Civic Engagement Reflection

Final Reflection Civic Engagement are activities that promote the bridging of communities with socially conscious thought and action. I believe that members in the society can work together as a community to make a difference in the civic life through civic engagement. Meanwhile, the individuals can also develop skills, knowledge, values and even motivation to make the change. Growing up, I was never a very civically active member in my society. Since I was raised in an immigrant’s family, my parents did not know or care much enough about our surroundings to pass on any values upon me. I first heard about Community Service requirements when I went into middle school. At the time, I thought it was simply an additional required “homework”
The first one was at a Chinese Christian Herald Community Center. I went there two times a week after class to tutor students from elementary to middle schools. I helped with homework, projects, and anything they needed help on. Surprisingly, all the tutors there were super patient because not all the kids were effortless to handle. Some of the students had anger issues and there were also a couple of mentally disabled. Honestly, I had several cases of taking care of a few ignorant kids, but, the other tutors encouraged me to be more mindful. As time went by, the tutors including myself build a close relationship with the kids. I felt satisfied to use the ability I had to assist the kids and witness their improvements. That was the first time when I felt like I was doing something worthwhile. We were contributing to the community in the long term by nourishing our future generations till they can efficiently pay back to the society. I enjoyed the program so much that I went back the next year. My second favorite experience was at a state-wide citizen-based environmental advocacy organization called PennEnvironment. My job was to help raise awareness of the environmental issues and promote sensible solutions. One of the interesting projects that I did was to take pictures of individuals holding a picture to thank Governor Wolf. We thanked him for tackling climate change by supporting the Clean Power Plan. It
The community is in dire need of nurses who are willing to sacrifice their time and volunteer in these medical centers for the homeless. Ever since I can remember I wanted to become a nurse and hope that my college experience will allow me to fulfill this goal. However, I also recognize the need to give back to the community, which has played a vital role shaping me. As such, I hope to take a portion of my time to volunteer in a Philadelphia medical service center (impact will be local in this case) for the homeless. Due to budget cuts and the lack of consistent funding, the medical centers in our community have had to experience many shut downs. I believe that if more people would take action and volunteer in the medical centers, it can greatly reduce the cost of the facilities and make health care possible for the homeless. As I envision myself as a future nurse, I will not only be required to treat patients who are sick and injured but also offer advice and give emotional support to patients and their families. I strive to realize my career in nursing; I would like to establish a program between nurses and the medical centers for the homeless. I think that this program would be an important bridge between the Philadelphia homeless population and nurses. As a privileged individual, it can be easy to become detached from the realities of ordinary life, one of which is homelessness. I think