Embedded Files
As a member of a variety of student organizations at Texas A&M University, including the Singing Cadets and the Council for Minority Student Affairs, I was able to engage with the Bryan-College Station community by providing my time and service on several projects of community interest. It was through these experiences that I found a passion for advocacy and developed a deeper understanding of what it means to be a public servant. I learned that even small acts of public service can make a large impact, and that passionate local nonprofits, charities, and volunteers can make just as much of a difference as larger organizations.
Appreciating Small Acts of Service with the Singing Cadets
As part of the Texas A&M Singing Cadets, I was appointed to be the “service chair,”, a position I held for two years. As service chair, I began to appreciate the feeling of satisfaction and gratification that comes with acts of service, even small ones. Part of my job as service chair was to search out service opportunities the group could participate in to promote the image of the university.
One late fall semester, I arranged a visit to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and got to meet with children of all ages and their families who were battling cancer to share the holiday spirit through music and share the Aggie Spirit through stories of our traditions and our campus. As service chair, I had previously been able to get us spots at events such as Bryan’s First Friday event and College Station’s Santa’s Wonderland attraction; however, these felt more like community engagements than true acts of public service. This is when I had the idea of contacting hospitals in the area to ask if we could sing for children who were unable to be home for the holidays. I didn’t expect to hear back from anyone on such short notice, but to my surprise, MD Anderson replied, excited about the prospect. Within the week, the hospital contact and I ironed out the details, I got permission from all necessary A&M personnel, and I gathered a group of 25 people (from the Singing Cadets and also from the A&M Women’s Chorus) who agreed to spend their “reading day” between the final week of classes and final exams on a service project.
This experience has left a large footprint on my professional development, and I learned that service doesn’t need to be a grand project to resonate with others. After all, we weren’t providing medicine; we weren’t helping anyone go home for the holidays; we weren’t providing the children any groundbreaking or revolutionary care like their doctors did on a daily basis. However, more than a handful of times, parents of the children would approach me and thank us for helping them take their minds off their current situations. I was assured by several families that joy and cheer are a premium resource, and we had provided it bountifully through song, laughter, and conversation. I learned that although we weren’t a group of medical professionals, our small contributions could and did make a difference. I’ve carried this lesson with me, and now when I’m having a hard time believing that I’m making a difference, whether that be in my capstone, in my ongoing job search, in groups I volunteer with, in my advocacy work, or in my personal life, I remember that even small acts of service can make a large impact.
The Texas A&M Singing Cadets participating in The Big Event.
Passion and Purpose for Public Service with the Council for Minority Student Affairs
I have been a member of the Council for Minority Student Affairs (CMSA) for three years, and through it I found a passion for advocacy and for public service, especially at the local community level. Prior to joining the CMSA at Texas A&M, I had believed that to serve a community, you had to be part of a large international organization such as the Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders. However, through various community service events with the CMSA, I learned that local nonprofits, charities, and volunteers with a passion for their work can make just as much of a difference. The CMSA is a student organization that advocates for developing institutional policy that improves the quality of the A&M experience for minority students. As a member, I met with struggling minority students, heard their problems, and represented and communicated the opinions and recommendations of students in monthly meetings with university officials.
While there is great work to be done with on-campus policy, it was the off-campus work of the group where I learned the most about local public service. The group volunteered hundreds of hours every semester with nonprofits around the Bryan-College Station community, from food banks to animal shelters. It was in October of 2018 that a volunteer activity we ran led me to find a passion for public service. In conjunction with a local nonprofit, we ran a daycare during the midterm early voting period for parents who would be working or busy on voting day so they could take time to vote without having to worry about their children. This activity ran for two weeks, and while there I met many people from my community and learned about the various programs and projects they were involved in and were passionate about. Since then, I have become more active in local service projects, and this has highly influenced my career aspirations, as I did a summer internship with my hometown local government.
The Council for Minority Student Affairs joining a local demonstration advocating for immigrants’ rights.
Takeaways
Service projects done with school organizations allowed me to learn about myself while helping the community. I learned how to both appreciate public servants and be a public servant. Additionally, I gained a passion for public service, which influenced me to pursue a career in public administration. I hope to take this passion for advocacy and for service into the work place, and do what I can to give back to the communities I have become a part of.
Page updated
Report abuse