Service Project Proposal and SignUp Links Fall 2017

Assignment:Hire yourself to use your talents and skills to contribute to this community in a meaningful way.   
A quick review of what students have done in the past should inspire you: http://www.melissalaughing.com/2017/09/service-project-proposals-and-final.html 

Propose to do  your own project or sign up to help me with one of the projects/events posted at the bottom of this post.  This proposal is due on Canvas*

AMH 2020 only:  If you are doing 2 projects, you need 2 separate proposals submitted to the 2 different links in Canvas.

OPENING: Pick a quote from below (or use another one but it better be good!) to start your essay.

ESSAY: Write up a thoughtful PARAGRAPH explaining why you are hiring yourself for this job. Save as a word.doc or pdf and submit to the link on Canvas.

Start your proposal with one of these or offer your own: 

I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. - Rabindranath Tagore

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.         -Mahatma Gandhi

What I am looking for is not out there, it is in me. -Helen Keller

We need more kindness, more compassion, more joy, more laughter. I definitely want to contribute to that. - Ellen DeGeneres

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.- Audrey Hepburn

I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.- Maya Angelou

Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.― Martin Luther King Jr

“You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” 
― Kahlil Gibran

“The wise man does not lay up his own treasures. The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own.” 
― Lao Tzu

“Try not to become a person of success. Rather become a person of value.” 
― Albert Einstein

Sign up links:

Veterans Village Dinner October 12: Theme – BBQ/Southern 7pm

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-veterans1

Veterans Village Dinner October 26: Theme – Latin/Caribbean 7pm

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-veterans2

Veterans Village Dinner November 9: Theme – Italian 7pm www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-veterans3

Veterans Village Thanksgiving November 23:  Thanksgiving Feast 2pm

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-thanksgiving2

Victory Box to Afghanistan Round 1: Mail by 10/31

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/508094ba5a72e5-victory

Victory Box to Afghanistan Round 2: Mail by end of day on 11/15

            www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-victory1

Veterans Village Holiday Dinner December 7:   Theme TBA

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/508094BA5A72E5-veterans4

Gifts for the Holiday Gift Give Away

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/508094ba5a72e5-gift

Veterans Village Dinner and Gift Give Away December 21: Holiday Favorites

Signup will be posted later. Let me know  if you want to come help!!

Your Gifts Made a Difference

I learned a lot from last year's holiday party at Veterans Village.

I learned that it was not a good idea to hand out wrapped presents and hope they would all be somehow equal and pleasing.

I learned that what the Veterans really wanted  (towels, sheets, gift cards slippers, posh candy, pajamas and robes) wasn't quite in line with what good-hearted people gave me to give them. You don't even want me to make a list of shame here people, don't even.

This year I made a list of suggested donations and it worked out fantastically.

Volunteers dropped donations by and mailed them and sent them to me from their daughter to my daughter. I know a few of you out there weren't able to get your donation to me in time -- don't worry,  not a single Veteran left the event empty handed, please save it for the Spring Fling donation drive you didn't know you were going to help me with.


Here is an incomplete list of people who dropped donations by my office, compiled entirely from the sticky notes etc that I found on the gifts.

That's my office door.

Here is a picture of donations that came via mail, daughters and etc. Soft blankets, special treats, gift cards to Publix, Walmart, Panera and Starbucks.

 I'm not sure if she wants everyone to know, but one of my AXO sisters from Loyola sponsored 10 Veterans AND sent a donation to entirely cover two upcoming Thursday night dinners.

Amazing, right?

This is a picture of my kitchen counter, collecting donations and gift cards.

So today, the day of the event, I met one of my students in my office and we sorted and counted the donations.

We talked through how things could go that would be better than last year and decided to make 4 stations: 1) gift cards 2)  towels 3) sheet sets 4) a bonus item (slippers, posh chocolate, robes).

This helped us figure how to package and repackage the gifts and load them into our cars.

This is me with a car full of sheets, slippers and  posh chocolate goodies.

Once we got to Veterans Village we were joined by other TCC community volunteers and once we were all set up the goodies went so fast I seriously could not get more pictures than you see below.

Tonight's Elves

Rows of thick towels, the extra large nice ones, all ready for Veterans to take a pick.

This is the bonus pick car. Slippers, robes, posh chocolate.

I was so busy talking to the Veterans and moving them through the stations that I have no pictures of the lovely  dinner of comfort food and individual cheesecakes being served upstairs by two other TCC faculty.

