Service, Showers, and Surprises: Stepping into a Migrant's Shoes

When we were told that today was "migrant immersion day," I thought I knew basically what I was getting myself into. But I could never have anticipated everything I would learn and appreciate about my own life by stepping into the shoes of a migrant worker for a day. We began by waking up at 5:15 a.m. for a simple breakfast. We then traveled to a nearby farm, where we weeded many vegetable and fruit plants for a couple hours in the blistering sun. This act of service for the farm was rewarding for me to recognize the true physical strain of the work being done by migrants all across the nation to provide food for our grocery stores. To put it in perspective, I learned that 70% of the food we consume in the U.S. passes through the hands of migrant workers. We were then able to take a very quick shower, which had never felt more heavenly. One of the larger surprises yet to come was the pay we received for the half-day's work we did. We were split up into "families," where we took the money we made from our work and headed to the grocery store to buy ourselves dinner. It was incredibly difficult to find a sustainable meal for the little we had to pay with, and it made me think about all the times when I am at the grocery store and don't think twice about my running total of food to the penny. Finally, after cooking dinner, we left for a migrant camp to play with the kids who live there. This was also an act of service for me, because by this point we were just exhausted from working only half a day, but had the opportunity to provide fun and entertainment for the kids who have so much less than we do. My whole day was filled with thoughts about the things I take for granted: being able to shower whenever I want, being able to indulge and eat what I want, having clean water, receiving more than minimum wage at my job, and so much more. This experience was life changing; God surprised me in ways that I did not expect. I pray that all of us may be able to reflect on the generosity of God in our lives, and praise Him for His goodness and grace. ~ Rachel

Young Adult Week Day One: Food Collecting

Today was the first day of Agape and what a day it was! We dedicated our entire day to collecting non-perishable food items for the food bank that we will be putting on later this week. We did a walking food drive in a neighborhood near the church we are staying at, and we collected food at a couple of grocery stores in Bellingham. For me, both of these tasks pushed me well outside of my comfort zone. However, standing outside the grocery store posed a greater struggle for me. How many times have we ourselves seen groups standing outside asking for donations for their various organizations? If you're anything like me, you've walked right on by without giving them a second thought. Now that I had to be the person behind the flyers, it helped me see just how much strength and courage it takes to ask strangers for help. In the beginning, I felt awkward and shy handing out the slips with suggested food items to people that I had never met. I didn't want to inconvenience them or have them get angry with me for interrupting their day. I expressed my timidness to one of the other girls at the same store as me and she said something that made me rethink the entire process of asking people for donations. She told me to think of the kids that I've met from migrant worker families when I handed someone a slip. She said to think about how giving out that one flyer just might allow for one of those kids to have a second bowl of cereal for breakfast or a second helping for dinner. She explained that if I put aside my own fears and worries, and focused my thoughts on the bigger picture of why we were there in the first place, it would make handing out those slips all the more easier. Once she said this, it was like a switch had been flipped in me. I was less hesitant about speaking up and asking people for donations. By the end of our time at the grocery store, I was amazed at how much we had been given. We filled three and a half carts with food at one grocery store alone! I was overwhelmed by the kindness of the people who donated and I cannot wait to see the faces of the families that come through the food bank when they see all of the food laid out before them.
Today has reminded me that it is good to step outside of your comfort zone to help those who need it most. Allowing yourself to be an advocate for those who don't have a voice will cause others to take notice, and perhaps inspire them to do something themselves to help the poor and forgotten.
-Bridget

Thursday Celebration Day

Today we had our day of celebration. Our Catholic Social Teaching for today was the Life and Dignity of the Human Person. It was about people and what he/she does. We all agreed that we would be nicer if we all saw Christ in each other. We also went swimming at the aquatic center.    We also hung out with the migrants and ate burgers and hot dogs, we all had a buddy to eat food with that we met at the camp. It was a lot of fun.      
     
Keaton

Day 4: Tuesday, 6/25

Post by: Precious E.

