Monday, November 22, 2010

Giving Thanks

We have finished our finals (well some of us, the lucky ones!) and are ready for a relaxing holiday.  We have six weeks until winter quarter begins and we will start service again.  Last Wednesday was our last day for the quarter, and my (Jackie) last day for the year.  I will be leaving for Belgium in early January to study international relations abroad.  I will be interning at the EU, and hope to work in something related to education or immigration.  Although it was extremely hard to say my goodbyes, we all know this is not a perminant goodbye. Although physically I will not be at the Y, I will be there in spirit! I will continue to keep in touch with the students, staff, and the crew via postcards, email, and of course the blog!

Before we both left for break, we reflected on the quarter.  We feel that although many changes are on the horizon, we are both very thankful for many things in our life, especially those regarding Hoops.  We asked students and staff to share what they are thankful for, in the spirit of the season.

"My family and food."
"Life."
"My baby brother."
"My family."
"Family, school, and games."
"My family, friends, school, and teachers."
“I am thankful that I have never had more to be thankful about.”
"Everybody- all the volunteers, my kids, my blessings.  I am basically thankful for life."
"My twin sister."
"My family, clothes, food, and the YMCA."
"The world."
"The clothes on my back, my family and friends."
"My family. And that we have enough money to pay rent."
“I am thankful for the opportunities I have been given, and the support along the way to pursue them.”
"My mama."
"My family sitting at the table."
"My mom."
"The people who help me with my homework."
"My mom, dad, brother, and grandma."
"Parents and siblings."
"Everything."

Last time we gathered individual's thoughts, we associated names and ages with what was said.  This time however, we decided not to because we feel that although this community is made up of many individuals, together they create a collective voice.  Our entire group is thankful for the wonderful people we have come to know and love at the YMCA.  We wish you all a relaxing holiday.  And as you fill your tummies with all the wonderful home cooked meals, remember what you have, what you have lost, and what it is you want to obtain. 

With love and hope,

Sam & Jackie

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Our heart and soul at Kelly Y

His name is Oladimeji Oliha and he is the son of a Nigerian Edo State chief.  To everyone who enters the Kelly Hall YMCA, he is Jeffrey the security guard.  To us, he is the heart and soul of this small community, and an untapped resource.  We began getting to know Jeffery the fall of 2009, just a few short months after he came to America.  Ironically, his American dream began on the 4th of July. 

When we first met Jeffrey, our everyday interaction was a, "Hello, how are you?" and other simple pleasantries.  But as time has gone by, we have begun to establish a genuine friendship with the inspirational Nigerian man.  It all started last summer when one day Ali and I were walking down Chicago Avenue and heard a man yell, "Jackie! Ali! Wait!"  When we turned around, it was Jeffrey, standing on the corner halted by the crosswalk.  He was so excited to see our familiar faces and asked us many questions about our summer, school, and the YMCA.  After this run in, we began to think of Jeffrey in a new way.  He became an international man of mystery to our group, and we wanted to get to know him on a more personal level. Our goal was to reciprocate the level of interest he showed in us as individuals. 

We had one pivotal conversation that opened the door to our new friendship and new everyday interactions.  One day we worked up the courage to bluntly ask him, “What is your name?”  We all knew his American name was Jeffrey, but his given name was something else.  Instead of Jeffrey saying, “What do you mean, it’s Jeffrey.”  He simply smiled and said, “Ola.”  Which we later found out was short for Oladmeji.  We stopped with this simple question for that day, and saved our many others for the future.  Because of this day, each member of our crew greets him with at least a handshake, if not a hug and many of us refer to him as Ola out of respect for his culture. 

We had been planning to interview Ola for some time yet we had not built up the courage to do so this year. Recently when returning from one of our weekly VIA meetings I entered the train at around nine o’clock to head home, and saw our friend riding the train. I was greeted with a big smile and hug as I entered the car and immediately we began discussing what he was doing. He explained that he was just heading home from his work day. This was utterly shocking as in order to take public transit from the Kelly Y to his house near Loyola University it would take one and half hours on a good day. We began discussing our love of the community that is in place at the Y and how important it is for the children to be there. You could tell this man had a wealth of knowledge and strong beliefs yet we only had two train stops to speak. I left him that evening with a hug and a, “We will have to talk about this more soon.” I left that night feeling utterly inspired and had a desire to spread this man’s beliefs and life story.

