Pass Christian, MS

On Wednesday evening I arrived at what some may consider Ground Zero of Hurricane Katrina's wrath. This isn't my first time in these parts, but my first time since last fall. Myself and three other non-ERT Members drove down on Wednesday for a two week stint in Pass.

Since leaving in October, I have felt the desire to get back to the Gulf Coast and help out for a week or two. When Kathleen, our Program Director asked me about the possibility of taking a team of Education Members down for a week, I didn't hesitate to accept the offer. I looked at this as an opportunity to see the progress that has been made as well as help out an area that is still reeling for one of the greatest disasters in U.S. history.

Our team is a mix of all three of our programs: Emergency Response Team Members, Education Members and Community Outreach members. The ERT Members have been rotating in and out of Pass since late September and the service they've provided for the community have been crucial to city's ability to get back on the feet. From running the Village, to coordinating volunteer groups, to helping with long term recovery, ERT has had its hand in so many facets of Pass Christian's recovery.

Make no mistake, this community and several other communities are still far from being back to 100%. A short tour of the city yesterday was evidence of this. While much of the debris has been cleared and removed from the city by the Army Corps of Engineers, there are still areas that haven't been touched. What's more unbelievable are the vacant lots where homes used to stand. Now all that is left is a concrete slab, possibly some steps that would lead to the front door or the remnants of a chimney. What used to be beautiful green yards, is now filled with sand and trees that will not bloom this year due to the water and wind damage. Neighborhoods are brambled wilderness with no clear sight if they will ever become neighborhoods again.

As eye-opening as the scene of destruction is in this community, the more impressive thing is the resolve of those in the community. In my brief time here, I have spoken with the local librarian who despite operating out of a trailer will be conducting weekly activities for the children of Pass Christian this summer. I have walked through Memorial Park, which when I first came to Pass in late September was filled with craters and the home of AmeriCorps St. Louis pop-up tents, now the playground has been rebuilt, benches line the sidewalks and the famed gazebo and memorials are back in place. For every scene of devastation, there is a story of hope that makes that devesation conquerable.

I look at my next couple of weeks in Pass as the perfect way to wrap up two years of service with AmeriCorps St. Louis. Our society is full of disaster, poverty and inequality, but we all still have hope and most importantly each other. More and more young people each year are opting to give a year back to the community and provide for others. Complacency is no longer an option for me as I know there is still so many that need help.

Prom '06

Before you do a double take, I didn't title my post wrong. The past two weekends were proms of sort for me. Two weeks ago was Liz and Bill's wedding where I hung out with my college friends, dressed up, danced and generally had a good time. It was the actual prom/dance. This past weekend was more like the post-prom.

This past weekend I went to Nevada (pronounced Nuh-VA-duh), MO, the hometown of my co-worker Jim. It was the high school prom in Nevada and he invited a group of us from St. Louis to enjoy some smalltown Missouri hospitality. His younger brother is a junior at the high school and each year it's tradition for the prom attendees to ride up in various vehicles and walk down the Red Carpet in front of most of the town. Despite the rainy and cold weather we braved 3 hours of watching everything from stretch Hummers to old pick-ups, classic vettes to new miatas, herses to pontoon boats, pull up to the event and drop off the prom-goers. This was something only John Cougar Mellencamp could write a song.

Of course, our group being a bit too old for, Jim's friends from Nevada hosted a prom of their own complete with corsages, a photo backdrop, memory books and of course food. We spent the night eating, drinking, dancing and generally having fun. Of course no prom would be complete without a nice breakfast, cooked up by Jim's parents who were excellent hosts.

After weeks, no months, of long hours and hectic schedules, it was a much-needed change of pace the last two weeks. What I've really grown to cherish over these last two years are the friendships I've made along with the friends I still have. While I have many friends from my college and high school years, AmeriCorps has introduced me to a wider array of individuals than my previous experiences. I knew coming into this experience I would find new lifelong friends, but never had I imagined that I would find so many people that were very different from me in many ways, and yet we would still find common ground to build a lasting relationship.

Last year, I learned so much from the students I worked with and this year, I'm learning so much from my friends, both old and new.

Friends

I know it's been quite some time since my last blog, but I'm ready to get back to blogging more regularly.

This past weekend I made my way to Milwaukee for my friend Liz's wedding. On my drive back I had plenty of time to think about different things and one of the thoughts that couldn't get out of my head was how much fun the wedding was. I think most of my college friends that were present would share my sentiment about the wedding.

It got me thinking about all the good times we had in college and the laughs that we shared. What I've find the most amazing about my friends over the years (grade school, high school, college, AmeriCorps) is that no matter how little contact we have in the times we see each other, we always end up having a great time as if we never had spent time a part. Sure there's always the initial catching up to do, but then it's right back to making more memories to reminesce about the next time we see each other.

This weekend was no different when a core group of my college friends were all at Liz's wedding. In a span of 24 hours we spent time laughing, dancing, singing and having a blast. I know as we all grow older and more people start their own families and careers (some sooner than others), we probably won't all be able to keep in touch or get together as much as we'd like, but those rare times we do get together, whether it's a couple of us or a small busload, we'll always start where we ended. In the times between, we'll still have the memories we've made over the years to keep us connected for the long haul.

