Melissa McLamb
Mission Year + Melissa = ?
verbalized — What’s the reason for Melissa’s involvement with missionyear?
Answer – Love.
I want to be challenged to love fully and love well. To love God, and to love the people that He has created, is really all that matters. I know I can’t do that on my own, and I need others to help me along the way. We all need community, eh? I’ve met people who have joined in with MissionYear in their ministry and I’ve seen and heard of the good fruit that has come from God’s work in their time serving in the city. I believe that the only thing that has the power to save is the love of God and I am so excited about living and serving with others who acknowledge the power of God’s love and are willing to share what they have freely been given.
Jesus took time to sit with, listen to, share meals with, celebrate with and walk with people all out of His great love for them. As followers of Christ, we are to imitate and be like Him. Wherever we are, whoever we find ourselves with — our duty is to love, to love as we have been loved. MissionYear recognizes the simple Way of Christ and challenges people to live love everyday. And that is something that I want to be a part of.
Being a participant of MissionYear’s program is not something that I have written down on some sort of imaginary check off to-do list before I die so that I will have lived a full life. I don’t believe that I have to do MissionYear. But as I have decided to join in on the bandwagon with these love-‘gurus’, I trust that Jesus will hold to his promise to be with me and teach me along the way.
just as life, this next year won’t be an easy journey…but can i expect anything less than growing pains?
About Mission Year
Mission Year is a year long urban ministry program focused on Christian service and discipleship. We take teams of young people, place them in an area of need, and help them to serve people and create community. We are committed to the command of Jesus to “love God and love people,” by placing the needs of our neighbors first and developing committed disciples of Christ with a heart for the poor. Learn more about our first year program…
Melissa McLamb's Blog
Orr High Turnaround. and personal update. / Feb 28, 05:05 PM
i just sat down after organizing a smorgasborg of things all over the place in this art room.
the disorderliness of this room feels too much like my insides.
things were wild today.
and have been lately…the students, the administration everyone is distracted and upset. most teachers are disgusted.
Orr High School has been chosen to undergo a turnaround project. The CPS board voted 5-0 yesterday on the go ahead despite the arguments of the public.
this turnaround means that all the teachers will be fired, although they can reapply for a position at the school they are not guaranteed a job.
it’s a big mess.
students are upset because they don’t want their teachers to leave. some teachers have been here for over 15 years and even more so they care deeply about the students here…they have invested in this community and built relationships with the families of the students. it takes time to get to know a person and people. the teachers to be coming into the school are supposedly ‘inexperienced but educated’. the school will be an urban teacher training academy. i don’t really understand it all that well. and there has been little to no communication between the current administration and those coming to take over. it’s frustrating to have such instability forced upon students who so desperately need the relationships developed at school to remain a constant…kids need us to ‘keep showing up’ for them. and i will argue that we need it for ourselves…because we have much to learn from the ones that we seek to educate. but the ‘us’ here is being ripped away from the students. the ‘us’ that tells them regardless of their G.P.A, troubles from which they come, and any and all negative voices in their lives : “You are important. You are significant. You are made for greatness. You are beautiful. You have greatness within you. You are irreplaceable. What you think and how you feel matters. You are capable. You CAN.”
It is possible that teachers coming in to the school within the next school year can care a great deal about these students. But they do not know them. and they can’t expect to right off the bat.
it’s happening now. the turnaround is already in motion. it’s sad and especially sad considering the voice that has been stripped from the people of this community. although public hearings have been held…a response to their voices was never even considered it seems.
and also you should know that Mayor Daley went to this highschool. and this is a big project for him before he leaves office. and also he elects and chooses those who sit on the board today. would the board even consider going against the demands of the mayor?
this isn’t right.
but hey, think for yourselves.
