Category: 2014

…or maybe there is. This is my first ever ASB trip so I don’t really know what to expect. We will be sleeping in Newark, NJ, but spending our days down at the Jersey Shore doing Hurricane Sandy relief. Being from Long Island and now a resident of New Jersey I get very emotional when ever I am reminded of that terrible event, so my goal for the week is to not cry. I know so many families who lost everything during the storm. My husband and I had damage to our house and even thought it was minor it took almost eight months to get things fixed. I can only imagine the kind of things we will see during this week. I have a feeling I won’t be keeping my goal, but that’s ok because my real goal is to help out as much as I can.

“Do I need a sleeping bag, maybe… maybe not, blanket should suffice right? Did I pack my charger? NEED to find the charger” It’s been a hectic morning and I have packed and unpacked more times than a normal person does. In an hour or so, I will be travelling with my team to Newark, NJ. I’m very excited to share this experience with other Lafayette students and grateful to have been given this opportunity. Although, I have volunteered in other fields, I have never done anything related to hurricane relief. Hurricane Sandy occurred a year ago, but many locations are still struggling from the storm damage. I hope to learn more about the issues related to natural calamities and its effects in the following years. Recovery is an arduous and long process and I’m thankful to be a small part of this recovery.

– Nirupa,

Still looking for the charger…

We had our pre-service activity on Friday which was actually very relaxing and I think it put me in a bit of a “service state of mind”, which was good after a rigorous exam week. I think I still need to psych myself up for the actual service, because I haven’t done anything like this since last year so maybe that will happen after we finally get to New Jersey.

But I’m excited to go for the actual trip – it’s my first time to Newark (past the airport anyway) and the Shore. One of the things I will probably be looking out for is the cultural dynamics of the effects of the hurricane – how different races and economic classes are dealing with rebuilding. I’m also interested in finding out what preventive measures are being taken for the sites that are being rebuilt.

Overall I hope it will add to the experiences I’ve had in the US so far as an international student who has done service activities in Easton and New York, and give me even more of a representative view of issues in America.

Looking forward to having fun while serving, too!

-Andrea

So in a few weeks from now (and by weeks, I probably mean days!), someone is going to ask me: “what did you do over spring break?” To that, my response will be, “I helped rebuild New Jersey, of course.” And they – like I was prior to becoming a part of this trip – will wonder, “shouldn’t everything be fixed by now?”

Sadly, no – not everything is fixed. For some natural disasters, it may take years to clean up and rebuild. And for some people, the costs of rebuilding on their own are relatively costly – both in terms of monetary cost and manpower.

That’s where we come in. Tomorrow, (ASB Newark:) What a Disaster! will be joining over 60 other United Way volunteers in efforts to not only provide physical repairs, but also provide a helping hand to children affected by Hurricane Sandy by running various activities for the children to enjoy.

So while I look forward to the eventful week ahead of me, I must get some sleep to be ready in the morning! Until then!

This is the night before I am leaving for my ASB trip to New Jersey. It is March 15th, 2014. I am sitting at my computer and I have not even finished packing yet. I am still determining how I can compartmentalize. As I sit here, many thoughts are going through my head.

First is the uniqueness of experience. My level of community engagement has thus far mostly been limited to working with children and teens in my whole life. This experience is new to me. I may be an engineer, but I’ve never done construction type work. I am a mechanical, not a civil engineer. But that is beside the point.

It is still hard for me to picture the impact that Hurricane Sandy has had, now a year and a half ago. My hometown was hit, but not drastically affected. As for Lafayette College, where I was at the time, I was in a friend’s dorm perhaps a ten minute walk from my own when the storm hit. I was going to walk back, but the wind was so strong I could barely open the door to the outside. Thus, I ended up sleeping on the floor for the night with covers, thanks to some help from a gracious host. It was unsettling to sleep with all the chaos outside.

I know areas of the country such as Long Island were hit very badly and have not yet fully recovered, but it is hard to describe or understand something like this until you see it first hand. In a matter of hours that is exactly what my group and I will be doing, and we will be doing our part to help, understand the issue and raise awareness.

I on a certain level, am nervous and do not know what to expect. But I also know that it will be a rewarding and memorable experience. More to come.

Tomorrow is my first ever ASB trip. As I pack and wash my clothes for the week ahead, I can’t help but to think what my friends are doing now. Are they back home taking 12 hour naps? Are they on their way to some exotic resort or heading to the beach to enjoy the heat? This and more runs through my head even as I write this article. So I ask myself, “Should I have done any of these things for my first ever college spring break?” The answer is no.

Although these things are the popular things to do for spring break, I want something different; furthermore, I want something meaningful. Now sleeping for 12 hours is great and all (I love sleep!) but doing service means more to me. It means giving back and that is something I love doing. It is something I’ve been doing since middle school and I certainly don’t want to stop now. College is supposed to be a place where we not only learn from distinguished professors and scholars but develop a better understanding of those around us. Now that is something ASB has to offer.

It is a trip that takes a group of volunteers to a location and does service for a week. A week dedicated to not only understanding our community around us but giving back as well. It is a week filled with laughs, smiles, and of course, service! This week should be one for the books. I couldn’t ask for a better way to start my first ever college spring break. So in a choice between sleep, beaches, and ASB? I’ll take ASB. That’s something that’s truly priceless.

 

Our team is leaving for our trip to the Jersey Shore tomorrow morning in order to work with United Way to help clean up and rebuild from the devastating effects of Hurricane Sandy. On the eve of our departure, I have had a lot of time to reflect on what this trip truly means for me. Even though I have participated in similar service trips in the past, this trip is personal for me in a way that no other service experience has ever been.

I was born and raised on Long Island, one of the regions that was ravaged by the hurricane and is still trying to recover from it. The storm struck when I was here at Lafayette and prevented me from having the opportunity to get home and be with my family during this trying time. Though my family was fortunate enough to only lose power for a few days, other families were not as lucky. For some, the power didn’t come on until a month later. For others, the power never came back on, as their houses were completely destroyed by the storm. Sitting here at school that week was one of the most difficult times in my life because of all the uncertainty that I knew existed back at home. Were my friends and their families alright?

I’m going on this trip to do what I believe is my part in the rebuilding process. It is my hope that I can give of myself this week in a way that I was unable to last year. I want to contribute to this massive rebuilding process that has served to show just how much resolve the people of New York and New Jersey, in addition to all those affected, truly have. It has been a trying process for many of these people and offering our time can hopefully encourage them to continue along this path towards recovery.