Good Times

ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END

Its sad to say, but this is my last post as a CIS 112 Student. I will miss everyone who followed along with me on this incredible journey. Thank you all so much! Also, heres the link for Step By Step incase I have inspired you all to go help out!

*QUINN INCARODNA* 

Final Blog Post: a Reflection

Here's my final reflection on my incredible service learning organization, Step By Step. Getting to work with this organization has been a fantastic experience that I'm sad to see come to an end. I hope you've enjoyed the blog!

Reflection of Step By Step

          Here is a video talking a little bit more about the entire experience I have had with the organization Step By Step throughout this entire semester. Overall I have had a truly wonderful experience, and plan to continue volunteering at this organization while I am in the Lexington, KY area. This is my last blog (for this class at least), I hope you enjoyed! Thank you for keeping up with me and the experiences I have had through my service learning organization and also while being a first time blogger. 

Every New Beginning

I can honestly say that volunteering at Step By Step has been an experience unlike any other, but in the words of the band Semisonic, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end". Here's a quick video detailing some of my closing thoughts:

Until next time,

Memories, Memories

Memories, Memories

By : Emily Scott

     As the semester is drawing to a close, I hope that you have all enjoyed my posts accounting the many memories made at Step by Step.  While I may have been to my last Step by Step session for this semester, it is definitely not the last time I will be volunteering at Step by Step.  Please enjoy this final video, as I reflect back on the semester as a whole, everything I learned, and only a few of the memories I will always cherish.  

To learn more, visit sbslex.com today!

Never A Dull Moment!

In my last visit to Step By Step, I had the honor and privilege of being in the six-year-old and up room. Although I normally assist in the 3-4 year old room, they had an abundance of volunteers that day (which is a great problem for Step By Step to have), leading me to the 6-year-old and up room. What a difference a few years can make! These kids could eat by themselves, use the bathroom by themselves, and were able to express what they want or need much more clearly than the 3-4 year olds. 
Rather than the playground, toys, and play-kitchen equipment featured in the 3-4 year old room, the "big kid" room had tables for fun arts and crafts, bean bags, a piano, and a whiteboard that all the kids loved. Every child got to participate in a fun arts and craft activity, which involved them drawing what they could do to help their mom this week. Some of the things that the kids picked included cleaning their room, getting dressed by themselves, and doing their homework! It was so awesome to see young kids want to help their hard-working moms. My favorite part of the night was when the kids' mothers would come to get them, and the children were so excited to show them their drawings and how they wanted to help. It was beautiful to see; these kids are truly incredible!

The 6-year-old and up room at Step By Step

Throughout the night, the kids did more than just adorable arts and crafts. One girl had been practicing piano for a while, so when she discovered the piano in the room, she had to play! She was only 8, but she played songs like "Mary Had A Little Lamb" with ease. Her practice had paid off, and she was so proud to show everyone. Unfortunately, the piano-playing had to be cute short because, as you can imagine, 10 kids trying to play a piano can get a little chaotic. 

There were a few kids who had homework, so a few volunteers were able to sit down with them and help them with it. I wish I could have helped, but fourth-grade fractions are not my forté.
Finally, there was a huge whiteboard in the room that the kids used to color, draw, and play hangman. 

Another Step By Step volunteer from CIS-112 drawing on the whiteboard
with six-year-old Karen, the comedian of the night.

This last Thursday was yet another well-spent at Step By Step. I always thoroughly enjoy my time there, getting to meet and entertain these awesome kids for even a few hours is always the highlight of my week. I can't believe there's only one more week!

Jennifer Mansfield

Adventures in Step By Step

The Latest Adventures.......

    The last time I went to Step By Step, something was different. I did not have to work with the 3 to 4 years olds! This time I got to play with the 6 and up group. This was such a change because with the 6 and up group, you do not have to watch their every move, and you can enjoy being around them. However, with that comes more sass and boy did they bring it. There was one girl named Karen, who is quite comical, she went from girl to girl telling them they were her favorite. But, then Karen would jus ignore the older girl and this caused everyone to laugh because we all knew what she was doing. The older girls were only Karen's favorite when she wanted something from them and when she did not need anything from you she did not like you. So, it was pretty funny to see overall how she reacted to everyone.

This is Karen! As you can tell by her
tutu she has a ton of personality. 

