Chloe Black

Dr. Mountz

Honors 201 Service Learning

28 November 2022

Reflection

My service project was for the Joplin Humane Society, most specifically for their Shelter

Pals Program. The Shelter Pals Program is a reading program for children aged six to fifteen, in

which they come to the shelter the second Monday of every month and read to the adoptable

pets. My project was to raise used books for this program, as the Humane Society provides the

books to the participating children. To carry out my project, I created fliers, a drop-box, posted

on social media, and got approval from the Joplin Public Library to set out my drop-box in their

main area. My advisor for this project was the volunteer coordinator at the Humane Society,

Chloey Hensley, and our goal for this project was to raise at least ten used books. My book drive

ran from September 26 to October 1 at the Joplin Public Library, and ended when I dropped off

the books at the Humane Society. I ended up exceeding our project goal of ten books by over ten

times, as I raised one hundred and thirteen books. The process of planning, executing and

reflecting on my book drive provided me with first-hand learning experience about my

community, and opened my eyes to important qualities I will need moving forward in my life.

I served at the Joplin Humane Society, which is an organization that helps combat the

issue of stray and neglected animals. The population of benefit is primarily pets; they get taken

off of the streets and are provided with the food, safety and care needed to be adopted into a

suitable home. An issue that the pets face when put into the shelter is stress brought on by

unfamiliar noises, lighting, cages, etc, which is a problem that my project helped combat.
Reading to the pets allows them to gain comfort in the human voice, which lessens their anxiety

in the shelter. Personally, my book drive provided the books needed for the Shelter Pals Program

to succeed. The pets mental wellbeing is often overlooked in a shelter environment, but this is a

huge factor in their adoption rate. Raising books for the Shelter Pals Program was meaningful

because of how many lives were benefited, both pet and human. The difference that the Joplin

Humane Society is making in the community is very prominent, as those who can not afford or

are unable to provide a stable home for their pets can safely surrender them to the Humane

Society. In my time at the Humane Society, I learned that animals crave human affection and

need much more than basic necessities to thrive.

I personally gained many skills from working on my project, such as communication and

efficiency. I tend to be more of a reserved person, so being forced to communicate with

numerous members of the community was a challenge. Once I accepted that I was going to be

out of my comfort zone, I flourished and effectively carried out my project. I used my

experiences from the classroom in terms of efficiency; for instance, during group projects, I am

used to taking the lead and directing members of the group. This applied to my project in a

positive manner, as I wasted no time in preparing and planning my book drive. I also improved

upon organization and scheduling. I knew that my book drive was not going to fill up all twenty-

four volunteer hours, so I had to carve out time to volunteer at the Humane Society. I had to

work around my work and class schedule to get all of the volunteer hours, which constantly

tested my organizational skills. A large part of my volunteer hours at the Humane Society

consisted of working large events, which showed my ability to work as a team. The Vaccine

Clinic relied on the teamwork of the volunteers to orchestrate people from one station to the next
while keeping track of paperwork. Teamwork is an important skill that is needed in day to day

life, especially for future careers and relationships.

From my project, I learned that community service is rewarding as well as vital. Non-

profit organizations rely on help from the community, and oftentimes fail without it. During my

project, I felt a strong feeling of alliance and fellowship from my community. Experiencing

numerous members of the Joplin community supporting my book drive gave me a sense of pride

in my community. Before my book drive, I stereotyped the community in how willing they

would be to engage in my project. I assumed that not a lot of people would be interested in

donating their books. To my surprise, my prejudice ended up being completely incorrect. My

service learning experience, along with my stereotypes, changed how I think about community

service. I had a negative light shone upon community service, as I saw it as a punishment or an

inconvenience. Now that I know the importance of non-profit organizations to society as a

whole, I see community service in a much better light. Serving the community is not a

punishment, it is a rewarding act of kindness. My service project opened my eyes to important

qualities that I will need moving forward in life, such as partnership, compassion, philanthropy,

and selflessness.

My book drive, along with volunteering for the Humane Society, showed me how

important it is to serve the community. Community service not only provided me with a sense of

identity and satisfaction, but mutually benefited the Humane Society. Service learning enhances

education in a few ways. Through service learning, I was able to reflect on my project while

developing critical thinking skills outside of the classroom. I also had the opportunity to enter

myself into the public as a functioning member of society and make a difference in the
community. Overall, my book drive was an exceptionally meaningful experience because it gave

me the confidence and skill needed to continue serving the community.