I have participated in several community service projects since starting my internship with Ogallala Commons. Surprisingly, I was able to complete my first hour during our orientation retreat! Darryl had explained to us that in order to eliminate paper plate and styrofoam waste, Talon Point Retreat uses actual dishes and silverware for all of the meals that are served. Therefore, we all had to pitch in to help wash dishes! Several others and I had the very first lunch shift for the first day. My group was really funny and we were all having so much fun that it didn’t even seem like work!
My second community service project (and the most enjoyable) was designing a logo for our local non-profit child care center! I noticed that many of the businesses in our small community didn’t have an actual logo, so I decided to reach out to the child care center to donate my time and improving skill-set. I came up with several different logo samples and then attended a board meeting where all the board members voted on which one they liked best! Luckily, they chose my personal favorite. I would say I definitely put the most effort into this particular project as the childcare center has always been very close to my heart, and I wanted to give back.
As I am actively involved in 4-H, I contributes some more hours this week during fair! Our county has an annual “decorate-a-booth” competition for each 4-H club, and my mom and I always volunteer our time to decorate it. This year’s fair theme was “Small Town Showdown” and we decorated our booth to be very western while still incorporating personal elements from each of our club members. Our booth won 1st place a couple years ago, and we’re hoping to take back the crown this year!
I also participated in several other smaller projects throughout my internship. I regularly volunteer a couple nights a month at the Peerless Theatre in Holyoke. For Old Fashioned Saturday Night, I cut out lots of fabric pieces for Cornhole bags.
Participating in all of these community service projects has helped me grow into a better person. I learned that the feeling of knowing that you’ve contributed to something worthwhile is often more spiritually rewarding than receiving something in return.
