Day 7

May 27, 2016

Today was our last day of service and our stay in Indy is quickly coming to a close. Like yesterday, our service today was at Hollis Adams Foundation and it was sad to say some last goodbyes to the new friends we have made. We were glad that the sun decided to come out; it was so much fun spending a good chunk of our day outside blowing bubbles and squirting each other with water guns. While we were outside, I had one standout interaction with a participant who is deaf. It was difficult to communicate with him, but one of the first things he signed to me was his name. He asked me what my name is and it eventually lead to him giving me a name in sign language.

Everyone at Hollis Adams was so unique, but also so dear. I could go on about all of the special interactions I had with all the participants, but this blog post will become a novel.
Reflecting on our service this week, it seems like all we did was hang out with people with disabilities, and it all clicked for me as to why that was so important during reflection tonight. Someone brought up that our AB experience is unique because it's not about bringing a mass amount of change to a social issue, but it's more about changing other people's perspectives-- getting them to understand this community and to accept them. It's so easy for us to look at people with disabilities and see them as less or feel sorry for them, but a lot of them are actually so content with where they are. They are people, so that qualifies them to the same level of worth of people without disabilities possess and from what I observed, a lot of them seem to be living more fulfilling lives than many people I know back home. The individuals without disabilities usually cannot advocate for themselves or are not empowered enough to advocate for themselves, so it is our role as active citizens to continue to advocate for them and to empower them to advocate for themselves.

I think I've grown vastly in such a short time frame. Before this trip, I sincerely believed in equality for all people despite their inherent differences. Believing is one thing, but putting
your beliefs into practice is an entirely different matter. The skills I've learned and experience I've gained have been invaluable. And I intend to put this knowledge to good use.

Our team with the participants from Hollis Adams. They made us a banner!

It's been real,

Caroline & Tunji

Day 6

It's Thursday May 26, 2016. It was a different kind of morning, a cloudy, sleeping in a little later kind of morning.  We took a 30 min drive to Hollis Adams, which is located in a different part of Indianapolis with beautiful houses. Hollis Adams is held in the lower level of Hope Covenant Church.  Kim greeted us at the door and gave us a brief introduction of the program. Kim was very enthusiastic as she was describing some of the participants. As we walked down to the lower level, the participants started to walk towards us. I was very surprised to spot some familiar faces who were from OTB.  The participants chose their "buddies." This sweet gentleman named Adam chose me. Adam was so friendly and interactive; he told me he lives with roommates and his dog. I was pleased to know he was very independent. Adam and I did many different activities throughout the day. I would say our favorite was music time. Adam sure is a dancer, athletic and a tight hugger.

For part of our day, we went with some Hollis Adams participants to take part in a kickball game with students at a nearby Catholic grade school. Each Hollis Adams participant was matched up with one grade school student who would run with them from base to base, etc. The school has a program called Everybody Counts in which students in different grades learn about different social issues and then serve with that community. So, the students participating in the kickball game were the ones who have been learning about disabilities! The rest of the school was on the side watching and cheering everyone on. It was really cool to see how encouraging the children were towards the participants with disabilities. During reflection, we discussed how this is a wonderful program and that it probably greatly impacts how those children view people with differing abilities.

It was also really interesting to get to see a different approach to day programs for adults with special needs today! Both organizations seek to empower their participants and provide meaningful days for them, but the way the programs run is different. I feel that it's nearly impossible for what we see as meaningful or successful for the community members to not be influenced by what our society views as success and meaning. We also talked about this in reflection and decided that all we can do is reflect on our perspectives and try to view things from other perspectives.

- Melissa & Jessi

Day 5

May 25, 2016

Today was our last day at both Warren ECC and OTB. Because it was the last day of school for Warren ECC, many of the activities were more based on socializing for the kids instead of being based on a curriculum. I thought it was great how the kids would ask to be read to, and we also got a chance to play games and draw with them. I found that despite only spending two days with them, the kids were very responsive to communication with us. By the third day, they were freely giving hugs, tugging on our arms, and asking us if we were going to come back again. It was at this point I recognized the importance of consistent stimulation in terms of childhood development. Because we were so interactive with the kids, they wanted to see us more so that they can be as engaged on a daily basis

Over at OTB, the group was split into indirect and direct services. Parts of the group got split into gardening, storage room cleaning, tidying up, and group work. Although it was strange that not everyone got contact with the participants at OTB, it was apparent that the indirect service made a big impact on how the organization ran. The facilitators were so busy interacting with the special needs adults that there was little time to weed the garden, clean the patio, sanitize the bathroom, or vacuum the community room. Even so, the community partners were very appreciative of the service we were able to offer.
- Tina

