Tuesday, March 6

August Geiermann:

After a far longer-than-normal nightly reflection that truly embodied the term and allowed us to fully open our minds and hearts to each other as both individuals and a group, we awoke today with a fresh set of ideals, a new game plan, and the motivation to make headway on our service projects while having fun doing so. After a daily dose of morning jam sessions, our morning rendezvous gave signs that we’d grown in just the last 24 hours, and the desire to really leave a mark and enjoy the work we had before us was more evident than ever. As the workday began, the changes we’d undergone really started showing through in the atmosphere surrounding the group. It was as if assigned teams did not exist – if you needed help, someone was there. Everyone began banding together, and there was never a dull moment as project after project reached major milestones, all before lunchtime.

A highly communal cafeteria setting allowed for further group connections, and unlike previous days, there was no slowing down as the day continued. More projects began arising, almost out of nothing. Time itself seemingly stopped, and individuals who had previously doubted their ability, showed sides of themselves never before present. This was never better expressed than by a shorter workday being met with signs of disapproval instead of welcoming arms. Finally, it seemed, the full power of LEVEL and the Augustinian tradition had been on full display, and our break trip’s mission of service was finally being realized. Our hope for the future of not only this trip but future ones has never been brighter – and we’re just getting started.

Rachel Heckler:

After a challenging day yesterday we were eager and optimistic to start work today on our best foot. We began today with a reflection discussing our personal and group goals to start the day with a positive and focused mindset. We spent the entirety of the day at Rocky Creek Ranch working on the various service projects we had begun yesterday.  I spent the day working on Braille Boards for the I, A, and S stations of the Discovery trail. We glued plastic toys to the boards ranging from insects, animals and shapes to allow individuals with visual impairments to feel these different objects. We glued wooden circles to the board underneath the toys stating what they were in Braille to allow the individuals using the boards to make a mental representation of the object to use a different sense to learn about the animals. During our lunch break we split up into groups of 3 to allow the small groups to get to know each other and form stronger relationships. After lunch we continued working on our projects and were able to make a lot of progress and even complete a few projects. 

Today was a really great day and I really enjoyed working on the Braille boards. It was very rewarding to work on the Braille boards and then once completed witness Matt read them. I’m very excited to continue with the projects and continue to grow as a group. I am very hopeful and eager for what the rest of the week may bring.

Matt Steven:

Today we went to Rocky Creek and we started working on some of our projects. I was also able to use a sander to help smooth out some of the boards for the bowling alley. In the morning when we first got there, I started on painting a few boards for the bowling alley. After painting boards for a while, I moved on to building a bench for the memory garden we’re going to help plant on Friday. As we were working on the bench, I was able to use a drill to make holes in certain parts of the wood to help put everything together.

This day was not the best day here in terms of weather. We had to work inside because it was so rainy but hopefully tomorrow it will be warmer so we can move back outside. After working on some of our projects we all stopped for about an hour to have lunch where we were paired into groups of three to try to get to know the people we were paired with a little bit better. After lunch, we resumed working. After put the bench together, I was able to try it out. We worked for a couple more hours and were able to complete almost everything. We soon went back to the hotel where we ate dinner and had a great time hanging out and playing games.

I thought this was a very productive day and I hope it continues for the rest of this week. I am very glad I decided to come on this trip. A couple days before we came down to North Carolina, I was feeling a little down about certain things and I almost didn’t come on the trip. I am hoping to get closer with everybody that I am getting to know and I hope to get even more involved with the activities here as I build stronger relationships with people. I know that this week is probably going to go by very quickly and I am hoping to get the most out of every day while I am here.