Good evening lovely ABST readers! Thank you for following our journey so far as we rediscover Erie, PA! My name is Kendra Walker. I am a junoir accounting and finance major here at Gannon. Today, I have the honor of relaying the epic journey that we have embarked on.
Sleeping in Solidarity
Our day started bright and early with breakfast at our host site the First Presbytrian Church of the Covenant. First off, I have to say even though we are sleeping on air mattresses it is pretty cool to think that we are staying in what looks like some lost European church but that is less than 10 blocks from my apartment. The First Presbytian Church of the Covenant really is an amazing place that I wish that I had spent more time at before this week. I am so honored at how welcoming the community has been to us and the works that they are doing in the community.
As Sam had mentioned yesterday we had the opportunity to talk with Pat Tracy Sunday. There she mentioned that the church turns the rooms that we are staying in into shelter for the homeless part of the year. And although our accomadations our wonderful there were a few bumps that made us stop to think for a few minutes... For instance, the showers. The six women on the trip who must share one shower. As you can imagine this can be a slight inconvience. We addressed this frustration with needed reflection. When this room is used as a shelter fifteen women all share this space and that single shower. And although it is even harder to accomodate 15 women to one shower versus 6 women to one shower they likely still consider it a blessing. Showering daily and at our convience is a simple luxury that many of us take for granted. I am really grateful to see that the lessons that living in this space will continue to teach us throughout the week.
Insulating with Meaning
The next stop in our day after breakfast was to the St. Joseph House on 4th street. Neighboring the MLK Center the St. Joseph House is a house that Gannon is building to further engage with the community. Although the house will serve many functions the primary resource will be a place for 2 Gannon employees to stay at only the cost of utilities to help them save up for the down payment on a house in the OWB community. It is a building with a purpose to foster more relationships within the community.
The house is currently under construction and our job today was to add insulation. Within our four hours of service we were able to fully insulate the outer perimeter of the hosue. Not going to lie the paid workers constructing the house were slightly impressed, at least they told us so. I think what partially made us so motivated was to realize the our job insulating the house was going to have a direct impact on the employees who were going to live there in the future. Insulation helps keep the cool air inside during the summer and the warm air inside during the winter. The better the insulation the lower the utilities. The lower the utilities then the easier it will be for the employees to save up for their down payment. This trip is really showing me how even our smallest actions, like installing insulation, can have a much larger impact on our community as a whole.
Cards at Strong Vincent
After set the record for the fastest insulation installation in the history of 4th street the team headed to Strong Vincent Middle School to write good luck cards to the 6th graders. This year the City of Erie Public Schools did a reconfiguration of the schools in the area. As a result Strong Vincent changed from a high school to middle school. Many students had to relocate to new schools with unfamilar teachers and classmates. In order to show some support for the students we wrote the 6th graders cards wishing them luck on their PSSAs just to let them know that although the community may be a little different that they are still very supported.
As we were writing the cards we had the opportunity to connect with Katrina Byrd, the Community School Director. Katrina is new to the area and has recently relocated from Brooklyn, New York. Katrina has a really special job working with OWB and the community to address the needs of the community as a whole through the school's lense. Some initiatives that she is working on is bringing in dentists to assess students and how we can help more students attend class. Katrina looks at the community as a whole to find long term solutions that will help not only the students but the entirity of Erie better. Talking with Katrina was really special and it was great to be able to the work that she is already doing along with her committment to the area.
The Johnny Johnson and the New Jersulem
After having the opportunity to connect with Katrina we sat down with Johnny Johnson. Johnny, or shall we say Mr. Johnson, is a community activist. He settled in Erie many years ago from Georgia where he grew up in the Jim Crow south. Johnny is a really excellent teacher who taught at Saint Vincent for over 30 years. One of the reasons that we sat down with Johnny to ask him questions about the history of OWB. Apparently, around the late 1800s OWB was known as New Jersulem. It was a community where African Americans, many whom were freed or escaped slaves, setteled together to build a better future. Together they ventured to create a strong community where each were protected from the danger of slave catchers but also one where the future of their children would be one of hope.
We had the honor to hear Johnny also retell his on life. He put the experience of connecting with him best when he said that his best strength is to tell his life story in a way that people are able to connect with it and make it their own. I feel that I speak for the entirity of the group when I say that is certainly true. He challenged us to be better and give our lives to help others reach their fullest potential. He also reminded us that we will constantly be growing and said that "every level of growth in your life will demand a different you." Over all, Johnny really inspired each of us in so many different ways and we are excited to grow even further this week as we dive deeper into OWB.
In the end...
Ultimately, this trip is turning out even better then I expected. It is really amazing giving a week to truly be present in a community that I have called home for the past 3 years. Although I have always known that I am apart of the West Bayfront this week it is truly starting to feel like Our West Bayfront. So stay tuned for more....
