story by Maddie Knopke and Cecilia Butler, photo by Emma Wheatley

Behind the Hours

“Okay Georgie…what’s the answer?” junior Emma Allen asks to one of her students at Urban Scholastic Center.

Georgie, dressed in a striped shirt and red Nikes, is toying with his paper airplane. He looks up at Allen, confused.

“Is the answer 130, Georgie?” Allen repeats.

His confusion becomes more evident.

“Um…130…?” Georgie responds quietly.

The room erupts in cheer and buzzes with gospel hip-hop as Georgie bounces over to join the line of his peers who had also given correct answers.

It is the 7:30 p.m. bible class at Urban Scholastic Center, one Allen has been helping to lead every Wednesday since freshman year along with general tutoring on Mondays and reading tutoring on Tuesdays. These are the same classes Allen attended herself seven years ago as an elementary student.

Allen explained that most of the children attending the Urban Scholastic Center classes are living in poverty-stricken areas.

“They’ve definitely broadened my perspective,” Allen said. “Just seeing how they handle things. Seeing how they’re so young. I think if I was in that situation I would be freaking out.”

She glances around at the 40-some screaming children.

“I don’t feel like this is something that is an option for me to do,” Allen said. “I feel like this is something I need to be doing.  This is my community and I need to be doing something to help it.”

While Allen volunteers with children in education and bible study, other STA students are serving their own communities as well. On the weekends and after school, many students volunteer regularly from three times a week to just a few hours each month. From poverty-stricken areas to church parishes, from handing out granola bars to leading bible trivia, service plays a role in the lives of many STA students. Regardless of the form of service, STA encourages students to follow the Sisters of St. Joseph’s statement: “move always towards profound love of God and love of dear neighbor without distinction”.

STA junior Anja Browning has been volunteering at Community Blood Center since September of this school year. She waits with the donors after they have given blood and provides them with snacks and water.

Standing in the donor recovery room, voices from a video drown out the noises surrounding her, she hears the emotional words of blood recipients and donors repeating through her head.

Browning stares across the hall from the recovery room to the darkened windows of the donation area.  She watches the donors sitting patiently in the booths.

“I want to donate, but…I don’t think I’m 115 pounds yet,” Browning said.

With hundreds of pints of blood surrounding her during each shift, Anja hopes to be the one sitting in the donation booth soon.

“For now, I’m here to make sure the donors are stable,” Browning said. “But I also make small talk…it lightens the mood, ya know?”

A middle-aged man steps into what Browning calls her “pocket,” the recovery room for donors. His right arm has bandages from the donation needle.

“Can I get you a bottle of water, maybe?” Browning asks.

Browning and Allen find ways to serve only a few blocks from their homes, while junior Mary Gibson steps into an unfamiliar neighborhood. Gibson volunteers at St. James Place, a food kitchen at 39th Street and Troost Avenue.

“Will you marry me?” she hears as she looks up from the pile of dirty trays she was collecting from the table.

“I can take you on my helicopter. We will go away together.”

These words came from an older man who was a regular at the food kitchen with a long gray beard, about five feet tall. And yes, he was asking for her hand in marriage.

“Yes,” Gibson said, as her mom hurried over and shooed the man away.

Six years ago, Gibson stepped inside St. James Place with her fifth grade Girl Scout troop for the first time.  Since then, she has been volunteering a couple times each month. Portraits of the people being served line the walls, and volunteers walk throughout the cafeteria interacting as friends rather than simply food servers.

“It’s like person-to-person,” Gibson explained. “They just kinda feel like a friend is helping them out.”

Gibson expressed that her service isn’t just the action itself but the relationships she forms with those she serves. This is something many STA students recognize as a central instrument in volunteering.

“I mean, yeah their lives are completely different than mine but when I’m there it’s not like that,” Gibson said. “I’m their friend even if it’s just during their dinner.”

 Q and A with Mrs. Absher

Ms. Kate Absher discusses her position as the new STA service director, as well how service impacts our community.

Why is service important?

Because we get a chance to discover more about ourselves in attempting to help others.

When have you seen this?

I saw teenagers, who were normally shy and they were really good at communicating with the other people. I think that you can learn a lot about yourself and the importance of the human connection.

Why do you think its important for us at St. Teresa’s to be around more people who are struggling?

I think we so often absolutely take for granted everything we have. I just think there are things that we can’t think about, things that we cannot understand. Like witnessing and being apart of [service] is amazing. We need to go out and actually do some more service.

What is your mission?

To get people to stretch what is beyond what is comfortable for them.

 Chicago Mission Trip

The STA mission trip to Chicago, led by Ms. Kate Absher, will take place during 2013 Spring Break and includes sophomores, juniors and seniors. The volunteers on this “Urban Plunge” will discuss and work to improve injustices within the environment, housing, jail, community development, diversity, healthcare and more. The experience incorporates a spiritual perspective and aims to positively affect not only those who they are serving but also the volunteers themselves.

Schools’ Service Week Requirements

STA: 90 hours from junior year to senior year with the same agency (1 week away from school)

Rockhurst: 25 hours each year; 2 weeks of service at the same agency (senior year) (2 weeks away from school)

Shawnee Mission East: No service requirements

Bishop Miege: 80 hours (all 4 years)

Notre Dame de Sion: 100 hours (all 4 years)

Southwest High School: No service requirements

Mission week vs. Service week

Mission Week:

Who: STA community

What : A week dedicated to celebrating service at STA. Among the Mission week activities are trivia, a teacher auction table, “Flat nan”, opportunities to serve after school, musical chairs and “teacher games”. Each day has a new theme that students may dress in for $1 as well as Mission Week T-shirts that read “I stand for…” on the back.

When: January 28th to February 1st

Where: St. Teresa’s Academy

Why : “We are having mission week as a fun way to celebrate all that we are at STA. Who doesn’t love wearing jammies or dressing up in silly themes and all of it to remember how awesome we are and to give back to two local agencies (Sherwood Center and Upper Room).” STA’s service director Kate Absher said.

Service Week:

Who: Juniors, Seniors

What: “A great opportunity for STA upperclassmen to go out into our community and see what others need and how they are able to give.”

When: February 25th to March 1st

Where: After attending STA’s “Service fair” to learn about the participating agencies, juniors and seniors interview with several agencies they choose. They then choose one of the agencies that has accepted them and complete service there for a week.

Why: To provide students with a rewarding experience in serving the community and creating relationships with those who are different than themselves.