First Encounter

1) My first encounter with our refugee family was to me very stressful. Taylor and I got lost, which didn't start the new endeavor off right. Once we finally found the house, you could tell that there was a bit of tension and a huge language barrier. Thankful that Kelly was there, she helped to make the introductions less awkward by making the kids laugh and learn our names in a funny way. When we finally started to get into things, I was with the little boy, Mustafa. We had children's books and he was learning all the names of the animals on the page. The mother Tagrid was with Hailey. They were working on money and seeing what coin meant what. I found it very interesting that she didn't even know what our money looked like or how much it was worth. I think going into the situation I expected them to at least know the basics of English, and then being in that situation I found that I was completely off. Taylor worked with the little girl Benin by doing something similar as Mustafa and me. She grabbed flash cards and went through basic concepts such as day and night or light and dark, etc. The father Sad was there for only five minutes and then the translator came and picked him up. It was nice to have the translator there so that we could ask any questions we needed and there would be no language barrier, for a short moment.
2) The whole first encounter has to do with perception. They way that each and every one of us perceived the situation from both sides would be very different. For myself, knowing that I was going to be with a family from the Middle East concerned me a bit. I know it is wrong to place judgments on people before meeting them but I did have a misconception of Middle Eastern people. I think it helped after watching the video Muslims in America for me to understand that not all Middle Eastern people all the same. After we were there for about an hour and after the translator had cleared things up I felt much better about the situation. My perception of this family changed drastically because I knew that they were just like every other family.
3) After my first encounter with the family I have learned that on the next encounter we need to teach them the basics. Just like we taught the mom our coin system and what each number meant, we will bring them flashcards of the ABC's and 123's so that they learn the basics of the English language. Also seeing how vibrant the children are we can bring lots of crafts to do to get to know them better. I think it will be important to teach Tagrid, the mother, the fundamentals like her name and her birthday so that she can fill out forms. She should also probably know how to write her children's names and birthdays. I think we now have a better idea of what we will be doing with our families especially after the first encounter because we know where they're at and how we can overcome the language barrier.

Pre-Service

1. My hopes for this service-learning project is to gain a better understanding of different cultures and to make an impact on a family less fortunate than myself. I think this is a great opportunity to give of myself to others and be able to use the qualities that I have in order to help others. God calls each and every one of us to do whatever we can to help those around us and I think this is a great opportunity to do just that. I also hope to get close to the family and have a certain connection with the children because I love kids!
2. I think that our learning site will be in a small run-down area of Rock Island. The families last name sounds Middle Eastern so I think that there might be a language barrier which will be an interesting challenge to face. I also am assuming that the family won't have much due to their situation so the house will be quite small for a soon to be family of five. I don't think the children will have very many toys so that will be a great opportunity for us to show them some fun games that don't require toys.
3. World Relief serves many populations each having things in common such as the need for help. I think that each population must show an economic struggle and lots of unemployment. When World Relief comes in to help refugees they must see large amounts of people being displaced from the comforts of their home. My assumption that our family comes from the Middle East could be due to all the strife that goes on there now. Many families will lose their homes in the time of war because so many things are destroyed and the government doesn't help them to get back on their feet. It could also be due to the fact that the countries money is going to the war and the militia that they aren't focused on helping their citizens.
4. I think that what World Relief does is amazing. I think there needs to be more organizations like World Relief to help those less fortunate. Being forced to leave your home and maybe even your family is such a harsh situation to be put in. No one should have to go through that yet people all around are going through it. More people need to be aware of it so more people can help out. Like I mentioned in a previous blog, I have been on a mission trip and I have seen the horrible situations and living conditions people are in. Many people don't even know that that goes on around them. I think it is our duty to help so I am very interested in what World Relief does. I would love to continue helping refugees as I continue my schooling because not only are you impacting the lives of those around you but you will learn so much! I love serving people and think that the projects that World Relief takes under their roof is amazing and something that everyone should support if they are able to. In the future I would love to be able to travel around the world bringing refugees over to the United States. I aspire to make that my contribution to World Relief on top of volunteering with the family I've been assigned this semester.