I participated in volunteering at Ignite Norfolk, which is located here at Old Dominion University. I volunteered on October 22nd from 11:30 to 1:00 and from 3:00 to 5:00. I also volunteered on October 29th from 11:30 to 1:00. At Ignite Norfolk, I handed out flyers and helped restock the food pantry. The purpose of the flyers were to inform people about the purpose of Ignite Norfolk and to reach out to those who need the service of the organization. Every week, Panera Bread provides Ignite Norfolk with their leftover bread and pastries. When each shipment is brought in, the old bread and pastries must be thrown away. I helped dispose of the stale products and restocked the pantry with the new products. 

Ignite Norfolk is a food pantry and a church. Ignite Norfolk provides food for those in the area who either do not have the money for food or generally do not have adequate availability to proper nutrition. The community addresses issues of  hunger and religion. Ignite Norfolk mainly provides a place of worship for those in the Norfolk area. They aim at bringing together the Norfolk community. The church is not restricted to just Sunday, but all the other days of the week. They provide services most days of the week, which makes services more available for patrons. Ignite Norfolk also provides food services for their church patrons and others in need of food. 

After volunteering at Ignite Norfolk, I truly value what I have earned and what I have been given. I have also learned to value charity more than before. Ignite Norfolk gives charity to their patrons. Panera Bread gave their excess products to charity to help their community. I have also learned to appreciate my community more from this experience. Communities are there to help each other, and that is exactly what Ignite Norfolk. It has inspired me to try my best to help my community, and to work harder to be appreciative of what I possess. 

Prior to the Fall 2019 semester, the only experience that I have had was shadowing at a local dental practice. Shadowing at that dental practice allowed for me to see that I truly wanted to be part of the health and medicine field, especially pursuing a career in dental hygiene. After volunteering at Ignite Norfolk, I know for sure that I want to be part of the health field. My main reason for becoming a dental hygienist and being part of the healthcare community, is that I want to help people. At Ignite Norfolk, I was able to help those in need and help people in the community. That is my main purpose when I enter the health field. 

The purpose and mission of Ignite Norfolk relate to a career in dental hygiene by the fact that they both aim to help those in need. Ignite Norfolk helps people who are in need of food and a place for worship. A dental hygienist helps people who need dental care. Both of these are meant to help the lives of the people they serve. What I experiences while volunteering at Ignite Norfolk, could also relate to a nursing degree. Professions in the nursing field also aim at helping people and the community they way they are trained to do so. I would choose to pursue a career in nursing as a parallel major. Nursing has many specities where I can help those who relate to my personal experiences, particularly in hospice care and oncology. 

Compared to the beginning of the semester, I spend a little less time studying for my classes. I have learned that studying in short sessions have helped me achieve better scores on assignments and quizzes. Now, I tend to study about half an hour to an hour every day for my necessary classes. This method has helped increase my retention of information. My study habits have not changed much. I continue to make study guides for each chapter of my textbooks, but I no longer use physical flashcards. I have found that Quizlet is a better and more accessible tool to study flashcards. It also provides practice test options to help prepare for quizzes and exams. I also still continue to use the resources provided by my professors. Study techniques that involve flashcards tend to work best for me because they reinforce the repetition of learning terms and concepts. Studying by use of flashcards do not tend to vary much between classes, besides for classes that do not rely mostly on terminology. 

 About 14 weeks ago, I expected college to harder and more stressful. Now that the first semester is almost over, I have realized that is not as hard as I expected if you are able to effectively organize and prioritize. The Perry library has been a helpful resource this semester. It provides a place to study on campus and provides many resources. It also is a place to study or work as a group with other people. Unfortunately, this semester the financial aid office has not been helpful. I still have questions that have not been completely answered. I wish I knew that working with a group in certain classes was better than working alone 14 weeks ago. I prefer to work alone, but in certain situations, working with a group is better, so that opinions can be shared to provide a better understanding of the topic. This semester, I have learned that utilizing my success coach and my advisor will assist me next semester. These two people help me stay on track for the dental hygiene program and provide advice on how to better myself for the future.