AmeriCorps- Education Global Youth Service Day

South Oakland Shelter (SOS) hosted their very first Global Youth Service Day this year. This event took place over a two day span. It was created, planned and implemented by SOS’ State LeaderCorps member, their 2 State members, and their 3 VISTA members. SOS’ AmeriCorps team also partnered with Gleaner’s National LeaderCorps member for the events planning and implementation. In organizing this event SOS’ AmeriCorps team reached out to the community to bring awareness to homelessness, include those with disabilities in service learning, and to involve youth ages 5-25 to participate in service learning.

On April 20, 2012, two local schools came together, in partnership with SOS’ Global Youth Service Day, and hosted their very first overnight “Box City”, as a way to raise awareness for homelessness. Over 30 students, grades fifth through twelfth, participated in the “Box City”. Those students whom participated, collected card board boxes and arranged them in a city type fashion in a local middle school’s gymnasium. They then slept in their created city that night to try to understand and experience what a homeless individual may experience living on the streets. Students, parents, school staff, and community members brought hygiene donations to the gymnasium throughout the night. These items were all donated to SOS to benefit the clients the shelter serves. SOS’ State LeaderCorps member presented to these students about homelessness and how they can help the homeless population. The students were very responsive to the presentation and shocked that so many people in their community are affected by homelessness.

On April 21, 2012, SOS’ AmeriCorps team welcomed an additional State AmeriCorps member, 50 volunteers ranging in age from 5 – 65 years old (some with disabilities), 2 media outlets, and the Southfield City Mayor. After the welcome introductions, volunteers split into project groups. Each group was led by an AmeriCorps member and was assigned tasks to accomplish for the day. In an 8 hour service day the Global Youth Service Day volunteers remodeled SOS’ playroom, health room, and educational room. They also installed a bike rack, repainted the parking lot lines, planted a flower garden, and assembled 100 health kits to be distributed to SOS clients. The items for the health kits were collected and fully donated by Oakland University’s Nursing Program students and St. Joseph’s hospital.

What these volunteers accomplished the third weekend of April is truly amazing. Yes, the physical changes made to the SOS building turned out to be remarkable; however, it is the changes that you cannot see that made all the difference. Volunteers of all ages, backgrounds, races, and capabilities came together that weekend to make a difference. In doing so they learned about how to better serve their community, how to work together, and how to be the change. At the end of each day AmeriCorps members were approached by several volunteers asking how they could do more and wanting to know when the next volunteer event was.