Sleeping in Solidarity
Our day started bright and early with breakfast at our host site the First Presbytrian Church of the Covenant. First off, I have to say even though we are sleeping on air mattresses it is pretty cool to think that we are staying in what looks like some lost European church but that is less than 10 blocks from my apartment. The First Presbytian Church of the Covenant really is an amazing place that I wish that I had spent more time at before this week. I am so honored at how welcoming the community has been to us and the works that they are doing in the community.
As Sam had mentioned yesterday we had the opportunity to talk with Pat Tracy Sunday. There she mentioned that the church turns the rooms that we are staying in into shelter for the homeless part of the year. And although our accomadations our wonderful there were a few bumps that made us stop to think for a few minutes... For instance, the showers. The six women on the trip who must share one shower. As you can imagine this can be a slight inconvience. We addressed this frustration with needed reflection. When this room is used as a shelter fifteen women all share this space and that single shower. And although it is even harder to accomodate 15 women to one shower versus 6 women to one shower they likely still consider it a blessing. Showering daily and at our convience is a simple luxury that many of us take for granted. I am really grateful to see that the lessons that living in this space will continue to teach us throughout the week.
Insulating with Meaning
The next stop in our day after breakfast was to the St. Joseph House on 4th street. Neighboring the MLK Center the St. Joseph House is a house that Gannon is building to further engage with the community. Although the house will serve many functions the primary resource will be a place for 2 Gannon employees to stay at only the cost of utilities to help them save up for the down payment on a house in the OWB community. It is a building with a purpose to foster more relationships within the community.
The house is currently under construction and our job today was to add insulation. Within our four hours of service we were able to fully insulate the outer perimeter of the hosue. Not going to lie the paid workers constructing the house were slightly impressed, at least they told us so. I think what partially made us so motivated was to realize the our job insulating the house was going to have a direct impact on the employees who were going to live there in the future. Insulation helps keep the cool air inside during the summer and the warm air inside during the winter. The better the insulation the lower the utilities. The lower the utilities then the easier it will be for the employees to save up for their down payment. This trip is really showing me how even our smallest actions, like installing insulation, can have a much larger impact on our community as a whole.
Cards at Strong Vincent
After set the record for the fastest insulation installation in the history of 4th street the team headed to Strong Vincent Middle School to write good luck cards to the 6th graders. This year the City of Erie Public Schools did a reconfiguration of the schools in the area. As a result Strong Vincent changed from a high school to middle school. Many students had to relocate to new schools with unfamilar teachers and classmates. In order to show some support for the students we wrote the 6th graders cards wishing them luck on their PSSAs just to let them know that although the community may be a little different that they are still very supported.
As we were writing the cards we had the opportunity to connect with Katrina Byrd, the Community School Director. Katrina is new to the area and has recently relocated from Brooklyn, New York. Katrina has a really special job working with OWB and the community to address the needs of the community as a whole through the school's lense. Some initiatives that she is working on is bringing in dentists to assess students and how we can help more students attend class. Katrina looks at the community as a whole to find long term solutions that will help not only the students but the entirity of Erie better. Talking with Katrina was really special and it was great to be able to the work that she is already doing along with her committment to the area.
The Johnny Johnson and the New Jersulem
After having the opportunity to connect with Katrina we sat down with Johnny Johnson. Johnny, or shall we say Mr. Johnson, is a community activist. He settled in Erie many years ago from Georgia where he grew up in the Jim Crow south. Johnny is a really excellent teacher who taught at Saint Vincent for over 30 years. One of the reasons that we sat down with Johnny to ask him questions about the history of OWB. Apparently, around the late 1800s OWB was known as New Jersulem. It was a community where African Americans, many whom were freed or escaped slaves, setteled together to build a better future. Together they ventured to create a strong community where each were protected from the danger of slave catchers but also one where the future of their children would be one of hope.
We had the honor to hear Johnny also retell his on life. He put the experience of connecting with him best when he said that his best strength is to tell his life story in a way that people are able to connect with it and make it their own. I feel that I speak for the entirity of the group when I say that is certainly true. He challenged us to be better and give our lives to help others reach their fullest potential. He also reminded us that we will constantly be growing and said that "every level of growth in your life will demand a different you." Over all, Johnny really inspired each of us in so many different ways and we are excited to grow even further this week as we dive deeper into OWB.
In the end...
Ultimately, this trip is turning out even better then I expected. It is really amazing giving a week to truly be present in a community that I have called home for the past 3 years. Although I have always known that I am apart of the West Bayfront this week it is truly starting to feel like Our West Bayfront. So stay tuned for more....
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