Filed under: Service Learning
By Meredith Grady
Once a semester, Emmanuel College Service Learning, called Koinonia, facilitates a Wednesday night chapel service. The focus of fall 2008 was poverty. A message was conveyed through statistics, video, and student speakers. Perhaps the most striking testimony was that of two students who voluntarily took a vow of poverty to understand how to approach the issue. They explained their week long experience to the rest of the student body, and then allowed for other curious students to take on a challenge similar to theirs. Seniors Brittani Panozzo and LJ Gay gave up their cars, cell phones, and simple luxuries (like shampoo) to increase their ability to sympathize with the poor.
Their stories inspired several other students to take a vow of poverty afterward. All of the students involved with this vow said they felt very grateful after the experience, because it made them realize how much they took for granted. A deeper appreciation for basic necessities and a broadened perspective- these are just two of the results of these sacrificial vows. EC’s Service Learning continues to receive positive feedback on the service.
Filed under: Service Learning
A few students painting the Wellspring House
By Meredith Grady
Slavery still exists in the South. It may not look the way it did in the 1800s, but people are still being bought and sold every day. The city of Atlanta is one of the biggest hubs for human trafficking on the face of the planet, unbeknownst to many US citizens. There, approximately 200 children and young teens a day are put on the market for sex.
While the typical American has no knowledge of this fact, Emmanuel College found out and decided to take action. On September 20, 2008, a group of 25 concerned students participated in a construction project hosted by Wellspring Living. Founded by Mary Frances Bowley. Wellspring Living is a ministry for women affected by drugs, sexual abuse, and prostitution. The new Wellspring’s Home For Girls is a rehabilitation center in the works for girls rescued from the sex trade in Atlanta.
The residents of this home will live in their own rooms, receive counseling, and have their basic needs met by Wellspring and other various aid groups. Emmanuel College volunteers labored diligently by painting these rooms, tearing out damaged carpet, and scraping off old wallpaper. Under the supervision of Wellspring Program Strategist Angel Vickers and Emmanuel College Service Learning’s Regina Moon, EC students had the opportunity to engage in social action.
“I felt blessed to work for such an amazing cause.” said EC junior Caitie Poole. She continued. “I have always wanted to help oppressed women and girls in a practical way. Today I got to live that out, to show Christ’s love.”
Christ’s love was indeed lived out through this service project. The results were not instant, though. The home at the time of EC’s visit, still had obvious work to be done to it. For more information on how to help, please visit Wellspring Living.