I woke up at 6am this morning. Somebody ate all the honey nut Cheeriohs!! But the multi-grain wasn’t so bad. Oh and I finally finished my last bagel which is a serious blessing. That thing was not nearly as soft as it was when I bought it. We traveled to the Warren center for their last day. I didn’t get to drive the van which made I was quietly salty about but I know my place. I got to work in the self-contained class today… I have trouble with kids. But these kids were alright. Remember that dancing banana that sings peanut butter jelly from way back in 2008? These kids freaking love that video. They just absolutely freak out! One of the kids liked my hair band so I gave it to her and as far as I know she still has it on her wrist. Adorbs. We then traveled to OTB for our last day of service. We did indirect service today which meant weeding in the garden. Clara, Morgan, Tina and I had a solid convo during and really bonded or whatever. All in all pretty great day. It’s pretty late. I’m tired. I’m going to bed now.

-Cotter

Day 4

Day four of Indy AB aka Taco Tuesday.
Today we went back to Warren School and Outside the Box for the second time! Working with the kids at Warren is always a blast because those little nuggets always have so much energy. We switched the room this time so the people who were in the room with the inclusion classroom got to go to the self contained classroom and vice versa- so everyone got experience. Personally for me, Priyal, it was so cool to see the differences between the two classrooms, as they really did operate quite differently. In the self contained classroom, it was very obvious that our presence made a huge impact, as we were able to have one on one time with the kids, and really get them to be more social and exposed to interaction.

The one on one interactions that we have made with the children were truly inspiring and challenging. For me, TR, the difference between children with typical development and children with disabilities was not recognizable. The way for me to interact with them did not change. They got frustrated for not getting what they want. They enjoyed when they got what they wanted. Even though their communications were not verbal, it was possible for me to understand them through their body language and facial expressions. It was challenging as I realized that these facilities cannot be perfect to provide the needs of the children, aka love. As parents, they will pay their full attention on their children. In these schools, teacher to children ratio will always be more than one on one, which means that the teachers will not be able to provide children the love they need.

On another note, today was simply fun. We got to play with the parachute thing we all remember from elementary school!!!! *See picture below* Also it was field day at OTB! We all definitely got a good dose of sun and we got to be a lot more active, as we were in charge of different stations. It was nice because we got to interact with almost everyone there for a couple of minutes, as they rotated stations. Also at the end of the day, we got to meet with Cassidy and she explained more about OTB as an organization and answered a lot of the questions we had.

The field day was definitely a great time to meet most of the participants at OTB. It was possible to make different interactions with people with various characters. However it was challenging as we only had about eight minutes to build a relationship each group. Yet, it was a great experience that expanded our perspective on adults with disabilities.

Dinner today was definitely one to remember. It was Taco Tuesday and it was absolutely delish!!! Some drama llama went down as well, as Tunji felt as if he was being attacked for his love for fruit snacks. It definitely left Priyal and Caroline with tears of laughter. Don't worry though, it was all fun loving.

Overall, it was a great day full of laughter, physical activity, great social interactions, ending on good food and a fantastic reflection!

Day 3

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." -Gandhi

After a few days of travel and exploration, today was our first full day of service with our community partners. We spent the morning at the Warren Early Childhood Center, which is a pre-school that serves a diverse group of scholars. We were happy to be met by several staff members, including the principal, the school psychologist and one of the teachers in the Special Education Program. They explained to us the mission and history of the school, and we were given a brief orientation on the various classroom settings that serve the students with disabilities who attend the school.

We split into three groups and were paired with a classroom. Each classroom was staffed by a lead teacher and 1-2 instructional assistants, and the number of students ranged by classroom. We (Clara and Hannah) were placed in a smaller classroom that only served scholars with disabilities, as opposed to some of the other classrooms that served both general education and special education students. While in the classroom, we acted as extra hands to the teacher as they went through their normal school schedule. We did puzzles, we played in the sensory room, we had snacks, we sang songs, we had free play time, and we went to the playground.

In the afternoon, we went to a adult day program called Outside the Box. While there we were able to engage with several adults with different intellectual disabilities. First, we participated in different art activities that would be decorations for an upcoming fundraiser. We were divided into groups to work at different stations which included painting bottles, making wire structures, and making flowers. Some students were also able to help with the garden. We helped weed and turn the soil. The final activity we participated in was check-out where the participants described their day including their highs and lows. We then went home to discuss our experiences.

