My unforgettable experience with Buck-i-SERV

“Go on a Buck-i-SERV trip” they said, “It’ll be an amazing experience” they said. And guess what? They were actually right. We have all heard about Buck-i-SERV before, whether it was at orientation, in your Freshman survey class, or brought up in conversation amongst past Buck-i-Servers.

So, what’s in it for you?

1. Subsidized costs (thank you, student activity fees!)
2. A chance to meet and make friends with fellow Buckeye’s
3. The opportunity to travel during a break from school

If you’re anything like me, the idea of a Buck-i-SERV trip sounded awesome and I immediately added it to my mental bucket list of things I wanted to do before I graduate from Ohio State. But, if you’re really like me, you also procrastinate and promise yourself that you’ll accomplish such goals at a later date, and then never do.

Thankfully 2016 rolled around and I made it my mission to make this my year of new opportunities. So with the whole “new year, new me” attitude in effect, I finally applied for a trip. After I applied for a multitude of trips that fit my interests and destination preferences, I ended up being accepted to go to New York City for a week over spring break. I had never been to NYC before, nor have I been on a service trip, so I couldn’t allow myself to back out of this opportunity that I was fortunate enough to be granted.

As the next few mid-semester-slump weeks passed by slowly but surely, I remained excited, but also slightly nervous to go to NYC. Not going to lie, I gave myself a few pats on the back for not only taking the initiative to go on a trip, but for also stepping a bit outside of my comfort zone as well. As someone who has grown up with the same group of close-knit friends, I wasn’t the best at making new friends. Although the idea of traveling and new experiences excites me, this would be the first time I would be traveling to NYC and spending a week with nineteen other strangers – and that was a nerve wracking to me. This was definitely going to be quite the experience, and trust me, it was.

In order to discuss every amazing moment from this trip in its entirety, I would have to write a novel, and to be quite honest, I don’t have that type of time. Instead, I’ve decided to elaborate on some of my favorite memories from this trip.

A man named Taj

My service group, which consisted of myself and six other girls, had the best experience at our first service site. We were sent to a church in NYC where they ran a soup kitchen in their basement, and it was run by a man named Taj. Upon arrival, Taj put us to work right away. He was so grateful that we were there to help, and wanted to ensure his guests would be served on time.

We started by serving breakfast, which was egg salad or peanut butter and jelly, with cereal, yogurt, coffee and orange juice. The whole process was very systematic, and the folks who came to eat were nothing short of friendly and grateful.

After breakfast, it was time to clean up and begin the preparation for dinner. Our group, along with another small service group, Taj and two chefs, worked to turn this church basement into a restaurant in which we would serve our guests a gourmet, five course meal. Never in my twenty years of life had I ever heard of a soup kitchen serving those who are homeless or food insecure such an elaborate meal which consisted of sushi, salad, soup, chicken or vegetarian main course, and dessert.

Working this soup kitchen made me realize how much time and effort goes into serving others. I am so inspired by Taj’s effort into creating a fun, friendly atmosphere for his guests and I cannot praise him enough for doing this multiple times a week, year round. It’s no wonder many of the guests who come to the church are regulars, Taj is the most generous person I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. It absolutely warms my heart knowing that he is caring for so many people that truly need it.

Ground Zero

Our first day in NYC was full of sight seeing in lower Manhattan. In my opinion, the best part of this day was seeing the 9/11 memorial, otherwise known as Ground Zero.

At the site, there were firefighters present who were putting American flags up alongside the names that were engraved on the memorial. After speaking with one of these men, we learned that they were visiting from Kansas as part of a yearly tradition to pay their respects to the firefighters who heroically passed while saving the lives of others.

Being that my generation lived through this horrible tragedy in U.S. history, visiting the 9/11 memorial was an emotional and eye-opening experience. I am still moved by this visit and am so grateful to have had the opportunity to remember and honor the nearly 3,000 people killed during this attack on our nation.

Food 

Not to be your typical NYC tourist that talks about how delicious the food was, but…seriously, it was good. Between NY style pizza, street food gyros and hotdogs, Little Italy cannoli’s, Junior’s cheesecake (sorry, Cheesecake Factory lovers, but Juniors was the best cheesecake I have EVER had), and more, we definitely ate good on that trip.

It is no secret that NYC food is crazy expensive, but if you’re a foodie like me, eating out in NYC is totally worth the price.

Dinner party

After our second day of service, our group headed back to YSOP (Youth Service Opportunities Project), the organization in which our service was completed through. At this site, our entire group, along with YSOP leaders, hosted a dinner party with homeless/ food insecure guests.

We prepared a dinner, and while it was cooking, took the time to sit around and hang out with everyone at the dinner party. I played games and held conversations with many new friends during this dinner party and overall, had a great time. It was so nice being able to not only serve those in need, but to converse with them as well. It’s amazing the things you can learn about strangers if you take the time to get to know them.

Nightly reflections

Every night in the hostel, our entire Buck-i-SERV group held a reflection to discuss details about our days at the service sites. Although by the end of each day we were all tired and ready for bed, reflections became an essential aspect of our trip. Through these discussions, our group as a whole truly bonded with one another. Additionally, though reflection and discussion, I was able to learn a lot about the issues surrounding homelessness.

I believe the most important lesson I learned during reflection was how untrue stereotypes about the homeless can be. Based off the people I came in contact with during this trip, I learned that merely being hungry does not mean that someone is homeless. There are many people in our country that are not homeless but are still hungry and struggling to feed themselves or their families – this is the difference between those who are homeless and those who are food insecure. Additionally, not every homeless person out there is a low-life, dirty, drug addict that doesn’t deserve respect from others. It’s time that we stop dehumanizing other humans and treat everyone with equal amounts of respect. Everyone comes from different walks of life, and everyone has their own struggles – we must learn to be sensitive and understanding of that.

College is the time of self growth. We can learn a lot about ourselves by the chances we take and every new experience. Not only was I able to open my eyes to the issues surrounding homelessness and food insecurity in NYC, but I left with a group of new friends and many great memories to cherish. Taking a chance played out right for me, and it can for you too.