That next day of service, we made a conscious effort to speak to Ola.  What we learned about this man was to this day incredible.  Ola was born in Edo State, Nigeria as one of seven children.  His father is the village chief and a man of power.  Ola came to the United States in hope of finding new opportunity and a better life for his children.  He came alone, leaving his children with his 56 year old mother.  He has 15 year old twin daughters, Taye and Kenhinde.  His youngest child is his 9 year old son, named Kayode.  Ola expressed that jobs were hard to find in Nigeria, even as a man with an education.  Ola graduated from University of Benin City, located in Edo State. 
This struggle to find work with an education is where Ola found his belief in the importance of education.  Ola expressed that although it was difficult to leave his children, he knew it was the only thing left to do in order to guarantee them a better future.  He explained to us, “Education is everything.”   He sees America as a promise land, and an opportunity.  Ola explained to us that his children, will never get the same kind of education in Nigeria as they could here.  His clear end goal, is for his children to one day be students in the US.  However, he doesn’t want them to come to the US before they learn their African roots. He wants them to want to learn, and to understand how fortunate they are for a great education.  Ola feels that his children will learn this in Nigeria, as they may not in the US.  He says this because he feels that too many children take advantage of these opportunities.  He said to us, “These children have no reason not to succeed or finish school.  They are handed everything, they need someone to guide them however.”  By this he means that these students should be able to accomplish anything, yet it takes a parent or role model to exemplify that wanting it is necessary in order to achieve it. 

Ola spoke a lot about the African mentality and working with our own hands.  When he spoke of this his face lit up, it brought tears to our eyes as we watched him reminisce and miss his children and family back home.  He expressed that everything can be done if you are determined, and that everything can be made with the hard work of our own hands.  Ola explained to us that we can do anything as long as we stay passionate and keep our eyes forward.  Our goal is to do exactly this, and continue this beautiful, budding friendship.  He is truly an inspiration to the both of us, and we hope that he inspires the rest of you.  Our question for this week is what is the African mentality to you? And, can you build it and make it your own with your own two hands?

Please think about what we wrote, and pass this story beyond the blog.  We want this story to touch the hearts of many, as we believe it can inspire and create change in anyone.   

With love and hope,

Sam & Jackie

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

New Crew Member!

Meet Lizzie!  Lizzie is a sophomore at DePaul studying Education.  It is obvious Lizzie wants to be a teacher because she is amazing in the homework room! Whenever a student is having trouble with their homework and we can't explain it well we all say, "Go ask Lizzie." 

"Hello! My name is Lizzie Andriese and I am a sophomore at DePaul University as an Elementary Education Major and Community Service and Spanish Minor.  I grew up in Traverse City, MI where I have two younger siblings Allie and Teddy.  I started volunteer work when I was a freshman in high school when I traveled to Honduras to provide medical services for the rural and impoverished areas.  I traveled along side doctors and nurses to assist them in giving the Honduran children vitamin A and de-worming medications.  After that experience I always felt passionate about service work, especially once I started after and in school homework help my junior year of high school.  Since then I received the DePaul Community Service Scholarship where I not only minor in Community Service but complete 30 hours every 10 weeks.  I just began working with DePaul Hoops and the students at Kelly Y about a month ago.  Previously I worked with Chicago HOPES tutoring youth in homeless shelters, Inspiration CafĂ© where I worked in a computer lab helping homeless adults with job applications or house hunting, and in the North Lawndale Community at YMEN (Young Men’s Education Network) where I tutored middle school through high school boys after school hours.  I really enjoy working with the students at Kelly Y and love being apart of their lives as a consistent face in their academic progression.  I look forward to working with the kids twice a week, knowing they are always able to brighten my day.  I look forward to continuing working with Hoops and Kelly Y, hoping for the best for all the students."