Given that this was our first day of service, we had a lot of both highs and lows that we wanted to share with the group. We mostly had a lot of questions regarding the funding, staff, and organization of these programs. We discussed the various ways people can be educated and trained for these types of positions as well as the best ways to support both children and adults with disabilities. Most of us felt more comfortable working with children, as we had more experience in this area. Working with adults with disabilities is a newer experience for the majority of our group, so it was more of an adjustment. We're looking forward to spending more time with both of these organizations over the next few days so we can deepen our relationships with both students, participants, and staff, as well as foster more understanding of the process of serving this community.

-Clara & Hannah

Day 2

Today we were able to sleep in. Our team was to be ready by 10:30. Everyone woke up at different times and ate breakfast at their leisure. We gathered around and watched a movie called Temple Grandin. The movie is about an autistic woman and her journey of pursing education and becoming a leader in her field. After the movie we ate lunch and had a short movie reflection. We then got briefed on our afternoon activity. We went around downtown Indianapolis and rated businesses on their accessibility. It was interesting seeing downtown Indianapolis. We came back to the house and had another reflection about the activity. We then had a chance for down time before dinner. Tonight we are eating spaghetti. We have an early day tomorrow so dinner will be early. Today was a nice chill day after an entire day of traveling Saturday. Looking forward to actually starting our week and working with organizations.
- Katherine

I can honestly say I truly enjoyed our activities today. I enjoyed learning about the AXS app and finding out there are many ways to help others without it being a lot of work or out of our way. I feel like we are on our phones so much throughout the day and we go to so many places that it should be very simple to do a quick review that could end up helping a lot of people. I also want to educate more people about the app, people who need to use it and people who can add to it. Although it has been around for some time I do not think a lot of people really know about it, I had never heard of it or even thought of something like it before today and I think it can be very useful and beneficial to a large variety of people.
            Another activity we did today was the fast-friends, 36-question activity. I had a lot of fun with this activity and learned a lot about Hannah. I enjoyed the openness and trustworthy environment this activity presented to us. It allowed me to see that I am not alone in my issues and that taking time to sit and talk about them with someone can alleviate some tension within yourself. I think this is a great activity for old friends, new friends, relationships, strangers and families, this allowed us to be open and invite someone in. As stated in debrief I think we are a very closed off people, despite how much we may let people it there is still a lot we don’t let them see and I think this activity provided the questions necessary to open us up and eased us into the discussion. Many people stated these were conversations that do not just happen but are necessary and I fully agree with that; I think by completing this activity or similar ones we are truly able to learn more about ourselves and the people around us. This is an activity I am saving and I am going to try to do it with those close to me (family and friends) so we can open doors that need to be opened.
            So far I am enjoying the trip, I have appreciated and enjoyed the documentaries we watched and the parts of the podcasts that I heard. I am learning a lot about a community that is often ignored and not given the respect they deserve. I see myself for one continuing to become much more in tune with myself and who I am, while also learning about others and learning how to efficiently and effectively communicate with people of a variety of backgrounds. I am excited to go into the schools and programs this week, I am excited to gain first-hand knowledge about this community and learn about ways to make their lives easier. I also want to learn how to better educate others about this community and learn what they want people to know about them. I want to be able to give them a voice they may not feel like they have in society.
            I appreciate the University of Maryland, Alternative Breaks for having a program that puts us in these different scenarios that prepare us for all the communities in the world and open our eyes to what really makes up our surroundings. I think it is easy for us to think we know about everything going on around us, but through Alternative Breaks we get a better, more valid understanding of our surroundings and I believe that helps us grow as individuals and helps us to better our community.
-Morgan

Day 1

Once upon a time, 14 adorable students from the University of Maryland traveled to Indianapolis, Indiana--a world very far removed from College Park, Maryland. Mother Nature dealt her best cards, But the students persevered and had the winning hand. As well as the final laugh. (Hahaha.)

These students are all part of the University of Maryland's Alternative Break Program and will be working with various organizations in Indianapolis.

However, since today was their first day on their journeys, these students traveled so far from College Park--10+  arduous, leg numbing hours away to be more precise. The students also realized that the Mall of America is not in this city, a fact that they found quite disappointing.

However, these student's spirits were renewed when one of their comrades' aunt came to deliver them pizza from a planet far away, Pizza Hut! (Thank you Cotter's Aunt!)

After falling into a pizza induced coma, the students gathered around in kumbaya circle and dug deep beyond the greasy pits of their stomachs and their current circles of life, and had a vulnerable heart to heart.

Aside from the fact that these students feel like they have been dropped out of a Toy Story movie into this city as they are kind of loopy and very tired, they are very thankful for this opportunity, and hope that you will continue to follow their trip to a galaxy far, far away.

To infinity and beyond. (But mostly to bed.)

- Cooper & Tracey