Haverford College

Nick will be sharing his experiences in Americorps' NCCC program as a monthly feature. Click the link below to visit Nick's blog for regular updates.

Sorry for the lack of updates, Haverford. Disaster Recovery kept me quite busy as well as kept me from any source of internet. It was very profound to be able to re-visit all the areas that we saw the first time we were in Mississippi. I must say, that a large majority of the areas are slowly rebuilding and it does look significantly better. I remember running down the beach front in Waveland and noticing, on my right, how beautiful the beaches were (a "gem of the Gulf Coast"). But, when I turned my head to the left side, it was nothing but torn houses, small debris piles and emptiness. Rebuilding is slow, but I have no doubt that the area will recover.

I do, however, have doubts about the 9th Ward and St. Bernard's Perish in New Orleans. Many of the pictures I took were from that area. Truly, it's as though nothing has been done to the area. People have not moved back and whole neighborhoods feel like ghost towns. I just get very frustrated thinking that in the past nine months, the city refused to contribute any vital resources to that area, almost as though they want the poorer sections of the city to remain uninhabitable. It's a sad shame that only the last day that I was there did the area finally get electricity for stop lights.

We're back now in Sacramento , getting ready for wildland fire fighting. We will be working in Eldorado National Forest, about one hour north of Sacramento. We'll be back on the weekends, so I'll be a little bit better about updates on the site. It's hard to fathom it, but one year ago, I graduated Haverford College . It's quite a strange feeling since I'm technically no longer a "recent' college graduate. Alas, congrats to the graduating (recently graduated as of this writing) seniors. I have confidence that you'll change the world!

Sorry I haven't been updating- it's been quite insane over here, what with the various dramas and so forth. Instead of sending us out to New Orleans, staff had to change the plans since the camp that we were initially going to be staying in is closing down (FEMA stopped funding to it). Part of the problem now is that the federal government no longer funding federal relief services, but instead just giving money to the states to outsource to their own people (and boast the state's economy). What that means for us is that we had to search extra hard to find a new project. Instead of working with Red 7, we are now working with a Catholic coalition of volunteers. Red 7, ironically, is working with a Lutheran church in Ocean Springs, MS, the same church where I found extra work for us during our first disaster phase there. Both teams will be leading volunteers as they start the long-term recovery of Hurricane Katrina. We'll be putting up dry wall and insolation for homes. My team in particular will be split up (yet again) into teams of two. Each two-man team will lead about 10-12 volunteers. This is actually pretty exciting for me since I'll finally get a chance to lead people. It also means more responsibility, which I really do not mind at this point.

Well, we leave for Biloxi, Mississippi in an hour and I'm not sure what our accommodations will be like. I may not have access to the internet for the next couple of weeks since we'll be staying in an old Boys Scout camp that is serving to house volunteers now. Our work will take us from the east part of Mississippi all the way to the Western parts, near the border to Louisiana. I'm going to take more pictures this time around (the last project had a severe barrier to taking pictures of us working). One month in disaster then it's back here for the last phase of AmeriCorps. With the exception of the fire teams, all the other teams are staying in the Gulf Region for their last projects.

I can't help but think about how people randomly thank us for the work we do. So far this year, it's just hard for me to grasp the "good" that we've done. Perhaps this is a sign that I'm pessimistic, but I just feel detached from it all until after the project is over. I sincerely hope that these last two projects will really make me feel differently, as I can see the changes that we've made in people's lives. Wish me luck!

First day of March and I've already completed more than half my term of service with AmeriCorps. New national developments are slowly affecting AmeriCorps, most notably the 2007 Budget Proposal which will essentially eliminate AmeriCorps*NCCC. Like with many policy decisions, it has become a very political battle while leaving out the voices of the people who need us. It's hard to quantify the good things we have done, especially on a project such as the one I'm currently assigned to. Our daily tasks are focused on monitoring the shelters for anything from child abuse/neglect (in the family shelters) to violence, drugs and alcohol (in the men's shelters). We're trying to provide our homeless clients with a safe, warm place to stay at night, away from the perils of the streets. It definitely has been an interesting learning situation since we also live in the shelters we work in. Many times, I'll be on a run and I will receive recognition from the clients who are outside during the daytime. Other times, we'll be forced to drag in an inebriated and unconscious client from the street so that he may lay down inside. Yes, it has affected the way I perceive the homeless in general, though generalities do not necessarily apply to everyone (just some individuals). The biggest surprise for me is finding out how safe I really am in these situations; if there were a client that argues with me or even attempts any sort of violence, I am confident that there are five other clients who are willing to support me and ensure that I am not hurt. People are protective here and most importantly, appreciate the work we do. How can politicians measure that sort of feeling in dollars and cents? Perhaps, this is the reason why our next project, starting in April, will be another disaster relief project, this time in New Orleans. Perhaps another high profile project will convince the public that we are needed in America. Then, perhaps the politicians will finally listen.

