Application of Knowledge

Nate Crees, Joey Roberts, Taran Nelson

Miracles in Motion

Above are some photos taken during our week participating in Hawkeye Service Breaks. These volunteer opportunities gave us a great opportunity to take in the knowledge learned in class and apply the overarching concepts as active citizens. Throughout the first eight weeks of the semester, we learned the value of becoming active citizens in our community but were not able to apply it as an entire class until Spring Break. In the first six photos, we are at Miracles In Motion. Miracles in Motion is a nonprofit horse stable out in Swisher, Iowa that provides Equestrian Therapy for people who face obstacles both physically and mentally. While some people with physical disabilities find it hard to do something such as sitting on a horse, Miracles in Motion provides calm horses that are easier to be ridden. This day allowed us to step out of our comfort zone and learn more about a service opportunity in our area.

Alexander Elementary School

Another service opportunity that we were a part of was our individual service time working with students at Alexander Elementary school. This service was throughout the week as we all took different shifts to help out with the children. Our service involved spending time with kids throughout their spring break, playing games and being friends with them, and providing them a guide and mentor. One encouraging example that I saw of this was with a student I was working with throughout the day. When we first started for the day, he looked like he was having a rougher day, and it was showing in his actions. I went and introduced myself and started some small talk to get to know him. I asked got to the point where I felt like he was comfortable with me, and I asked him what was going on. It all ended up being because he had a really tight knot in his shoelace and it was bothering him. It took me a little bit to get out, but I ended up getting it out and we played for a while. This opening interaction opened him up for the day, and we had some really good conversations about his community and life. By the end of the day, he gave me a big hug and said that I was his friend and he had a lot of fun with me. This experience stood out to me in applying the knowledge that I learned about moving from being just a volunteer to caring about and understanding root issues and desiring to help out the community and become an active citizen.

Iowa City Parks- Robert A. Lee Community Center

The second service opportunity we were able to take part in was assisting Iowa City Parks and Recreation in an event held for the local youth. Here we mostly helped with the preparation in differing ways. We started with an empty gym and by the end had a full Rc-car racetrack, two hot wheels ramps, and an example Lego spaceship for the kids to try and replicate. We made sure to interact with the parents and kids to get the best experience possible. It's important to set a good example for the youth and act as role models at all times. The smallest things can sometimes make the largest impact.

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