Christina Hunt Service Learning Authentic Assessment 1 Looking at Your Community Fairfield is an interesting city compared to Vacaville, the

crime rate is higher and there are more poverty areas than there are in Vacaville ! moved to Fairfield "hen ! "as ten years old and ! noticed there "as a lot more scary people and scary areas Although ! live in a nice neigh#orhood in Fairfield, ! am more afraid to "alk around at nighttime than ! "as in Vacaville $he people are less friendly and the community is not as clean Fairfield is a #eautiful to"n "ith many nice areas, #ut the crime rate is significantly higher than the rate of Vacaville According to the neigh#orhood scout "e#site you are 1 to %&' ratio of #eing a victim of crime in Vacaville, #ut 1 to '%( in Fairfield )y family never had a pro#lem in Vacaville and our neigh#ors looked out for us *n the other hand, in Fairfield "e have lived here for si+ years and "e had our truck punched leaving a fist indent, "e had our camping trailer #attery stolen, and "hile "e "ere in Ha"aii someone #roke into our #ackyard and put the latter up to our "indo" trying to #reak it #ut "as unsuccessful due to the alarm system *ne thing that sticks out to my family is the pollution and gar#age around the city ,riving do"n the streets "e see dumped couches and papers along the side"alks and #ags in the middle of the road $his is due to the street cleaner not coming as often as they are supposed to -hen "e moved here "e "ere promised they "ould come every )onday #ut instead "e seen them once or may#e t"ice a month $his is upsetting to my family #ecause "e have to go and s"eep the street in front of our house if "e do not "ant our house to look like a mess

$he most starting thing to us is ho" unfriendly our neigh#ors are, although it varies from area you live in "e "ere skeptical a#out the actions going on around us *ne day ! came home and ! "as rushed #y a s"at team and told to get #ack into my house .na"are of "hat "as happening ! "as scared )y family soon sa" in the paper that our neigh#or "as a foster parent and a child photographer "ho "as #eing charged on thirty/si+ accounts of child molestation $his "as appalling and "e "ere disgusted "hen the "ife came to our door asking to loan money to #ail her hus#and out #ecause she could not afford to live on her o"n Another strange account that happened last year "as my family and ! "ere eating dinner "hen "e had a knock on our front door -e never use our front door so "e "ere unsure if "e should ans"er #ecause a rather large African American man "as outside and it "as dark He asked us if he could #orro" t"enty dollars to fro gas and #ridge toll #ecause his "ife "as in trou#le in the city and he needed to help her -e gave him fifty for e+tra money if he needed food or anything else, as he "alked a"ay "e "atched him knock on our neigh#ors door and ask the e+act same thing -e "ere so frustrated that "e had #een scammed "hen "e thought "e "ere actually helping someone in need Since then it has happened t"ice and "e call the police on these people $here are many things that go on in the community around us that "e may not kno" a#out and "e should pay more attention to the papers and due more research #efore you move some"here Having self/a"areness for you and your family makes a safer environment and you kno" "hat to look out for as you are going a#out your day ! no" go to the police meeting and formed a neigh#orhood "atch committee through the police department #ecause of the crimes that have occurred in my neigh#orhood !t is very intimidating "hen ! am a five/foot one hundred/seven pound girl home alone and a si+/foot large male is knocking on my door $o #e

honest ! do not feel as safe here and "e are moving soon #ecause of my grandparents old age *ne thing ! think people should do is research a neigh#orhood #efore they move into it $hey should meet the neigh#ors #efore they commit to #uying a house and learn more a#out their surroundings and people around them #ecause "e learned the hard "ay that 0ust #ecause you have a gorgeous house in a seemingly #eautiful neigh#orhood does not mean that the people around you are 0ust as nice