Hello everyone, this is Haley! Today in ASB world we visited an organization called Kingdom House. This is a nonprofit organization that reaches out to low income neighborhoods around the area. They offer a variety of different programs including day care, adult education classes, and even a credit union. The amount of opportunities and help they provide to the community is so heart warming. Today I got the joy of working in the free day care service they provide for parents taking classes. First off, I love working with children so I was so pumped to get started! The classroom we worked in was very diverse. At first, some children had hard adjustments but as we began to play they cheered up. I got to push a 2 years old around in a Tiny Tyke car, talk to a 5 year old on the swing, and chase a 3 year old around the gym. It was a very energetic morning! Getting to invest in the children was the highlight of my day! I appreciate the care and time this organization puts into this community.
Hey guys, this is Zach! While Haley and a few others worked with the kids inside, the rest of us got to work outside in Kingdom House's garden. We turned over a few compost piles and spread it out throughout each of the plots. In addition, we cleaned up the garden area and cleared out some of the brush in the area. Several of Kingdom House's after school classes for elementary and middle school kids each adopt one of these plots and care for it throughout the year. When the beds are ready for planting, the kids will get to learn all about planting, harvesting, and taking care of a garden throughout the year. Although this was hard work, it was really rewarding for each of us because we knew we were doing it for the kids.
After lunch, we reunited to work through a poverty simulation. The simulation started out with each of us as a single parent who recently lost almost everything we had. We then had to start over, picking out jobs, houses, food, and other commodities that all fit within our new, very tight budget. The simulator presented each of us with incredibly difficult choices that really helped us understand what people in poverty go through everyday. Afterwards we engaged in a very meaningful discussion where we learned more about all of the services that Kingdom House offers to the citizens in the community. Our visit to Kingdom House today truly opened our eyes about the situations that those in poverty face every day, not only in St. Louis but in Knoxville and every other city around the world.
P.S. Our wonderful friends at Nottingham CAJT School sent us some cookies and heartfelt letters! We loved spending our time with them this week and hope we can come back to visit soon!!
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