through the media:
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http://abclocal.go.com/wls/storysection=news/local&id=5911719
(STREAM THE NEWS CLIPS* near the announcing of the turnaround)
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http://www.chicagopublicradio.org/Content.aspx
audioID=18978 (spur gentrification)
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www.ausl-chicago.org (the takeover school)
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=5911719
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=79697
http://www.chicagodefender.com/view.php?I=427
http://www.suntimes.com/news/education/769630,CST-NWS-Gates31.article (the money)
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=5912570 (breakdown of schools)
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=79685 (save our schools)
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on me and how i’ve been:
A couple of weeks after coming back to Chicago from my visit to NC, a good friend of mine, Joseph Batts, shot himself and died.
i had just come home from AWANA that wednesday night and i got the phone call. i didn’t know what to do. i couldn’t do anything. i didn’t believe it. i couldn’t. ‘it’s not real. it’s not real!.’ over and over. ‘it can’t be real’. but it was. it is.
Ashley held me while i cried and rocked back and forth. the sadness just fell like a dark blanket.
I went back to be with his family and mourn.
the shock. the pain. the unanswerable questions. the wailing of his mom…
tragic.
the mourning didn’t end when i returned to Chicago.
i woke up nights in a hot sweat, my face all wet. the emptiness that comes with grieving, with this grieving is one that i can’t explain.
at times i have felt that i am living in two irreconcilable worlds. one is the mission year experience and the other, this great loss and everything else. but i know they all are one. it’s just been difficult to live through and not feel so terribly split.
i didn’t send out a february newsletter.
i don’t know why.
i do know that we need each other.
we desperately need each other.
do we ever really have the ‘right’ things to say and do for each other?
that doesn’t matter.
we just need to be together.
and when everything is NOT okay,
we get through knowing that we have one another.
you’re with me.
i’m with you.
shared weakness. shared powerlessness. shared hurt. shared brokenness. our oneness is made real to us. it’s all we can truly do -is be.
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bittersweet holiday break. / Dec 22, 12:17 AM
I’m leaving Chicago for North Carolina early tomorrow afternoon.
and i’m sad about leaving.
i want to celebrate the holidays in two places.
which is difficult considering this space and time context that we live in. =)
People (neighbors, friends from service sites) have invited us to spend the holidays with them (making sure that we would have family to be with). it’s special…the way we are taken care of.
I’m going to miss the girls of the house. It will be telling of how much time we spend together to be away from them for more than a period of 9 hours…nonetheless 2 whole weeks! oh man. one of the greatest things about this experience has been our house.
the REAL late night talks. the dances. the sharing of stories of our days and memories. the back rubs. the hugs. the ‘i know you’re silly, mixed up and don’t have it altogether but i don’t either’ laughs and prayers.
it’s the safest living space i’ve ever lived in.
tonight we are going out…all of us…downtown.
TO: eat Giordano’s pizza. sing with an African children’s choir at Millenium Park. go ice skating outside. drink German hot chocolate. enjoy one another and CELEBRATE.
then i will pack tomorrow morning before i leave. because that’s the last thing on my ‘To Do’ list. ha
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Today and yesterday have been my last full days before the break at WomanCraft and Excel. and i feel so appreciated. everyone has been overly kind and thoughtful. the days have been a great reminder that it is a joy and a privilege to BE where i am and do what i love. I pray this holiday season will find all of us being reminded of the endless gift that life is—-rejoicing in Love from whom it comes.
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HAPPENINGS... / Dec 11, 02:49 PM
This past Friday at the school, we held an event called the Day of Social Change. It was a professional development day for teachers —-which means a free day for students.
The purpose of the day was to experientially train teachers about service learning, by doing it. And to provide free beneficial resources for those within the community —- encouraging parents and students to come together and promote unity.
