Ava Shatley

I had the opportunity to serve World Vision at an Elevation Worship concert. We each were assigned a section of the FedEx Forum and during the intermission we handed out packets for World Vision. These packets held the information of a particular child in a third-world country struggling with poverty. The packets gave audience members an opportunity to sponsor that child. This experience has influenced my future career goals by giving me a new perspective of what putting on a concert looks like within a Christian music context. My major is Music Business, so it was actually really helpful for me to see the backstage elements of putting on a live performance. This also changed the way I understand poverty in and outside of the US. I made some new connections with the event managers and a lot of my friends from the UofM that came to volunteer. These connections with me very useful, given that this is what I want to pursue in my career! The staff was very helpful in giving us a background on what World Vision is, and how to help people sign up if they were having issues. This service did align with my personal beliefs, which was very encouraging for me to see, given that the entertainment industry is different than it used to be. It was encouraging to see a concert, but in worship style. A conflict that arose during this event was that there were not enough of us to cover the whole venue, so some of us shared some of the sections to make sure every section had a volunteer!

My friends and I got to volunteer at Room In the Inn a few weekends ago. We worked together to sanitize mattresses, sweep and mop the floor of a shelter room, put together mattresses with sets of sheets, and put together folders for a donor meeting. Then we did a little game with some of the residents where we made friendship bracelets with them.

This semester I served by helping residents move into the dorms. Serving as a mover for University of Memphis dorm residents allowed me to develop strong communication and teamwork skills while learning how to stay organized and efficient in a fast-paced environment. Through this experience, I gained a better understanding of the campus community and how important it is to make new students feel welcomed. I worked as part of a team, which made the process smoother and more enjoyable, as we could divide tasks and encourage one another throughout the day. The university provided clear instructions, resources, and guidance, ensuring everything ran safely and efficiently. In the future, I would focus on improving time management by planning ahead for peak move-in hours to make the process even more seamless for residents and volunteers.

I had the opportunity to help serve at Arise2Read by helping them clean out their tutoring boxes and replenishing them for use during the next school year. This experience challenged me to reflect on how I can contribute to helping my community more often even after college. I remember how helpful my teachers were with me when I struggled with reading as a kid and grew in my appreciation for those people that dedicate their time to students. This service opportunity helped me grow in my understanding of how to work together as a team with the other volunteers we worked with to do the job well. I contributed to this event by sanitizing the tutoring kits, making sure they had sharpened pencils, working markers, clean supplies, and making sure they have everything in them to be used by the tutors. A challenge we faced was not having enough boxes at times for the amount of people we had. We all put in the work together to make sure everyone had a part in serving and got the job done well!

I had the opportunity to help serve Nathan Street by helping them clear out a brand new lot for construction. This experience challenged my willingness to get dirty to help someone else. I'm not usually a person that likes to get my hands dirty picking up sticks, raking and trimming branches so this was a different experience for me! This service opportunity helped me grow in my understanding of how to work together as a team with the other volunteers we worked with to do the job well. I contributed to this event by raking leaves and branches, trimming a tree line, helping gather all the sticks and other stuff that was on the lot, and gathering everything to go to the dump. A challenge we faced was just a little bit of poison ivy. We had to work together to try to avoid it and also get the job done the best way we could!

Doing free childcare for parents on a Saturday helped me develop patience, communication, and problem-solving skills, since working with kids required me to stay calm, give clear instructions, and think quickly in different situations. This experience also deepened my understanding of social issues by showing me how important accessible childcare is for families, not just as a convenience but as real support for parents who may be stressed or unable to afford it. During the service, I built connections with both the children and other volunteers, learning how to create trust with the kids and work as a team to keep everything running smoothly. The organization supported us by providing structure, clear expectations, and guidance, which made it easier to feel prepared and confident throughout the day. One challenge I didn’t expect was balancing the different personalities and energy levels of the kids, especially when things became overwhelming, but I handled it by staying patient, asking for help when needed, and adjusting how I interacted with each child; overall, the experience showed me how meaningful even a few hours of service can be for others while helping me grow personally.

I had the opportunity to help serve the Relative Caregiver Program by helping them package household items for caregivers in Memphis and distribute them. This experience challenged my my ability to build relationships with people I've never met since I went by myself. This service opportunity helped me grow in my understanding of the difficulties of being a caregiver. This organization serves caregivers in Memphis who have taken the responsibility to care for their relatives or friends' children and need help from the community. I actually got to meet a girl that goes to my church and we got to talk while we were helping serve! I contributed to this event by directing people through the drive thru to collect their household items and cheering them on for what they do. A challenge we faced was we didn't expect it to be as hot as it was so I was wearing a sweatshirt, but we got to use some umbrellas to help keep us cool!

I had the opportunity to help serve the Relative Caregiver Program by helping them package household items for caregivers in Memphis and distribute them. This experience challenged my my ability to build relationships with people I've never met since I went by myself. This service opportunity helped me grow in my understanding of the difficulties of being a caregiver. This organization serves caregivers in Memphis who have taken the responsibility to care for their relatives or friends' children and need help from the community. I actually got to meet a girl that goes to my church and we got to talk while we were helping serve! I contributed to this event by directing people through the drive thru to collect their household items and cheering them on for what they do. A challenge we faced was we didn't expect it to be as hot as it was so I was wearing a sweatshirt, but we got to use some umbrellas to help keep us cool!

Last Friday I had the opportunity to serve World Vision at a Brandon Lake concert in Southaven, Mississippi! We each were assigned a section of the Landers Center and during the intermission we handed out packets for World Vision. These packets held the information of a particular child in a third-world country struggling with poverty. The packets gave audience members an opportunity to sponsor that child.
This experience has influenced my future career goals by giving me a new perspective of what putting on a concert looks like within a Christian music context. My major is Music Business, so it was actually really helpful for me to see the backstage elements of putting on a live performance. This also changed the way I understand poverty in and outside of the US. I made some new connections with the event managers and a lot of my friends from the UofM that came to volunteer. These connections with me very useful, given that this is what I want to pursue in my career! The staff was very helpful in giving us a background on what World Vision is, and how to help people sign up if they were having issues. This service did align with my personal beliefs, which was very encouraging for me to see, given that the entertainment industry is different than it used to be. It was encouraging to see a concert, but in worship style. A conflict that arose during this event was that there were not enough of us to cover the whole venue, so some of us shared some of the sections to make sure every section had a volunteer!

This semester I served by helping residents move into the dorms. Serving as a mover for University of Memphis dorm residents allowed me to develop strong communication and teamwork skills while learning how to stay organized and efficient in a fast-paced environment. Through this experience, I gained a better understanding of the campus community and how important it is to make new students feel welcomed. I worked as part of a team, which made the process smoother and more enjoyable, as we could divide tasks and encourage one another throughout the day. The university provided clear instructions, resources, and guidance, ensuring everything ran safely and efficiently. In the future, I would focus on improving time management by planning ahead for peak move-in hours to make the process even more seamless for residents and volunteers.