There was a lot of laughing, a lot of hugging, and even a few men walking around proudly in lovely new robes and such.

Your gifts made a difference.

Thank you thank you thank you to all of you who helped this year.

Thank you to all of you who helped in the past and a special thank you those of you who are plotting how you can help in 2017.

Birthday Story: Part 2 of 3: The Bug

Part 2: The Bug.

He walks back into the room, half yelling, half laughing. It is impossible to tell what has happened, but I venture a guess.

Did you step on a bug? I guess this because the bug guy was just here yesterday and because also it’s rainy and cold outside so Florida bugs try to come inside and chillax. A bug in the laundry room would not be a complete surprise.

He nods speechlessly and I go look.

OMG. Yes, a bug, flattened it completely and absolutely clearly dead.

 I announce my findings.  

Zack howls again at the horror of all of this and then laughs and cringes and I cringe too and somehow it falls on me to clean the damn bug up. 

(continued)

Birthday Story: Part 1 of 3 - Big Plans

 On Zoe’s 16^th birthday I didn’t throw her a huge party or buy her a car, but when she accidentally opened my birthday presents my parents sent me instead of opening her own, I just smiled warmly and ran with it. 

This is a big deal because I don’t get too many birthday presents so when they come I savor them, sometimes happily making myself wait weeks to open them.  

Yay, a funny solar powered frog that hangs in a tree and bounces!! 

Yay, a gift card to Walgreens!! 

After Zoe finished whatever else and was looking like teenage angst was about to grab her by the ankles I got us out of the house. 

First we went far across town and walked up and down the aisle of a makeup store to get a present for a friend of hers.

 I almost buy this super cool eyeshadow palette, then I almost buy the other once, and then I stand in line and almost buy the palette that the other ones were imitating but then I just don’t want to -- no, actually, I just physically can't -- spend that much money on eyeshadow when people are hungry and cold in this world so I walk out empty handed but happy.

We drive to a bookstore and Zoe buys another present for another friend and I decide to force myself to buy a book, a real tangible printed book. I almost buy this one, then the other, then barely can decide between two of them and finally pick one.  

This whole thing makes Zoe laugh and after we pay we walk into the cold darkness laughing. 

Where next? She shrugs. I shrug. She thinks we are going home but oh no, I have plans. 

Big plans.

I take her to Walgreens.

We walk in and are greeted with WELCOME TO MOE’S just kidding, they copied Moe’s and shout WELCOME TO WALGREENS, which is equal parts awkward and familiar like most rituals.

Zoe asks what we are there for and I tell her to get whatever mascara she wants. Her eyes bug out a little. She puts one in my basket and I see it’s buy one get one 50% off. Get TWO. She shakes her head in disbelief. TWO? Yes, TWO, it’s going on the gift card! We giggle and walk slowly up the makeup aisle.

Sixteen years ago, you were just born and I couldn’t put you down! Everyone was gone and I wouldn’t let the nurses take you so I could sleep.  I couldn’t put you down and I couldn’t stop staring at you and you weren’t sleepy so we just stayed up all night staring at each other.

Zoe nods. I tell her this story each year. It’s part of our thing.  I continue.

You never cried. You just hung out looking at things and holding my finger so tightly. It was the longest night of my life. Yours too, probably.

Zoe nods and I ask if she needs nail polish. She hesitates. It’s your birthday! Get it!! She grabs the polish she’d been eying and throws it in.   

We continue.

Need a hairbrush? No.

 Need Band-Aids? No.

 Sanitary pads? MOM!

Leggings? Yes. We stock up on leggings, giddy as we dig though the colors and sizes. Pink? NO! Navy? Yes! Black? Get two!

We walk down the toy aisle, nothing.

The school supply aisle, nothing. Of course. 

We skip the cleaning supplies and seasonal decor.  

I am overtaken with an urge and announce, Follow me, I’m getting a Red Bull. 

Zoe follows me then as I grab one from the Walgreens refrigerator, she suggests I should get the BIG one. 

I do, and ask her what she’d like. 

She picks an iced coffee and we stand in line to pay, feeling like birthday millionaires.

We get home and Zoe disappears into her phone and her world. 

I fall into the series Cuba Libre on Netflix.

Zack walks out of his room, says hello, turns a corner and howls like someone has died.

(continued)