So we had different issues that we connected with community partners to create workshops for parents and students from the school and neighborhood. For example – homelessness was an issue and Chicago Coalition for the Homeless partnered with us for the day and two women who have experienced homelessness came in and shared their stories. The reflections of the students who participated were like “I learned that not all people who are homeless do drugs. And that everyone who is homeless didn’t get that way by doing drugs.” And there was a peer mediation workshop where students discussed with teachers and community partners about the negative effects of zero tolerance. Students reflected things like “I learned today that suspending students does not help them it only encourages them to be out on the streets.” And my response is “let the policy makers read this and understand!” Other workshops on Friday were held such as ones about financial literacy, health (AIDS awareness, stress survey, info. on lead poisoning), domestic violence… **And there was a family relationships workshop that was partnered with a local center for family development (I. A.M. A.B.L.E) which Ashley Pharis (a beloved roommate) volunteers with. It was really great to see the need for and benefits of networking and how that transpired. Ashley helped lead the workshop and it was a HUGE success.
From reading the reflections of the students, what impacts me the most is them expressing the “best” part of the day as it being a place and time “when everyone got to express there feelings and not make me feel alone” (in the words of a student). and another “My best part of the day… is the way the speakers let us say what was on my mind.”
One of the greatest things we can do for one another is help to create a space where one feels accepted, free to express their valued opinion and thoughts…where we are free to probe together and share true conversation.
Over 100 students showed up on this day! It was completely optional for them and for participating they received 6.5 service learning hours –accredited to the 40 that is needed to graduate from high school in Chicago. We really pushed for parents to be there and only 3 showed up. The lack of parental involvement is discouraging…but it is also perpetuated by the systemic disconnect between the belief that a student’s home life (environment) has no effect on their education.
One of the teachers commented in a personal written reflection that it was good to spend time with the students outside of the classroom. And also noted that maybe if the classroom were more laid back and free-feeling like the workshop the kids would benefit more from schooling. (Who says a classroom must feel rigid and stiff in order to be appropriate? Kids need to feel safe in a place to be open to learning.)
There was a lot of work put into making the day happen. It was a dream. And it happened. It’s a great big stepping stone in the happenings at the school. There is the dream and push to eventually have a Intergenerational Resource Center at the school. And this will really encourage parents to come and be involved as they find needs of their own met in the same space. We are learning from guardians in the community what they would want out of such a place and how they would like to see it used. Grants have been written and the school has been chosen as a strong contender.
The Day of Social Change was a HUGE success in it’s very existence. And I’m thrilled to see students and teachers think together through issues and show a desire to work together in making positive change. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! <— note: EXCITEMENT. =)
(another thought)..In first joining with Excel and taking the position that I have there, I wouldn’t have expected the different things that I’m learning. In my former life, before being at Excel, I would’ve trembled at the thought of presenting at the smallest meeting of older adults that I don’t know. But now I’ve had to collaborate with teachers and keep them informed on happenings with service learning and beg them to participate and get excited about engaging with the students. There have been awkward moments. I’m embracing them and learning from them. I’m learning helpful public speaking skills and the importance of always being myself in spite of my silly ideas of people’s response.
so CELEBRATE.
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Jimi / Nov 15, 03:30 PM
A free domestic violence service, Between Friends, is in class today with the students and as they are watching a film that I’ve seen 3 times today — I’m taking this time to practice my blogging skills.
The video is a look at hip hop culture —it’s American origin and development. it discusses the make up of hip hop culture within the black community and the negative messages that are conveyed going by unnoticed in their normalcy. Interviews with rap artists, hip hop supporters —male and female, black and white—clips, and images of hip hop culture spur much thinking on the issue of the way in which culture can and has desensitized those within it. you should check it out and ignite the dialogue —> Hip Hop: Beyond beats and Rhymes. i recommend this(http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/hiphop/index.htm)
there’s a substitute in the classroom today. His name is Jimi. Raised in Nigeria, supported by his two illiterate parents to go to school and finish his studies —he found a job, worked after secondary schooling and saved money to move to the States to further his education. He now lives in Chicago after raising 6 children in his home country, and supports 4 in college within the states and 2 at home (their move here delayed through the green card process).
