Monday, March 16

Today was our first real day of service. The day started off with a scavenger hunt for the right gym at USC to take our first shower since we arrived in South Carolina. After we freshened up, we had a chance to tour the State House and learn about some of the history of South Carolina.

After a quick lunch, we headed over to the Palmetto Place Children’s Shelter. When we arrived, the children were still at school, which gave us a chance to learn about the shelter. The children in the shelter ranged from three to twenty years old but they can keep the children to the age of twenty-four. For most of the kids, they stay for about six months.

Once the children started trickling in from school, I’m pretty sure we overwhelmed them. With 15 strangers standing in your house, we could understand their feelings so the group split up. Some of us helped the children with homework, others played outside with the kids and another group prepared dinner.

For the group, it was hard for us to come into their environment for only four hours. We wanted to stay longer, do more, and donate if we could have. It was challenging to see the dynamic between the kids. We noticed how the older kids looked out for the younger ones and have adopted a parenting roll. One of the older girls asked the younger girls if they had homework once they got home. It’s so hard to see young kids having to grow up so fast because they want to protect their younger siblings and housemates. One of the girls was a senior and we asked her about prom. She told us how she already got her dress but she didn’t seem to excited. We thought this might have been because she plays the parent figure in the house that prom might be trivial to her. This is the time of their life when they should be enjoying their life but instead they are worried about the younger kids.

During reflection we talked about the language and violence we saw between the children. One of the young boys told one of the group members that he had been cursed out by his mother. From that little bit of information, we were able to understand why he had so much built up anger. For some of us it was really hard to see kids in this predicament because no child should have to go through what any of them have been through.

Experiences like these really make you sit down and reflect on yourself, what we might be taking for granted and just trying to empathize with these children and put ourselves in their shoes. We were so excited that they opened up to us and accepted us. This also made it hard to leave. Although we might not have made a big difference in their lives, they did in our lives. I think I can speak for anyone and say that this experience will always stick with us.