To Build a Home
If there is one thing I can say I’ve learned in my 22 years of life, it is that I’ll settle into any place I go and find a way to call it home. This privilege is something I’ve taken for…
My Year of Service with Preschoolers
Working with preschoolers is exhausting, challenging, and emotionally/mentally draining. It’s not all fun and games. There is a schedule. There is a system. We are there to teach them and most times, they do not care for learning but would…
The Top 5 Things I’ve Learned from My Service Year So Far
1. I Can Conquer Rush-Hour Traffic The first day I drove home from work, it was a good thing no one else was in the car. Sitting in stop-and-go traffic, I was fuming that it took me 30 minutes to…
Alumni Spotlight: The Complexity of Homelessness
I'm Amanda Carpenter, and I served at Pittsburgh Mercy's Operation Safety Net in Pittsburgh from 2016-2017. During my year of service, I discovered my passion for working on healthcare issues among individuals experiencing homelessness. I became deeply embedded in the…
More Than Roommates: A Reflection on Community
I have long struggled with a sense that I am not good enough and will never live up to my own expectations or those of others. Though I was excited to begin work at my service site and to get…