I don't think I've ever been so tan in April. Less than two months ago my community and I were struggling to dig ourselves out of our house, now we're getting into summer mode and putting on sunscreen.
It's been a busy few weeks since the last time I blogged. During the last week of March my parents and our good family friends, Paul, Sarah, and Maggie Duwelius visited Washington, DC for spring break to visit my brother Brian and I. Paul's nephew, Patrick, happens to live on the same street as my community and I. My family and friends rented a house in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of DC, about 7 blocks away from our neighborhood in Petworth. My favorite part of their visit was sharing my community and placement. Many meals, laughs, and walks in DC made the week very special.
After my family and friends departure, I geared up for a four day college tour with my students. The high school program staff and I took 8 students to visit six colleges in North Carolina and one in Virginia. We had many packed days touring campuses and our students were able to meet with many college recruiters and one former participant in our high school program who is now a member of our FLOC Scholars program.
My community and I had a wonderful Easter weekend. It was filled with lots of visitors, great weather, and the Cherry Blossom festival. On Sunday we went to Mass at St. Augustine's, a very diverse parish near U Street in Washington. We had a great dinner at our house with friends in the area, including Jeff, a JV in Bridgeport, CT, my brother Brian and friends from home Mike, Kyle, and Sarah.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Gentrification in Washington: Local Students Perspective
A few weeks ago I began offering a public speaking course at my placement. While I intended the workshop to have a lot of structure and regular meeting times, it's turned into a weekly round table discussion amon
g a few members of our program, ranging from freshman to seniors. As mentioned in my last blog post, this course has offered our students some time for valuable dialogue for an hour or so each week.
Yesterday I brought up the topic of gentrification. Honestly, before I joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, I had hardly heard of this term or really knew what it meant. Gentrification is when wealthier people move into and develop a 'deteriorating' area of a city. This results in a displacement of the poorer and original residents of the community.
The students apart of this discussion are all long time residents of Washington, DC. I was intrigued by their thoughts and we began to make a pros/cons list their personal feelings of gentrification in the neighborhood, specifically the nearby neighborhood of Columbia Heights:
Pros:
Columbia Heights is an example of where a drastic gentrification has taken place. Columbia Heights is a neighborhood between my communities home in Petworth and my placement in Adams Morgan. 14th street is a historic place where the 1968 riots took place after Martin Luther King Jr's assassination. After the riot, it left many homes and buildings vacant for decades. This resulted in Columbia Heights becoming a booming area for drug dealing and other criminal activity.
In 1999, the city began revitalizing the neighborhood, especially 14th Street. They
installed a metro stop and new businesses began breaking ground to begin the process of rebuilding. Despite the changes, crime and drug use continued. A couple of my students said that until recently they were never allowed to travel alone to the Columbia Heights metro. As the rise of new buildings continued, peoples homes and small businesses including bodegas, pharmacies, and grocery stores were pushed out of the area. This was because either people couldn't afford the new high taxes (due to the value of property increasing) or because the city forced them out to make room for new developments.
Seven blocks east of Columbia Heights is our neighborhood known as Petworth. Petworth is beginning to look more like
Columbia Heights, where newer condos being built and many more young professionals moving into the neighborhood. Overall, gentrification does two things: For one thing, it makes the neighborhood safer and more appealing for new people to move in. And secondly, it drives the original residents out of their community and they are forced to find a new place to live. One student put it as: "I wish we could make the neighborhood safe without losing the community."
Thanks to my students Donnell, Faizah, Imani, and Naje for their willingness to share their thoughts on gentrification in Washington, DC.
g a few members of our program, ranging from freshman to seniors. As mentioned in my last blog post, this course has offered our students some time for valuable dialogue for an hour or so each week.Yesterday I brought up the topic of gentrification. Honestly, before I joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, I had hardly heard of this term or really knew what it meant. Gentrification is when wealthier people move into and develop a 'deteriorating' area of a city. This results in a displacement of the poorer and original residents of the community.
