interesting lives. I hope that I am able to make as much as an impact on their lives as they make on mine.

So far I have loved living in Summit. The apartment is great, the people are great, and we are working on a project that benefits the community. The only frustration I have had this far is about the time commitment. I am pretty involved on campus and am taking a few hard courses this semester so it is hard to find a time to go and volunteer. This is the same for my roommates who are also busy. To overcome this obstacle, we have decided to alter our calendar a little bit and volunteer on Sundays, when we have the most time free time.