Day two!

Hello again, wonderful people!

Well, day two was wonderful!!! We did a lot of hard work, got a lot accomplished and had a great time! The day began with a reflection of Monday's work. Everyone in the group agreed that working with the kids is fun and rewarding. But although it's fun, it isn't easy work. One ASBer said "I'm having a lot of fun and I'm rediscovering my passion for teaching/helping children. I'm also realizing how tiring children are, and I definitely needed a nap after the long day!" I think most of us would concur. The kids seem to have non stop energy. It's a really positive atmosphere to be in but it takes a lot out of you.

After our reflections we were lucky enough to have three speakers come from One Family Inc. One Family is a not-for-profit organization devoted to ending family homelessness in Massachusetts. It is dedicated to helping single mothers get an education so they are able to provide a sustainable lifestyle for their children. Two of the women who spoke are One Family employees and one is a One Family Scholar. Shanrita is the scholar. She told us her story and explained what One Family has done to help her. One Family beleives homelessness is directly connected to education and they instill this belief in their clients. The women were so wonderful to be willing to come and speak to our group. I really think everyone in the group got so much out of the speakers. I think seeing and speaking to people who know more about these issues or may actually live with them is so important.

We ate a little lunch and headed back to the Boys and Girls Club where we spent the first hour and a half cleaning the outside of the bulding. We picked up trash (including a dead bird, and entire raw chickenm, and tons of other garbage), raked, shoveled. You name it, we picked it up. I was appalled by the amount of trash I saw. The Boys and Girls Club is having a road race this weekend. It's to support the organization. We accomplished a lot and were able to make it look significantly nicer. But there was still so much more to be done. Luckily, other volunteers are coming this week to specifically work on road race clean-up. But we helped them get a head start!

The kids began to arrive so we split up into stations. It was much busier today so I felt that I got more accomplished. I dominated in Foosball with the 2nd and 3rd graders. They all wanted to be on my team. haha! We had girls in the tutoring rooms, arts and crafts and games. Everyone seemed to have a productive day, which is so great!

As we were leaving, we felt a tad bit of defeatment. Part of the area that we had just cleaned had, in a matter of hours, once again been littered. I was very discouraged to see this and I think others were as well. I wasn't really angry but more so confused as to why kids would disrespect their own place. The Boys and Girls Club wouldn't be anything without them so the building really does feel like it's theirs. So I was sad to see how easily they just throw trash on the ground as if it's no big deal. I'm hoping we can clean more tomorrow and make sure trash cans are available so we can prevent the problem.

After a long day we were all pretty hungry. Some people had to head home but ten of us stuck together and had dinner in Harvard Square. Dinner was delicious!!

Overall, I would say the day was great! I'm hoping for another stellar day tomorrow and some more fantabulous days this week!! Our group is really beginning to bond and I'm loving it! This is truly a great group and I'm so proud of the work everyone is doing!

Until tomorrow!
Sarah