Katherine Stewart

At the community partner panel, I heard from three partners about their work in the community and the individuals they service. I was very moved by their personal stories that led them into community work, and how their passion and drive helps them continue to work in the community. Speaking from personal experience, community service work can be difficult and tiring but these partners and their companies find strength to move past that and keep helping others. All three of the panelists worked in a different area of community service, but they all connected with each other and found ways their companies overlap with the same intentions.

My main takeaway from the panel was how to get involved currently, and when I leave Sacred Heart. As of right now, it is easy to go on the givepulse website and sign up for an event. But in the summer, on breaks, and after I leave SHU I do not have that same luxury. I took away the fact that I can reach out to any non-profit in my local community to volunteer my time. These initiatives are always looking for more help and people to get involved, so reaching out is a great first step. Getting involved in service is a great way to know what issues are going on within my local community, and what I can do to help.

Overall, this panel opened my eyes to how many programs there are to help people, and how I can contribute. I feel inspired to go out and help where I can because knowing I can make a change is empowering. Knowing this new information makes me feel like I have a responsibility and help where I can, and I will do just that.

On Friday April 12th, I will be volunteering at the Red Cross blood drive at West Campus. I will be a greeter and helping the registration table for the donors coming in. I am logging this impact early so I am able to get my hours verified and receive the spring allocation.

I worked the American Red Cross blood drive at the registration table checking blood donors in. I worked for two hours.

After listening to this colloquium, I have learned a lot about how it feels to grow up as someone with a disability. I did not experience this myself, but I did have a program that supported students with disabilities at my high school. Hearing directly from someone who has had to work through this challenge their whole life was eye opening to the different programs, and support systems they need to succeed. The speaker expressed what these students need, how to support them, and that there is no shame in accepting the support systems in place to help students thrive.

This new information I have learned is very beneficial for my life going forward. As someone who will be working in the healthcare field, I will be interacting with people with disabilities and knowing what they go through and how to be better supported will help guide me how to best treat them. Knowing the mental battles this group of people go through when learning they have a disability is difficult, and that carries into their entire life. People can be discriminatory and judge them based on things they cannot control, but being better educated on this topic will help me become someone that they can rely on to know that I will never judge them or view them differently based on their disability. Overall I am very glad I attended this colloquia, and feel as though I can be a better person knowing the experiences people with disabilities go through, but how they can be successful and thrive in the goals they set for themselves when they overcome their own mental sigma.

I went to study hours with my PSG small group. It was held by my small group later and I worked on homework and planned out how I will get more hours for the grant.

Through ADPi, I made decorations for Valentine's day and put them in bags with candy and letters. These bags will go to Operation Hope to help children in need and lift their spirits near Valentine's day.

Through ADPi, I decorated and filled bags to be given out to homeless people in the nearby community. We decorated them for spring and put snacks and a water bottle in each bag. This event was through Operation Hope.

I made cards and door decorations to be brought to the Ronald McDonald House Charity. They are given to the families that are staying at the RMHC when we go to the house to volunteer our time. The house is in New Haven, CT and is helping the local community.