Mothers

Today at work, two mothers spilled their stories to us.

The first was complaining about how her daughter had been placed in all honors classes except for English (her favorite and best subject) and about how she has never been recommended by teachers to participate in any special activities/programs. It smacked of racism to me, but we also only got one side of the story…

Another mother came in to register her son for our program, but we couldn’t take him because we were already full with a waiting list. That set her off on a tearful story about her bad day and her horrible week and her difficult life: there just isn’t enough support at Ethel Lawrence or in Mount Laurel for people like her – no affordable day care, no all-day kindergarten, and not much compassion from the administration. I was sad to hear it. They pull people out of their support networks and then expect them to make it on their own? In a place with completely different cultural and economic expectations and services? Something is wrong with this picture.

ERLH Ed Ctr

We visited my job placement today!--the Education Center at Ethel R. Lawrence Homes, an affordable housing development in Mount Laurel, NJ. The homes are very nice. The Ed Center is in a double-wide trailer.

I’m still not sure what I think of the concept though, even after hearing the spiel for a third time... Luckily, I don’t have any qualms about what I’m doing, which is helping the kids with their schoolwork. It’s the larger mission of the housing development that I’m not sure I buy into. In a way, it does just seem like a band-aid and not a real solution to the root of the problem: endemic urban poverty. It doesn’t improve the cities by taking the well-behaved poor families away and putting them in a suburb…

On the other hand, one article I read talked about it in terms of providing housing for the people who are already working in these wealthy communities but can’t afford to live there. That makes sense to me. It's a very different principle than the first one, but I guess they kind of go hand in hand, in a way...

History

As the bus wound its way through the Pennsylvania countryside on our way to Blue Ridge, I was reminded of one of the reason I chose to come to the Eastern US, which I had temporarily forgotten about: the history. Everything out here is just so much older than anything out West by 2-300 years. I was struck by how different the architecture in the towns looked and felt, and I loved seeing all the old farm houses and barns. I find the stone buildings, especially, just incredibly beautiful. There's something about them...and there's nothing like it in Oregon.

On our way to Camden from orientation we stopped in Gettysburg and wandered through the cemeteries, and I was once again overwhelmed by the incredible feeling of standing on the same patch of ground where such a sad and historic event took place so many many years before.

Orientation

Orientation was stressful. And wonderful. And draining. And energizing.

I met some amazing people, had some really good conversations, enjoyed spending time outside and listening to the cicadas, and was inspired by some really good presentations about JVC's four values. And I got to sing with our impromtu choir during each of the 3 masses that we had.

But emotionally, it was an up, down, up, down kind of week. Wondering how well I'd get along with my community members, then spending some time with them and feeling reassured, but then having a conversation about alcohol that makes me unsure about it after all, but then having an awesome discussion about spirituality, and so on. At the end of the 5 days, I was saddened to have to leave all the other people I'd met and made friends with (especially my 8 fellow non-Catholics) who were living in other cities, but I left with the comfort of knowing that I'd see them at least one more time and probably more throughout the year.

This Year

I'm writing this from a hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, as I get ready to head to rural southern Pennsylvania for the week. I will be attending the orientation for the eastern region of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps until next Tuesday when I head to Camden, New Jersey, which will be my home for the next year. It's taken me a long time to get to this point, as you may know, but here I am! I didn't know until 2 1/2 weeks ago exactly where I was going to be working and living this year.

So why JVC? The four values that JVC operates under are Social Justice, Simple Living, Spirituality, and Community, which are all things that resonate deeply with my own values and where I am in my life right now. I will be living in a house with five other volunteers and we will share all income and expenses except for our $80/month personal stipend. There will be three retreats during the year to reflect on our work, our lives, and our faith. Our work is with justice-oriented social service organizations, and we will be challenged to think about the deeper roots of structural and systemic change beyond the charitable service.

I personally will be working with an after-school educational program at Ethel Lawrence Homes, a low-income housing development outside of Camden. I can tell you a whole lot more about it once I actually get there and start working... For those of you that don't know, Camden is right across the river from Philadelphia. It will be exciting to be living so close to a big city (practically in it) for the first time in my life. Camden itself is a city of about 80,000 people, mainly African-American and Hispanic, and an extremely high percentage of its residents live below the poverty line.
I don't know how regular my internet access will be (maybe a few times a week?), but I will try to update my blog every so often