{"id":118,"date":"2022-01-24T00:43:33","date_gmt":"2022-01-24T00:43:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/mph669draft\/?page_id=118"},"modified":"2022-03-27T21:59:33","modified_gmt":"2022-03-27T21:59:33","slug":"community-based-experience","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/community-based-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"Community Based Experience"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Grocery Distribution Volunteer with Mercy Drops Dream Center of Portsmouth, VA<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A requirement for MPH 776 Global Health was to have a Service Learning Experience with the objective to utilize what I have learned through the MPH program to better help an organization achieve global health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mercy Drops Dream Center (MDDC) is a faith-based organization in Portsmouth, VA. The organization provides many services to those in-need in the city of Portsmouth, however, my role was with Grocery Distribution. For the course requirement, I served 4 Saturdays throughout October and November 2021 for 2-3 hours each visit. MDDC has several neighborhoods that they have “adopted” based on need, and provides groceries to their adopted neighbors once a week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swanson Homes community is the neighborhood that I served in on Saturday afternoons. During my first Saturday, all the volunteers watched a quick video about the role MDDC plays in Swanson Homes, and I quickly realized it was more than handing out groceries, it was about connecting with the members of Swanson Homes and letting them know they are not forgotten. My first visit, I learned we would be entering a community that was mourning the loss of a 15 year old child who was killed in a drive-by shooting, a few feet from the playground. I wasn’t there to provide only groceries, instead, I was there for support, as an extension of MDDC. In addition to distributing groceries, I played tug-o-war with the kids and colored alongside of them, trying to bring care and comfort. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the course of my time with MDDC at Swanson Homes, I was called upon by the volunteer coordinator to lead by showing new volunteers how to organize the truckload of groceries and distribute once on-site at Swanson. I encouraged new volunteers to reach out engage with community members when we were in the neighborhood. I made connections by carpooling with other volunteers from MDDC to Swanson Homes. I developed lasting relationships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My time with MDDC was very impactful and I have continued to volunteer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norfolk Medical Reserve Corps<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I joined the Norfolk Medical Reserve Corps in 2021, and when I had time to assist, I volunteered at COVID-19 vaccination sites as administrative support. This experience highlighted the importance of volunteerism in the community, especially during a pandemic or any large scale response. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Grocery Distribution Volunteer with Mercy Drops Dream Center of Portsmouth, VA A requirement for MPH 776 Global Health was to have a Service Learning Experience with the objective to utilize what I have learned through the MPH program to better help an organization achieve global health. Mercy Drops Dream Center (MDDC) is a faith-based organization … Continue reading Community Based Experience<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19544,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19544"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":322,"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118\/revisions\/322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/tiffanymolinick-mph669\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}