Travel Day and Looking Forward

Yesterday was an incredible day and spoke to the dedication and spirit of everyone on our experience. After such an incredible week of work, I knew I was exhausted. From leaving the church parking lot at 9am and the last bags hitting the ground at home past 9pm you would think it was a long, monotonous day. That couldn't be even further from the truth. From contagious laughter filling the car to our Dunkin run to the group mission to see everyone head home safe and warm, there isn't a group I would have rather traveled with.

There was no formal reflection or service yesterday, but that doesn't mean the group's dedication to service learning has ended. During our last formal reflection we talked about activation -- the continuation of the energy and inspiration from this week into our communities back home. It was a busy week, and before we jump right back into school work and college life, it was nice to take a moment to look forward. After sharing our hopes, dreams, and aspirations with each other, it was great to be able to put everything in the context of service -- what we can do moving forward. And with each other's support, I know that we can continue to inspire each other to serve with smiles on our faces. We have learned that talking about social issues as complex as domestic violence is important -- the complexity shouldn't scare us away but rather encourage to approach it from a variety of perspectives.

With movie nights, post-trip service, snapchat, and the AB reunion in the works I am so happy that I will get to continue to work with this amazing group of individuals (rt if you cried).  So this isn't the last from us. Think of it as another beginning.

First day to last day (for now)

- Shannon

#FunFriday Final day! ( Insert sad face here)

Bystander Intervention training at the UT

Wow, we can't believe this week is over already! Today we spent the earlier part of the morning at the University of Tennessee participating in the Bystander Intervention Workshop, facilitated by the Health and Wellness Center. Our facilitator, Billie, was very engaging and excited to teach us how to become active bystanders. For those that don't know what a Bystander Intervention is, essentially it educates us on how to recognize red flags and how to appropriately intervene so as to prevent a problematic situation from unfolding. After this lovely experience, we were given free t-shirts, which was the cherry on top!


Next on our journey, we embarked on a trip to the Smoky Mountains! We were impressed by the scenic view on our drive, so we were certainly excited about the hike ahead. We parked our vehicles at Cades Cove and trekked 5 miles (roundtrip) on the Abram Falls trail, which was a moderately difficult trail. While on our hike, we were able to enjoy the nature around us, as well as reflect on our week. We struggled walking uphill, traversed through tree roots, rocks, and mud -- with the ultimate goal of reaching the waterfall!

This view is everything!

The struggle was worth this view!!

Emilie and our fabulous Staff Advisor, Mika! 

<3

All in all, it was a great way to end our week of teamwork!

Lastly, we spent our final gathering as a group at Tupelo Honey -- a restaurant located in downtown Knoxville. This restaurant specializes in southern-style cuisine, which was a type of food that we were craving all week. The best part is that Tupelo Honey was able to accommodate the various dietary needs of our entire group. The food exceeded our expectations, and the fellowship was enjoyed by all!

The celebration dinner at Tupelo Honey was delicious :)

Overall, the day was everything we had hoped for, but undeniably bittersweet. Yet, during reflection, we ensured that we would continue to stay connected once we returned to campus; and most importantly, we vowed to make change within our communities and strive to become active citizens, as it relates to the issue of domestic/relationship violence.

Thanks for reading!
~Mika and Emilio

Trisha aka T-dogg

Hi everyone!
I'm Trisha and this is my second Alternative Break! I'm a junior Physiology and Neurobiology major with a minor in Human Development and am on the pre-med track. Some fun facts about me include that I love Chipotle unconditionally (even during the E. coli scare) and that I'm obsessed with basketball (go Celtics!). I'm really excited to meet new people on this trip and do everything that our incredible Experience Leaders have planned for us! I really love to immerse myself in the world around me and have a desire to learn about issues related to social justice so that I can educate myself and raise awareness around me. Specifically, domestic violence is one issue I am very passionate about and feel extremely blessed to have the opportunity to go on this trip and learn more about it. I hope you enjoy reading our blog and joining us on this journey!

#TastyThursday - Blount County Courthouse/Jailhouse & IJAMS Nature Park

Hey y'all! We started this tasty Thursday early with a tour of the Blount County Jailhouse led by Sheriff Dudley. Though it isn't maximum security, it conducted itself like one; for example, the only entertainment that inmates are allowed are a pair of headphones that they must purchase themselves and the last time they went outside was November. The jailhouse was built to house about 350 inmates, but it currently holds about 500, of which 90 are women. This experience was a first for most of us; we were uncomfortable about some of the inmates staring at us, especially knowing what some of them are charged with.

After our tour, we sat in on a domestic violence docket presided over by Judge Headrick, who is very passionate about his work and very stern with defendants. We watched several cases involving restraining orders and crimes related to domestic violence, such as theft and drug abuse. It was interesting to see the diversity of the people who experience domestic violence, both as perpetrators and victims. Afterwards, we were able to speak with Judge Headrick about the cases we had seen and ask him questions. The most interesting thing that we learned from asking him questions is that he often sees the same people come into his courtroom multiple times. While he was talking with us, Judge Headrick was very friendly and funny, which contrasted with his working demeanor.