       Every time I got to Step By Step, I think that I learn something new and get to see new things. By this I mean that Step By Step has taught me to be more welcoming to the kids and made me realize that not all kids are the same. So something that make on kid to it might not get the other kids. I am the youngest of three kids so I never had any younger siblings like some of the other people. Therefore, This experience has allowed me to get closer to kids on a different basis. I am going to miss Step By Step so thank lord I have at least one more time with all the kids. It will certainly be strange when I am open on Thursday night. Something will be missing and that is definitely Step By Step.

*QUINN INCARDONA*

The Turkey Craft

Fall is officially making the transition into winter. Turkey and cornucopia decorations are being replaced by snowflakes and holly wreaths, and from a college student's perspective, this means a semester is preparing to come to a close. In the hustle and bustle of writing essay upon essay and giving presentation upon presentation, one thing that I'm grateful for is the opportunity to have a few hours at Step By Step every other Thursday night. There's something therapeutic about being able to take a step back from a busy schedule and instead focus on playing with a set of sweet kids I've grown to adore.

I recently gave a presentation about Step By Step's work for my introductory social work class, and the more I learn about this field, the more I realize how important the wonderful support these moms receive is. I'm grateful to be a part of this support system, even if it's only minimally. Working with this organization has definitely reinforced the fact that social work is what I truly want to do with my future: work with people, help people, love people, get to know people, and advocate for people. I never had the opportunity to work one-on-one with children before entering my volunteer position at Step By Step, but interacting with them and seeing the depths of their personalities has most definitely fed my love for kids. They're truly special.

Samara, left, decorating her "footballs"

There's never a dull moment in my three and four-year-old room. I've chosen to remain consistent in volunteering in this area because I've gotten close to the other volunteers, and I've also formed great bonds with the kids. The last time I volunteered was the week before Thanksgiving, and the craft for our night was to create paper plate and construction paper turkeys. Samara, always larger than life, decided to decorate her turkey feathers like footballs (she was proud of this idea, and made it clear that if anyone needed football feathers, she was the girl to go to). The "turkeys" were filled with beads, so of course she emptied hers onto the floor, and then insisted that the beads be put back in. She drew dots on her face with purple marker and called them her freckles. I must say, this craft was probably the most interesting one yet. She never fails to make me laugh.

As we move into the season of giving, Step By Step is looking for donations. They recently released the video below to promote their campaign during the Good Giving Guide Challenge. Check it out!

Give and You Shall Receive

          In spirit of the Christmas season and the Good Giving Guide Challenge currently going on right now, I thought I would talk about what was given to me by my service learning organization. Tonight I wanted to talk a little bit more about the fact that by giving my time and energy to a wonderful service learning organization like Step By Step, I have actually ended up receiving some really great things in return. 

          If you have read any of my other blog posts, you know how much I love and appreciate the fact that I get to work with such an amazing organization like Step By Step. Step By Step provides such an essential service to the Lexington, KY community. In my opinion, I think programs like Step By Step should be implemented in every single city that has a need for them. I honestly do not see one negative effect of having a program like Step By Step in any type of community. However, this is another argument for another day!

          I am going to start out by saying that this week at school (I attend the University of Kentucky) I got the opportunity to attend a "thank-you breakfast" with a few classmates, my teacher, and a representative from every service learning organization that the CIS112 classes at UK work with this semester. I got the opportunity to speak about everything that Step By Step has given me, including new friendships and professional relationships, a bi-weekly break from the stress of school, lots of laughs, a few outfits that smell like baby formula, the experience of being a "part-time mother", and the opportunity to express my love for multiple individuals who can't even say "mama". As I admitted during the "thank-you breakfast", I actually had a really sour prejudice when I learned that we had to volunteer for credit in a class. I had never done anything like that in high school, and I know college is different, but I didn't think it would be this different ... I became just plain mad when I learned that we couldn't use the places we currently volunteered at for credit; it had to be an organization previously approved and set up by the department that oversees CIS. As a pre-med student trying to have a resume that weighs more than I do by my junior year of undergraduate school, I was completely overwhelmed. This was just one more thing I had to put on my plate. After attending orientation, my mindset had done a complete 180. I was so excited. Currently, I am overwhelmed with joy when I think about Step By Step and everything it has given me. I could not be more thankful that this organization found me. I think that from this experience overall, I have learned that no matter what, it is important to give everything a chance and go into a new situation with an open mind; you never know what will happen. 

Here is a picture of myself and a classmate speaking about the great experiences we have had at Step By Step at the "thank-you breakfast" earlier this week.