Discussion Community

NEEDS TO BE BASED OFF A COMMUNITY PROGRAM IN THE “Rio Grande VALLEY” IN SOUTH TEXAS.

This week you will identify and work with an organization focused on a justice issue that’s important to you. Contact the organization and contribute 2-3 hours of volunteer service with them. Share information about the goals of the organization and the work you did for them in a live discussion with some of your classmates.

As an alternative, you might choose to make some changes in your life as a step to becoming more carbon neutral–you should make 3 or 4 changes for a week that you think you could continue post-assignment.

If you choose to complete work in your community, you can do your service at an organization you already know about, or can research a new one. You can use the national website Volunteermatch.org or other local volunteering resources. Here are some areas/issues to think about:

Food:

local food shelves often need help with stocking
community gardens need help weeding, planting, watering, harvesting (seasonal)
packaging at warehouse distribution services that supply food shelves (2nd Harvest Heartland)
meal preparation or serving at local shelters, Campus Kitchens, Loaves and Fishes sites
Clothing:

Dress for Success helps women with career appropriate clothing (many locations)
Goodwill, Salvation Army, and other donation/retail centers need help sorting
Environment:

Clean-up activities are often scheduled in parks, along rivers, wetlands, etc.
County parks often use volunteers to help out at their naturalist-led activities
Animals:

Humane societies use volunteers for dog-walking and animal socialization

There are also justice-related activities you can engage in online that focus on national and global issues:

Human rights: https://www.hrw.org/join-us/take-action (Links to an external site.)

Women in public office: http://www.sheshouldrun.org/mission (Links to an external site.)

Poverty: https://www.oxfamamerica.org/take-action/ (Links to an external site.)

Writing letters to legislators:

https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/sites/default/files/documents/07_writeletter.pdf (Links to an external site.)

https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials (Links to an external site.)

Your professor will inform you how you will participate in a learning community discussion about this topic. Your community involvement will be worth 10 points, and your discussion will be worth 5 points. Please be prepared to discuss the following questions:

Who benefits most, from the One Voice choir, the audience or choir members? Why?
How and why did you choose your community involvement activity?
Was your community involvement work charity or justice work?
How did your community involvement extend the legacy of the CSJs’ commitment to the dear neighbor?