The students apart of this discussion are all long time residents of Washington, DC. I was intrigued by their thoughts and we began to make a pros/cons list their personal feelings of gentrification in the neighborhood, specifically the nearby neighborhood of Columbia Heights:
Pros:
- Increases value of property
- Makes the streets and buildings cleaner
- Less drug dealing and drug use
- Public transportation more accessible to area
- Police walk or bike more, less need to drive
- Brings in more grocery and retail stores
- Curfew is instated for kids under the age of 18
- Brings diversity into the area
- Removes affordable housing (including Section 8) which forces people out of the area
- Too many large condos not occupied by many people
- Restaurants, movie theaters increase prices
- Too crowded
- Drives historical value out of area
- Less character
- Loss of original community
Columbia Heights is an example of where a drastic gentrification has taken place. Columbia Heights is a neighborhood between my communities home in Petworth and my placement in Adams Morgan. 14th street is a historic place where the 1968 riots took place after Martin Luther King Jr's assassination. After the riot, it left many homes and buildings vacant for decades. This resulted in Columbia Heights becoming a booming area for drug dealing and other criminal activity.In 1999, the city began revitalizing the neighborhood, especially 14th Street. They
installed a metro stop and new businesses began breaking ground to begin the process of rebuilding. Despite the changes, crime and drug use continued. A couple of my students said that until recently they were never allowed to travel alone to the Columbia Heights metro. As the rise of new buildings continued, peoples homes and small businesses including bodegas, pharmacies, and grocery stores were pushed out of the area. This was because either people couldn't afford the new high taxes (due to the value of property increasing) or because the city forced them out to make room for new developments.Seven blocks east of Columbia Heights is our neighborhood known as Petworth. Petworth is beginning to look more like
Columbia Heights, where newer condos being built and many more young professionals moving into the neighborhood. Overall, gentrification does two things: For one thing, it makes the neighborhood safer and more appealing for new people to move in. And secondly, it drives the original residents out of their community and they are forced to find a new place to live. One student put it as: "I wish we could make the neighborhood safe without losing the community."Thanks to my students Donnell, Faizah, Imani, and Naje for their willingness to share their thoughts on gentrification in Washington, DC.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Kinship at work, home
The snow banks in Washington, DC are about gone. It's March and finally starting to feel more like we are getting closer spring.
This weekend three of my housemates and I drove to Raleigh, NC to visit the five Jesuit Volunteers living there this year. Like most of our trips, we rented a car for a quick 24 hours. While our trips require us to be in the car for several hours, we always enjoy that excuse to have a few hours together to just drive and enjoy one another's company. We pulled into Raleigh around 8:30 that evening. It was a great time with Jesuit Volunteers who made the trek to the most southern community in the JVC east region.
Friday night JV's from Philadelphia and Newark drove to DC to cut down on the driving time to Raleigh. We always enjoy guests at our house; every visit to a JV house that I have made I always find comfort. I'm continually amazed with the amount of friendship that has been formed throughout the JVC communities.
Over the past few months, I have formed a curriculum to begin teaching a public speaking and professional communication course. I offer this course every Wednesday evening for an hour and a half to students in our after school program. It is not a required class, but allows our students an opportunity to open up about themselves in a fun way through activities such as impromptu games and presenting 'how-to' speeches. Later in the course, we are going to focus on more formal presentations which include practice job interviews, resume building, etc. I feel as if I have gained a lot of knowledge about youth this year, but this course has allowed students the students to become more vulerable by allowing them to share.
Over the past few weeks, things at work and home have been very busy. Growing in community can be a challenge, both in an intentional house community and at my placement. I realize that putting great effort and not coasting is how one can find success in both.
This weekend three of my housemates and I drove to Raleigh, NC to visit the five Jesuit Volunteers living there this year. Like most of our trips, we rented a car for a quick 24 hours. While our trips require us to be in the car for several hours, we always enjoy that excuse to have a few hours together to just drive and enjoy one another's company. We pulled into Raleigh around 8:30 that evening. It was a great time with Jesuit Volunteers who made the trek to the most southern community in the JVC east region.
Friday night JV's from Philadelphia and Newark drove to DC to cut down on the driving time to Raleigh. We always enjoy guests at our house; every visit to a JV house that I have made I always find comfort. I'm continually amazed with the amount of friendship that has been formed throughout the JVC communities.
Over the past few months, I have formed a curriculum to begin teaching a public speaking and professional communication course. I offer this course every Wednesday evening for an hour and a half to students in our after school program. It is not a required class, but allows our students an opportunity to open up about themselves in a fun way through activities such as impromptu games and presenting 'how-to' speeches. Later in the course, we are going to focus on more formal presentations which include practice job interviews, resume building, etc. I feel as if I have gained a lot of knowledge about youth this year, but this course has allowed students the students to become more vulerable by allowing them to share.
Over the past few weeks, things at work and home have been very busy. Growing in community can be a challenge, both in an intentional house community and at my placement. I realize that putting great effort and not coasting is how one can find success in both.
Monday, February 15, 2010
DC gets slammed with snow
I'm spending my day off catching up on e-mail and the news looking at the bank of still three or four feet of snow outside of a coffee shop in the Columbia Heights neighborhood in Washington, DC. Record snowfall granted most of my housemates and I nearly a week off of work from our placements. Andrew, who works in hospice care, trekked each day to his placement.When word that the snowstorm was coming, Lauren and I reacted like everyone else and went to a grocery store about a mile from our house to pick up a few items... not the basic staples such as milk, eggs, or bread; but supplies to make a gourmet dip that we could enjoy during the Superbowl. The lines at the cashiers stretched the entire length of the store. After waiting in line for 45 minutes (which felt like a very stressful and emotional experience), we decided we could go without gourmet dip, put the items
back on the shelf, and decided to walk home.The picked up heavily late that Friday. That night we were enjoying some time playing games, when our neighbors knocked on our door to join them in a snowball fight. Afterward, Andrew and I walked to the neighborhood Wonderland bar which was packed with neighbors from nearby. The rest of the weekend continued with snowball fights and time together. Rachel and I walked to Mass at Sacred Heart and walked to the national mall to take photos of the snow.