               

                Today we walked in the shoes of a migrant worker/farmer. We woke up at 5 to get ready to start our work as a migrant farmer on the farm. We picked weeds, vegetables, and fruits. We also met a farmer who worked there who explained to us his daily activities, hours, and wages. It was really interesting to actually put ourselves and walk in the shoes of these migrant workers and farmers. We had to put ourselves in the position of people who have to wake up very early in the morning, work long hours, and bring home pay that just is not enough.

Day 5: Wednesday, 6/26

Post by: Hanica

Today was the food bank day! Everyone woke up at different times, had a light breakfast, and gathered in our circle. We then discussed the plan for the day. One group went over to the church and created an assembly line. They worked together as a community to easily pass heavy boxes. The other group went to Cash and Carry and picked up fresh produce. Both groups met back at the Church where the food drive would be held. For the next three hours we worked to get ready for the food drive. We sorted food and divided big bags of flour, sugar, and beans into smaller containers. It was hard but the food drive made all the hard work, sweat, and dirty sneakers worth it.

                We all were assigned tables for the food bank. I was assigned the spicy peppers. People started lining up half an hour early for the food bank. We all learned how to say the foods we were giving away in Spanish. Everyone was a little apprehensive before we started but all nerves were evidently put at ease. Families, young children, old men, older women, and middle aged people all came through the door. I myself do not take Spanish and could not speak very well. When people would come around, I would say in broken Spanish the names of food, and they would chuckle and correct my grammar. There was a great sense of community, of family. It is one thing to donate money to a charity and another to see our donations, in another form, cause joy. There were moments when I would ask people if they wanted jalapenos and they would say yes with such enthusiasm. We would then get into a conversation about peppers. They would talk for a long time about the peppers, and, even though I didn’t know exactly what they said, I understood their message. But the best moment was when I would give someone goods and say gracias in broken Spanish and they would say thank you in broken English.  It really showed two people trying. These stories were what I experienced but everyone had similar stories. For me, as well as most people, today was a highlight.

                We then, as a community, packed up the leftovers. The church was full of amazing people who gave us food after all of the hard work. It was truly an amazing thing to do. We then came back to the church that we were staying in and had tacos for dinner! Overall, it was an eye-opening day.

Food Bank Day!

Toady was the "climax" of our week when we put on a food bank for the local migrants. Earlier in the week we collected donations by going door to door and setting a stand up at some near by grocery stores. It took a lot of effort today to not only set up for the food bank but also passing the food out during the food bank. We had to load, unload, organize, reload and unload all of the food, clothes and toys, which took a lot of effort and optimism. Many of us found it hard to communicate with the migrants that came to the Food Bank, because for most of the them, English was their second language and we were only taught a few necessary words in Spanish to explain the quantities that they could take of the item we were giving out. For me it was a bit awkward only being able to say "Hello" and "one" while gesturing to the soup and juice I was handling so, it was nice when someone (the migrants) would talk to  me in English, since I felt like I could really get across what I was trying to say. We were all really thankful that the kitchen staff who prepared a meal for the migrants let us have some chips, a hotdog, a slice of watermelon, and some juice when the Food Bank was winding down since we were all starving! But it seemed like everyone had a good time, over all.
  During small group time we talked about our experience running the Food Bank, how we distinguish, or "label" people upon first impressions, how we can strive to find similarities in others, who we saw Jesus in that day. At the Food Bank we served 141 families! Everyone walked away with a lot of food and smiles on their face.
 ~hAnnaca      

Today was our Migrant Immersion Day, we began with an early morning (5:15), then set off to experience part of the life of a migrant worker in a short period of time. We arrived at a farm around 6:45 and worked about 4 hours through rain, weeding strawberries and onions, and cutting spinach. Soon after we left the farm, each group received a small amount of money that we used wisely to buy ourselves dinner at a nearby grocery store. When we got back to Sacred Heart with my group's toaster waffles and jam we had about 2 hours of downtime before we ate our small meals and set off to a migrant camp. At the first camp we visited, our group passed out flyers informing families about our upcoming food bank. The second migrant camp,  was filled with excitement as soon as we drove into view, all the kids were running to tell people that we had arrived. It seemed like everybody had a great time playing with all the kids and getting to know some of them throughout the whole night. Today was a great experience not only because we got to bond with the kids, but also because we began to understand the work of a migrant farmer.
-Dana