Indiana Bound

No I'm not going to the Final Four this weekend (I wish I had courtside seats to see the most unlikely Final Four participant ever). I will, however, be moving to Indiana at the end of the summer to attend grad school at Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

For those of you who didn't even know I was looking into grad school, I will be pursuing my Master's in Public Affairs focusing in non-profit management. Much like St. Louis, I have never been to Bloomington, but this is one of the premier programs in the nation for people seeking to go into non-profit management. Since it is my dream to open up and run my own non-profit agency, I feel this is an excellent opportunity to get the education background that I'll need to succeed. Indiana will also provide many doors for the future through the people I meet and the organizations they are partnered. Between my experience with AmeriCorps St. Louis and earning my Master's Degree, I know I will be well-prepared for life in a non-profit.

While I still have a lot of questions that will be answered in the coming months, right now I'm focused on finishing out my term with AmeriCorps before re-focusing on my return to academia. I know for some people it's hard to imagine moving to somewhere you've never even been, but for me it's just another learning experience. Much like AmeriCorps, I'll be starting with another group of like-minded individuals at a large university, so I'm not too worried about the adjustment.

I've also learned there's no sense in worrying about your finances. They take care of themselves, and honestly, I would rather leave a legacy of giving behind than a lump of money so if I live the rest of my life just getting by, I won't see that as a problem. Believe me, you can live comfortably making it paycheck to paycheck, and if that's the sacrafice I have to make in order to start a non-profit, that's just what I'll do.

So those are my thoughts on what the near future looks like. I'm extremely excited about this new adventure and will keep everyone up-to-date on my doings. Who knows, maybe I'll spend some time overseas after grad school working for an international non-profit?

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

As most of you know, March Madness is my favorite time of the year. The excitement of the postseason college basketball (or high school) gives me goosebumps and really is the perfect way to start the Spring. I get an extra hop in my step just at the thought of conference tournaments and of course the Big Dance.

Like last year, I got tickets for the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. For $80 I sat in the second row for 7 do-or-die games. While the quality of basketball wasn't always the greatest, the energy of the players knowing that they were playing to either pad their tournament resume or their only chance at dancing.

Instead of spending paragraphs explaining the highlights of the tournament (or March Madness in general), I'm going to just list my reasons for loving this time of year.

- playing for a chance to be forever remembered
- seniors lifting up their game to extend their college career for one more game
- the emotional senior knowing the end of the line is at hand
- the hometown bench-warmer scoring in garbage minutes followed by the student section erupting
- college fight songs and the motions that go with them
- the star player making everyone else better
- the unknown role player making a name for himself
- a coach becoming the "new" hot commodity
- a coach who understands it's about the players
- referees acknowledging their mistakes and letting the teams play
- the jubilation of a game changing play
- momentum swings
- a big three
- monster dunks
- no look passes
- stealing the ball and taking it coast-to-coast
- timeouts to keep the fans in suspense
- hard fouls that are only committed because of the gravity of the situation
- all tournament teams
- players playing because the love the game
- fans making a difference
- cutting down the nets
- players having to be picked off the ground after a devestating loss
- players having to be picked off the ground after a shocking win
- 12 seeds beating 5 seeds
- the underdogs in the Sweet 16
- an improbable Final Four run
- knowing your team is still alive
- Gonzaga, Valparaiso, Richmond, etc.
- Bill Raftery
- Thursday and Friday afternoon games
- 1 month of basketball to make me last another 11 months

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

Catching Up

After being out of the office 4 days last week, I knew ahead of time that I would have a lot of catching up to do. This past weekend I spent much of my time relaxing and trying to rest for the upcoming week. I still went to a couple of Super Bowl parties, but was a little disappointed to see the Seahawks lose (I have several friends down here from the Seattle area, so I was pulling for them as much as anything else).

Today was one of those days where I could honestly say at the end of the day that I had made significant progress. In fact, I'm a little surprised by how much I was able to accomplish today making the rest of the week that much easier. I'm hoping by week's end, I'll feel like I far enough along that I'll be comfortable enjoying some time in Madison. Of course, tomorrow might set me back a little since I'll be gone the entire afternoon for a career fair at SLU, but at least it's in town.

With the football season over, I'm already starting to focus my attention to college basketball. As many of you know, March is my favorite time of the year. Once again, I have tickets for the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. This year I'm expecting some excellent games to prime me for the Big Dance. The next several weeks I'll be spending plenty of time catching up on my college basketball viewing and reading (there are several columns I try to read every week online) before settling on my picks for this year's tournament. I'm hoping for another exciting Badger run, but they better get things turned around here shortly if they even want to dance. Knowing Bo Ryan, he'll find a way to put together some wins and get the team ready for the postseason. With a little luck, I might just be heading to Indianapolis to see my second consecutive Final Four.

Getting Things Done For America

Maggie Sparks, my team leader and someone who is known for some of her funnier quotes, summed up those busy days at AmeriCorps best when she said, "I feel like I got a lot done for America today." I think all of us at the office (as well as in the schools and on disaster) have felt that same sentiment quite a bit lately. While I think we sometimes use the quote in jest, it really puts a positive spin on our work, and makes the busy days, weeks, and months worthwhile, because we feel like we're having a positive impact.

This week, and for the unforeseeable future, I'll have to keep this quote in mind. Things have picked up to unprecendeted levels for me and the entire Corps. Today alone I spent nearly 10 hours at the office just to make sure I had things in order for the rest of the week. The rest of the week I'll be out of the office for various functions, including career fairs at Notre Dame and Loyola Chicago. In the past few weeks I've grown accustomed to eating my lunch while at my desk just to try and stay on top of things. In the end, I know that it isn't for naught. While I may never see the end result of the work I'm doing, I can rest easily knowing that at some point someone else's life was made easier by actions that myself and others helped to create.

I think it's one more lesson I've learned while serving with AmeriCorps. Being busy at work shouldn't be a bad thing, it just means you're doing more for others.