Work was canceled Monday, and thinking things were starting to get back to normal, the second round of the snow came through. This led to Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday to be canceled. I never thought I could get tired of staying up late with friends, sleeping in, ea
ting, watching the news, and relaxation. But having to go back to work on Friday was a breath of fresh air.On Saturday, my housemates and I rented a car and drove up the Philadelphia for a visit and crossed over to Camden, NJ for to join fellow Jesuit Volunteers for the annual Valentine's day party. A great time spent by all, always a pleasure to see other JVC communities.
This Friday I am going to begin tutoring at a local middle school, Malcolm X, in northeast DC. The high school program I work in does not have program on Friday's, so I'm looking forward to having the opportunity to work with youth who are involved in For Love of Children's neighborhood tutoring program.
Friday, January 29, 2010
State of the Union: Live from Washington
It was an exciting evening in Washington on Wednesday. I had planned on watching Obama's state of the union address at home with my community. We don't watch too much TV, except for some news and a couple of sitcoms throughout the week. I haven't missed TV as much as I thought I would, as it gives me more reasons to read and watch movies with my community.
On Tuesday, I found out the staff that I interned for at Fox News Channel was going to be in DC convering the state of the union address. In the summer of 2008, I interned for Neil Cavuto and his staff of his 4 pm business show, "Your World w/ Cavuto."
I got in touch with the staff and they invited me to come visit them at the Newseum where they were broadcasting from on Pennsylvania Avenue. I stayed around for the evening, helping greet guests, deliver research, run cue-cards to the producers, etc. The staff produced three shows that evening that aired on Fox Business at 6, 8, and right after the address until 11pm. Guests on the shows included former presidential candidate Ralph Nader, former attorney general John Ashcroft, Mississippi governor Haley Barbour, and Tennessee congresswoman Marsha Blackburn. It was wonderful meeting all of them on such a historic evening. Around 8:35 pm, we watched the presidential motorcade travel down Pennsylvania Ave.
Catching up with Neil and his producers was great. They were a wonderful staff to work for and I am very grateful to have kept in touch and to have them as my mentors.
On Tuesday, I found out the staff that I interned for at Fox News Channel was going to be in DC convering the state of the union address. In the summer of 2008, I interned for Neil Cavuto and his staff of his 4 pm business show, "Your World w/ Cavuto."
I got in touch with the staff and they invited me to come visit them at the Newseum where they were broadcasting from on Pennsylvania Avenue. I stayed around for the evening, helping greet guests, deliver research, run cue-cards to the producers, etc. The staff produced three shows that evening that aired on Fox Business at 6, 8, and right after the address until 11pm. Guests on the shows included former presidential candidate Ralph Nader, former attorney general John Ashcroft, Mississippi governor Haley Barbour, and Tennessee congresswoman Marsha Blackburn. It was wonderful meeting all of them on such a historic evening. Around 8:35 pm, we watched the presidential motorcade travel down Pennsylvania Ave.
Catching up with Neil and his producers was great. They were a wonderful staff to work for and I am very grateful to have kept in touch and to have them as my mentors.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Re-Oriented: Mid-year reflection in the JVC
This weekend the 87 Jesuit Volunteers on the east coast gathered outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania for our re-orientation. This is the first time all of us have been together since our orientation retreat in mid-August.
At the end of this month, we will have reached our half-way point in our year of service. The weekend allowed us to re-evaluate our commitment to the values in the JVC. A majority of the retreat was focused on social justice/Catholic social teaching. The discussions were led by a Jesuit priest from Houston, Fr. Fred Krammer, SJ. One of the most valuable parts of the weekend was having discussions with my apostolate group members who are also working in education placements. Many of our stories matched as we witness many of the same struggles in the education system: Poverty, lack of parent involvement, conflicts in the family, learning differences, and limited resources in our non-profits. These discussions have helped me become more energized about my placement and the remaining six months in the JVC.
This weekend also helped me get reinforced about the four values of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and how my community and I continue to live them:
Simple living: Living off a stipend. The majority of my pay check goes towards rent, utilities, and community food money. Personally I am allotted $85 in spending money. We refrain from using cable TV, subscribing to the Internet, buying expensive food, etc.
