Project LINK - Body Electric

1.1. I volunteered where I did my internship this summer. I volunteered at I Sing the Body Electric at Sarah Busch Hospital. Julie Meinhart is my advisor and I’ve grown very fond of her since working with her in June. I am glad that I was offered the position in the summer and I am glad that I have kept in touch with her since.

2.      2.The service activity reflected concepts learned in FCS 4820 because I was working with disadvantage teens. I mean that in a way that these teenagers had gone through a lot with eating disorders, pregnancies, drug use and loss of a good friend through texting and driving or drinking and driving. Most of these teenagers have been through some things that I feel like I may never have to experience. This related to FCS because I was able to provide the right responses and right information to the questions they ask me and the advice they wanted. However, this was completely new to me seeing as I worked with children in play camps over the summer so this was a huge eye opener. These teenagers work on art projects through Body Electric and build and create such compelling pieces of work that I feel that they have built the resilience to deal with what they go through on a day to day basis. 

3 3.  As previously stated, I have kept in touch with Mrs. Meinhart throughout the year and my relationship with her has been building since. Through her, I was able to interact with principals, teachers, parents and other workers through the Sarah Busch network. Because of Julie, I was able to jump start my career in nursing.

4.     4.  The effect that this program has on the community is astounding. It is a great way for teenagers to get the word out about certain dilemmas and it is nice seeing it on a personal standpoint. We see all these commercials about the experiences the teenagers face that I stated earlier and we turn our heads. When they make their works of art, their so captivating that it comes to the point that you wish you saw this on the commercials. This activity is already making a huge impact on the community and I hope that impact only grows more. 

5.    5.   I absolutely love volunteering with I Sing the Body Electric and I am really thankful that I was able to work with the high school students this time. Don’t get me wrong, working with the children at camp was a lot of fun, but working with the high school students was a deep level of connection. I enjoyed being able to ask them what their artwork is about and talk to them about it. I feel like a lot of them have come to terms and accepted the closure and it is therapeutic to them to talk about it. I am doing this again after winter break and I cannot wait to get back. 

Mallory McEldowney