Reagan Williams

I gained organizational and communication skills while serving at this event. Ths service helped me to understand that many families are lacking well rounded meals that contain all of the nutrients healthy humans need. I worked as a part of a team which taught me patience and to hold up my end of the stick. The organization supported me by providing a 15 minute break and snacks. In the future, I would always dress for the weather to maintain cool air.

I developed teamwork and organizational skills while serving here. This experience helped me to connect with underserved populations and understand them better. I formed new connections with another Emerging Leader and a high school student from Christian Brothers High School. I do plan to continue volunteering with this organization because it is a joy to serve the families. This service opportunity did align with my personal values.

I developed my communication and collaboration skills during this experience. I learned that Room in the INN has been impacting to families for 4 years. I met many key leaders at RITI and families in the community that are influential to the work being done at RITI. The organization gave me all the necessary materials to conduct the Prize Walk and food when it was over. This opportunity definitely aligned with my values, and I am glad that I was able to participate.

At this event I developed teamwork skills and communication skills to develop a system for bagging vegetables. This service event influenced my understanding social or environmental issues by creating awareness of of food insecurity and helping Girls Inc combat the issue. I formed great relationships with guys in another NPHC fraternity by working together to pack the vegetables. This service contributed to the sorority's value of service to minority communities. I didn't expect to encounter partially-rotten vegetables. However, we ended up making a separate pile of these vegetables for compost.

At this service event, I was able to thoroughly develop my painting skills. I learned about the many families that struggle to find child care options and the importance of low-income child care in urban communities. I worked on a team of about 6 people and we were painting the playground components. We were able to split the tasks amongst each other and make our supply of paint stretch far. This service contributed to one of my sorority's Programmatic Thrusts which is Educational Involvement and Awareness. The only challenges we faced was some of the playground parts being dirty . So we had to clean them off before painting them. .

I developed empathy and serving skills while serving dinner at Room in the Inn. I learned about the families that are living in the shelter and the different backgrounds that they come from. The relationships that I formed with the staff will influence my future volunteer involvement by volunteering at more shelters and serving food during holidays. The organization guided me through their purpose and background and taught me the Dos and Don'ts of serving, which was very helpful. At the end we did end up running out of food because the correct number of people was not communicated with the chef. However, there were leftovers from lunch that we were able to warm up for those that were left.

I developed great organizational and communication skills by organizing student's belongings in the moving bins and greeting families to offer a welcoming atmosphere for the freshman families. I learned how much of a burden it is for families to move their students in. So, I was very happy to help with this issue. I worked with a team and it helped to distribute the load of one student's belongings. The UofM Housing and Residence Life department was awesome at providing cold water in the warm weather and great music to keep our spirits lifted while working. We faced challenges with items not fully being able to fit through the doorways and moving the bins up on steps. However, we made it work.