Community: Living with four other Jesuit Volunteers and embracing one another's experiences. Nightly dinners, weekly spirituality and community nights. Supporting one another through the struggles and needs of one another. Staying in touch with the greater east coast JVC communities.
Spirituality: Having open discussions about our spiritual lives and how they are integrated into our year of service. We take turns leading spirituality nights; attend Mass regularly. I have been bi-monthly participating in spiritual direction with a local Jesuit.
Social Justice: This year I am working at For Love of Children as an evening high school instructor and assisting with our college scholarship program. The goal is to make college and other post-secondary school programs available to the inner-city at-risk youth that participate in our program.
Re-Orientation was a wonderful experience that allowed me to recognize that challenges that I have been faced with this year and the gratitude that I have for my community, placement, and city that I live in.
At the end of this month, we will have reached our half-way point in our year of service. The weekend allowed us to re-evaluate our commitment to the values in the JVC. A majority of the retreat was focused on social justice/Catholic social teaching. The discussions were led by a Jesuit priest from Houston, Fr. Fred Krammer, SJ. One of the most valuable parts of the weekend was having discussions with my apostolate group members who are also working in education placements. Many of our stories matched as we witness many of the same struggles in the education system: Poverty, lack of parent involvement, conflicts in the family, learning differences, and limited resources in our non-profits. These discussions have helped me become more energized about my placement and the remaining six months in the JVC.
This weekend also helped me get reinforced about the four values of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and how my community and I continue to live them:
Simple living: Living off a stipend. The majority of my pay check goes towards rent, utilities, and community food money. Personally I am allotted $85 in spending money. We refrain from using cable TV, subscribing to the Internet, buying expensive food, etc.
Community: Living with four other Jesuit Volunteers and embracing one another's experiences. Nightly dinners, weekly spirituality and community nights. Supporting one another through the struggles and needs of one another. Staying in touch with the greater east coast JVC communities.
Spirituality: Having open discussions about our spiritual lives and how they are integrated into our year of service. We take turns leading spirituality nights; attend Mass regularly. I have been bi-monthly participating in spiritual direction with a local Jesuit.
Social Justice: This year I am working at For Love of Children as an evening high school instructor and assisting with our college scholarship program. The goal is to make college and other post-secondary school programs available to the inner-city at-risk youth that participate in our program.
Re-Orientation was a wonderful experience that allowed me to recognize that challenges that I have been faced with this year and the gratitude that I have for my community, placement, and city that I live in.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
2010 in the JVC
I returned to my placement a couple of weeks ago after taking some time off for Christmas break. To celebrate the holidays, I returned to my hometown of Lake Oswego, Ore. It was a nice time of the year to return to the Pacific Northwest. No snow to come home to this year; less exhaustion since I was not recovering from a series of final exams, and certainly a different feel at home than long extended Christmas breaks I had in college.
I had a chance to catch up with a lot of friends from home, many of us which I recent college grads going down different paths whether it be continuing school, starting a career, or volunteering. My family and I had a nice holiday and celebrated with our normal traditions. We spent a couple of days in Black Butte Ranch in Central Oregon with friends of ours who have a house down there.
On my return to the east coast, I stopped in one of my favorite places in the world: New York City. Several of the Jesuit Volunteers traveled to Harlem to ring in 2010 together. I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate the holiday but in a festive city with such a great group of people. The next day I returned to Washington DC via the Mega Bus. I came home to housemates Andrew and Rachel who were already home. It was nice to have a couple of days to settle in and gear up for work to begin. Laura and Lauren returned to DC the following Sunday.
It's great to be back to Washington DC. Visitors are always a pleasure to have. A visit from teachers from both high school and college have been a nice treat since our return.
All of the east coast Jesuit Volunteers head to Re-Orientation this weekend. I look forward to re-connecting with many people and seeing what it's all about.
I had a chance to catch up with a lot of friends from home, many of us which I recent college grads going down different paths whether it be continuing school, starting a career, or volunteering. My family and I had a nice holiday and celebrated with our normal traditions. We spent a couple of days in Black Butte Ranch in Central Oregon with friends of ours who have a house down there.
On my return to the east coast, I stopped in one of my favorite places in the world: New York City. Several of the Jesuit Volunteers traveled to Harlem to ring in 2010 together. I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate the holiday but in a festive city with such a great group of people. The next day I returned to Washington DC via the Mega Bus. I came home to housemates Andrew and Rachel who were already home. It was nice to have a couple of days to settle in and gear up for work to begin. Laura and Lauren returned to DC the following Sunday.
It's great to be back to Washington DC. Visitors are always a pleasure to have. A visit from teachers from both high school and college have been a nice treat since our return.
All of the east coast Jesuit Volunteers head to Re-Orientation this weekend. I look forward to re-connecting with many people and seeing what it's all about.
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