With the first phase of Americorps over, I think it's time for a well-deserved break. Our Salmon rehabilitation project went well as we were able to plant trees and work with kids. Though I felt that most of that stuff was a little mundane at times, working with children really makes me wish we had an education project coming up. Instead, our next stop after break will be fire training, where we'll be "Red Card" certified, meaning I can join any forrest fireteam after Americorps. Then, it's off to Salt Lake City for two months, living and running a seasonal homeless shelter. I'm looking forward to that project after working with Street Outreach program at Haverford (where we fed the homeless on Wednesday nights and just hung out with them while they ate). I think there are many misconceptions about homeless people and many just overlook what they have to offer as human beings and another perspective on the world. It's funny how the staff asked for volunteers during the holiday break to go back on disaster and many people were quite hesistant about doing it, including myself. It would have been more mismanagement and under-utilization work on the cruise ship... I think it's also very funny how I came to Americorps looking for disaster relief but now am interested in all the other service areas that Americorps provides. Well, here's adeau and Happy Holidays to the readers out there- hope all is well and hope everyone tries to enjoy themselves while (maybe) getting in a day or two of voluntary service just to see life from another point of view.

Disaster Relief in Mississippi was less a relief and more a disaster. I'm not going to lie and say that I didn't have high expectations of the workload, but it was truly a let-down in many aspects. We ended up becoming case workers for people in the shelters (to help them "transition" out of the shelters into another "temporary housing situation")... however, our efforts were in vain as FEMA decided to pull us from our duties and assist in administrative work on the cruise ship Holiday. It was certainly not a 12-person job and our team ended up divided, with part of the group staying on the ship (yay for 14 hour days) and the other part gutting houses. It created a tough rift in our team that we are still struggling to recover from. Hopefully, everything will be healed in our next project in Washington State, working to rehabilitate the salmon population there. It's not the end of disaster relief in general, as we are expected to head back to the region in January... what that means for me, I have no idea. I am not looking forward to the cultural differences (witnessing parents hit their children or promote spanking as a means of discipline, the word "colored," the way young adults are talked down to by everyone, the assumptions that Americorps members are not intelligent). I'm not looking forward to witnessing more FEMA mishaps, knowing that many "workers" there are paid three times their normal salary only to take naps in the afternoon, play PSP games while on duty, stay in fancy 4-star hotels or get drunk everynight at the casino bars. I know this is not the best attitude coming out of disaster relief, but it's hard to keep a great perspective on things when you were not utilitzed to anywhere near your full potential. I am envious that other teams (and team members on my own team) got to do very tangible work while I was stuck on the cruise ship playing secretary. I hope this experience does not cloud my future work... It's already November, and I'm panicking about what to do next year (International Red Cross?). I miss Haverford and the sanctity that it gave me. But, I guess Dorothy's not in Kansas anymore...

One month later with Corp Training Institute (CTI) officially over, I'm writing on the eve of our departure to the Gulf Region. My fire team of 12 are shipping out on a red eye to either Mississippi or Alabama (FEMA has yet to decide and probably will not till we get to Jackson, MS). Our primary task seems to be counseling the victims of the last two Hurricanes. However, as always, flexibility seems to be the main characteristic needed these days. CTI felt like a mixture of Boot camp rules and college with plenty of great friendships already developed. Not to sound like an after-school special, but my team and I are lucky to have a great Team Leader, whom we trust. I'm lying if I said that I wasn't the least bit terrified of our assignment… I have no idea how to "counsel" victims or even how to deal with people who lost everything. I'm also concerned about living in the South for the first time in my life… How will this Asian American guy be accepted into the community? Am I just playing off by stereotypes of the South or is racism still alive there? All these thoughts swirl through my head as I feel guilty about not thoroughly committing myself to researching about my future plans after Americorps NCCC. Amnesty International? Peace Corps? Some smaller program that I have yet to hear? Call this a plea for help if you wish, but in general, I feel that CTI did not prepare me for all this. Good thing that Haverford education has come in handy thus far, much to my surprise. I hope it continues on my first SPIKE.

It's about 5:30 in the morning on the day of my departure to Americorps' NCCC program. I couldn't really sleep last night knowing that I'm about to begin one of the most significant chapters in my life. No longer am I going to school to learn about the world, but rather being pro-active and seeing it through my own eyes. I know my perspective has been shaped by four years of Haverford, by my time as an Army ROTC cadet, by eight years of competitive running and by a lifetime of living the "American Dream" since immigrating from Malaysia when I was six. And I want to walk away from it all, put myself in beyond my comfort level and really make a difference in the world. I don't really know what volunteerism will mean to my life but after three weeks of watching the recovery efforts in the Gulf Region, I can only speculate that there are people who will need help for a long time. Americorps has been reallocating their resources and I will most certainly be sent to that area to rebuild houses and provide national disaster relief. And I couldn't be more excited right now.