Team Knoxville posing with Judge Headrick in his courtroom. Fun fact: he does NOT like the Internet!

Next, we visited the IJAMS (eye-ams) Nature Park, where we went on the River Boardwalk. We saw many dogs (Jill was very excited about them) and a lot of beautiful scenery, including wonderful views of the Tennessee River. It also gave us a small preview of what we will be doing tomorrow at the Smoky Mountains. About half of us enjoyed the hills that we climbed, the other half reacted less favorably.

Emilio and Megan standing at the entrance of IJAMS.

Our team climbing up a steep set of rocky stairs.

Post mini-hike pic.

The mini-hike increased our appetites, so when we got back to the Concord United Methodist Church we all had some snacks. 

Trisha and Jill enjoying some tasty ice-cream cones.

We are excited to revisit the University of Tennessee tomorrow to experience their Bystander Intervention Workshop, as well as our celebration dinner.

Sincerely,

Billy & Caitlin    

#WackyWednesday - UT Wellness Center/Office of Misconduct & Family Justice Center

On this wacky Wednesday, we started our day at the University of Tennessee. The university's Health and Wellness Center generously provided Panera bagels with coffee (huge perk since the coffee machine at the church was temporarily out of order this morning), and then we were given a presentation. The presentation was very casual and informed us on the different procedures and policies UT follows when dealing with sexual misconduct issues. One program the university does is the "Vols help Vols". This program designed for students promotes proper consent by displaying colorful posters around campus and giving free bystander informational sessions along with t-shirts and goodies. Several people from the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards came and answered any concerns and questions we had regarding the process and legislation of sexual misconduct on campus.

During the presentation, this quote exposed how easy it is for someone to take sides with a perpetrator rather than be active and intervene to aid the victim.   

Temporary tattoos were one of the many free items we were given by the Health & Wellness Center.

One of the pieces of artwork displayed in the Family Resource Center.  The words written on the figures are two different dialogues of relationship violence.  This was created by Bobbie Crews Studio.  

We were fortunate enough to be able to explore the University of Tennessee campus on this beautiful day after our meeting with the Health & Wellness Center and Offie of Student Conduct and Community Standards.  Depicted is the Neyland football Stadium.

The latter half of our day was spent at the Family Resource Center.  After being shown around the facility and learning what a typical visit was like for a client, we congregated in the assembly-room and discussed the impacts and repercussions of relationship violence.  This was a really interesting visit because each of the places we visited earlier in the week continued to reference the Family Justice Center and say how incredible of a resource it is for victims of relationship violence or someone closely involved.  

When we returned to the church we are staying at, we helped serve dinner to the congregation.  This truly was a humbling experience because every member was so welcoming and interested in what our group was doing during our Spring Break. 

Until next time,

Emilie & Naj

Hi! My name is Sonakshi, I'm from Boston, MA, and I'm a kinesiology major at the University of Maryland, College Park. I enjoy traveling, bullet journaling, and trying various foods. I am super excited for this alternative break, because I am really passionate about raising awareness and combatting domestic violence.

#TeamworkTuesday - Cherokee Health Systems

It's day 4 in Knoxville and we started the day (early) by leaving the church to go to Cherokee Health Systems and talk with Dr. Tenbarge, a clinical psychologist also known as BHC (behavioral health consultant).  She showed us a powerpoint presentation and enhanced our knowledge about the power & control wheel and the cycle of violence.  We learned more statistics and more causes & effects associated with domestic violence.  She gave us a quick tour of part of their facility and gave us more information about some resources, including the Family Justice Center, which we are excited to see tomorrow!

We drove to a park a few minutes away to have lunch and hang out.  Here's some pictures of how we spent our time at the playground!


#LunchIsLit


Kamini, Sonakshi, and Billy on the playground!



Jill and Megan sliding into your DMs


Caitlin taught us how to play a watermelon game where you have to pass the seed across a circle

After lunch, we headed over to another branch of Cherokee Health Systems where we met with Mr. Tillery, who told us about what kinds of health services they offer (for free) to the homeless in the Knoxville area.  After giving us some information about this branch, we prepared hygiene goody bags full of feminine products, deodorant, lip balm, nail clippers, hand sanitizer, and sunscreen.  After filling the bags, he walked us across the street to the Volunteer Ministry Center, where we gave the bags to women there.  The VMC is a daytime resource center for those experiencing homelessness.  Employees at the VMC help those experiencing homelessness get back on their feet, possibly find housing, and teach them how to look for jobs.


Outside the VMC!


All of us hanging outside Cherokee Health!

To end our day, we were planning on going to Dairy Queen (it's free cone day!!) but, sadly the Knoxville area locations decided not to participate ):  So, we parked downtown and spent some time at the Worlds Fair center to see the Sun Sphere built for the 1982 Worlds Fair.  We got to go up 264 feet inside it to see panoramic views of the city!




The best staff advisor and ELs!!

-Ella and Jill