I absolutely loved the trip to Agape! From the passionate tour guide to the actual facilities, everything about the tour was amazing.
It was great to actually see the living spaces that Agape has provided for these women. Each was well equipped and seemed to be well taken care of. In addition, Agape's children center was extremely well put together. You could tell the staff had really considered the needs of the children. After viewing the children's center, we climbed the steps to the modest quarters which house what Agape uses to develop women into self-sufficient mothers and citizens. Bible verses adorned the walls and self-help pamphlets and books littered the shelves and coffee tables; the environment itself seemed to be very inspiring. The whole center fostered a sense of hope.
As we traveled to the next Agape location, we were greeting by a zealous woman who obviously had a great passion for her work at Agape. She reiterated what Agape strove for, but she also included her own tidbits about her personal experiences. She mentioned that the day before the tour a young girl told her that she had been molested by her step dad for many years. This was one of the main things that stuck with me out of the whole tour. I loved how Agape gave these children such empowerment to speak up and sponsored such a positive, caring environment.
I honestly enjoyed my trip very much. I hope to volunteer with Agape later in the year.
-Anna
Monday, October 15, 2012
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Agape Anticipation
Overall, I am really interested to visit Agape. I just got my form signed tonight; hopefully I can remember to turn it in soon!
Anyway, my initial inspection of the Agape website left me feeling very grateful. When the messages flashed across the homepage relaying people's everyday fears, I tried to view life through their shoes, so to say. Honestly, it was quite hard. One girl mentioned that her father would not be able to walk her down the aisle...To think about not having a father in my life was totally heartbreaking - it made me a bit emotional.
I then moved to the About Us page. While reading through it, I was reminded of my trip in the spring to the Neighborhood School. Although I am sure Agape does not have the same goal as the Neighborhood School, from my first impression they seem similar. From my understanding, both have the same idea: to shape the community by keeping children educated, safe, and in a home.
Upon further delving into the site, I found at Agape was established over 40 year ago. I didn't realize that it had existed for that long - for some reason I had thought it was a relatively new organization. It seems Agape evolved from a small idea to a momentous project. I am always interested to see how community service programs expand. Whenever I think about doing something to help Memphis I never know where to start. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by such huge problems. I hope to find out how I can help as the years go on.
Although I am trying to adopt different perspectives, I do struggle with it. I hope that this trip will make me more aware of my own life and how many opportunities I have available.
Anna
Anyway, my initial inspection of the Agape website left me feeling very grateful. When the messages flashed across the homepage relaying people's everyday fears, I tried to view life through their shoes, so to say. Honestly, it was quite hard. One girl mentioned that her father would not be able to walk her down the aisle...To think about not having a father in my life was totally heartbreaking - it made me a bit emotional.
I then moved to the About Us page. While reading through it, I was reminded of my trip in the spring to the Neighborhood School. Although I am sure Agape does not have the same goal as the Neighborhood School, from my first impression they seem similar. From my understanding, both have the same idea: to shape the community by keeping children educated, safe, and in a home.
Upon further delving into the site, I found at Agape was established over 40 year ago. I didn't realize that it had existed for that long - for some reason I had thought it was a relatively new organization. It seems Agape evolved from a small idea to a momentous project. I am always interested to see how community service programs expand. Whenever I think about doing something to help Memphis I never know where to start. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by such huge problems. I hope to find out how I can help as the years go on.
Although I am trying to adopt different perspectives, I do struggle with it. I hope that this trip will make me more aware of my own life and how many opportunities I have available.
Anna
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