Jimi began sharing with me his thoughts about the video that was presented in class today. “Black America is different from my country.” The accepted violence, the disrespect…he hates to see it. [remember this in the context that this conversation is in light of what we have just viewed in the video which focuses on the many controversial issues of hip hop culture]
In Nigeria, the teacher student relationship is one of highest respect. In his experience, his mom worked and worried and worked more just to pay for his schooling — not doing well, not making mother happy was not even an option. Respecting the teacher comes from learning to honor others in his upbringing. His understanding is that as the student shows respect for the teacher, the wisdom that the teacher has will be shared out of respect for the student. This blows me away in just thinking about how much the importance of authority in America’s public school system is emphasized. Students are not encouraged to respect teachers for the wisdom/ knowledge that they are able to share, nonetheless for who they are. Jimi’s understanding of a teacher-student relationship is more of one that is giving and receiving on both ends.
Jimi says the heritage of his people is “charity begins in the home.” He told me that 1 in 100 black families in the States are undivorced. His perspective is that children get educated in the home. The home is where the children learn first. I’m thinking, well we can’t expect respect from children if they haven’t received it themselves and been taught to honor others. And that isn’t the fault of the kids. But what do you do? Jimi says the negativity has to change but the people have to want it.
I wanted him to share what he thought about the difference between the appreciation for educational opportunity and education in general in his home country and the misuse of education here in the states. so i asked. He mentioned the government and the way that it supports and encourages the unjust system that makes up Americas’ public schools. As I listened, he continued to share his beliefs on the importance of family. The apathy of children towards education is one that has been taught and fostered to them through their own community. He gave this example: He ‘has education’ and children. having education to give he wants what he has received and even more for his children, believing that to be best for them. if he has no education then his children have no education…he cannot give it to them.
I believe that learning happens in the home. and it makes sense that it begins there.
thinking mode:
What are the effects of a child growing up without nurturing parent(s) or caretakers. What are the values instilled, if any, in their environment? When you have whole communities made up of broken families, what are the opportunities for the children? What are some prevalent understandings of who they are, the importance of others, of life? Are they their own responsibility? Must they always remain a product of their forced environment?
‘it takes a whole village to raise a child’
have you ever heard that?
in the understanding of that saying, it is the responsibility of the whole community to care for and nurture the children and their environment.
now those thoughts collide with the low-income black communities that i find myself living in and concerned for now.
it’s a different culture. and I’m having to do research and learn. i feel that it’s my responsibility.
thanks for reading.
call me and e-mail me.
I have stories.
and I’d like to hear yours.
november the 13th / Nov 14, 12:52 PM
LOOK! a chance to blog! What a strange and rare opportunity. i must make the most of it.
there will be no apologies for lack of consistency with this friends. i will update as i can.
just enjoy.
thanks.
for those of you who haven’t been receiving the good ol’ newsletters… i’m volunteering at WomanCraft (a social enterprise that works to break the cycle of homelessness among women) and with Jeanne Walker, an art teacher at a chicago public high school (Excel Academy). to know more—visit these websites : www.womancraft.net * http://www.excel.cps.k12.il.us/
and e-mail me.
free ride:
I thought that it would be nice to have a bike to ride while in the city. The first few weeks here, i toyed with the idea of buying a used bike with my stipend money. Not knowing at the time where i was to be coming and going from on a regular basis, i didn’t see it as a desperate need and decided to not buy one.
the next week Sam, my friend and housemate, brought one home to me. The shelter that she volunteers at was going to toss this completely good and usable bike — a man had left it at the shelter and it had been there for over 3 weeks.
so i got a free bike.
it is 80’s style. the base color is white and there are teal and pink splash marks on the side. and it also has a permanent bike lock on the stem of the ‘bike neck’...permanent because i don’t have the key.
i’ve been riding it for about 2 months now. but i was just thinking yesterday on my way home from womencraft what an unexpected and useful gift it has been to me. it takes me to and from everyday now.
i’m thankful for her.
she needs a name.
Vivian…
her name is Vivian.