Day 3: Monday, 6/24

Post by: Rachel B

Today we woke up about 7:30 and had a nice big breakfast including bagels, cereal, fruit, and peanut butter, which is everybody’s new favorite. Then, we split into groups and walked house to house  to collect non-perishable foods for the food bank we will be visiting later this week. While we were out, we saw some deer who came surprisingly close to us, and some HUGE slugs which Abby and I really enjoyed. After, we came back for some sandwiches and cookies before we went to various grocery stores to collect more food from shoppers. All around, we collected so much food that we had to take several carloads of it home. When we got back to the church, we had a very interesting dinner. Everyone was in three groups all containing very different food and social statuses. There were the richest with a three course meal, the middle class with a tasty-looking soup, and the poorest with a tortilla with rice. There was frustration and confusion while we determined why this was. In the end, we realized that we needed to see how migrants live in order to better aid them. In excitement for tomorrow, we are going to bed very early, and will be rising at 5:15 to get to the farm on time. 

Francis - Monday Reflection

After breakfast, we started our food drive, walking around in the rain, collecting food from local houses.  I think my favorite donation was the box with tea bags in it.  (Good thing we had no hot water, or the food bank wouldn't have gotten any.)   We also got a box of Grape-Nuts, which apparently are neither, as they are actually cereal.  Following lunch, which sadly lacked tea, we went to various grocery stores, where we handed out slips of paper with items the food bank needs to people, so they can buy something to donate if they want.  I was outside the Fairhaven Haggens.  We filled two carts with food from people, with lots and lots and lots and lots of cans, tortillas, and cereal.  I think there must be something extremely satisfactory about buying cereal, because that's what a lot of people did.  Then we came back to the Sacred Heart Hall for dinner.  We each got a pink, yellow, or blue card, which told us which table to sit at.  The people with pink cards, including me, sat on a tarp where we ate tortillas and rice.  Why some people complained I don't know.  Meanwhile, the people with the yellow card sat at a simple table and ate soup.  According to some it was extremely watery.  The blue card people proceeded to sit at a table by the window with a fancy tablecloth, surrounding potted plants, and a roaring fire from YouTube.  They got a three-course meal with servants, salad, spaghetti, and cheesecake.  (No, they didn't eat the servants, though the sentence may have sounded like that.  Sorry!)  The purpose of this was to demonstrate different types of classes from poor, undeveloped third world countries, middle-class second world, kinda developed, and the rich, very developed first world countries.  Afterwards we prayed "A Prayer For Those Who Have Too Much".  The CST (Catholic Social Teaching) today was "Rights and Responsibilities".  Today was extremely fun!!!!  Thanks, Agape Service Project!
-Francis

Post by: Abby M.

Today is the second day of the Agape Program. Since everyone was jet-lagged we slept until eight-thirty. We then took the next hour to pack up our stuff and get ready for the day. At nine-thirty we had a breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and fruit. Since we will be staying in a parish center for the majority of the trip, this will be one of the only hot breakfasts that we will be having. Before mass we all turned off our phones and put them in a clear plastic box. The box was then sealed with seven pieces of masking tape and everyone signed their name on a piece of tape. We went to mass at noon and had a lovely conversation with the pastor afterwards. He was delighted to know that the group was going up to help migrant farm workers. We ate lunch and loaded a van and a bus with our personal belongings and all the donations Tanya had received. We then drove one hour and fifty minutes to the Bellingham church. We ate dinner and met the other group consisting of two girls and three boys. We then talked about the schedule, and what we are expecting for the overall experience.

Today we learned about the Catholic Social Teachings. The two we focused on today were caring for creation and and the call to family and community participation. Caring for creation is about caring for the environment and trying to keep the pollution levels down. The call to family and community participation is the call to be social and to participate in daily family projects. Also it is the call to help with  projects to improve the quality of life in poor areas.

Blogger name: Kay-wrist