学生们用春假创造改变

一群St。. 竞技宝app下载安装 students returned from spring break empowered with the knowledge of the change they can create in the world 和 the ways the world must change, 太.

“我们挑选了40多个,000磅的密西西比河垃圾，有时, 我觉得我所做的还不够,SAU大四学生凯特琳·麦克说.

她, 小佩拉·埃尔南德斯, 大二学生艾米丽·肯尼, 大四学生洛根·诺克罗斯, 大三学生阿米莉亚·塞特在孟菲斯度春假, 清理密西西比河的水域和河岸. 他们加入了来自美国各地的70名大学生.S. 在一周的服务中，与“生机之地”的船员并肩工作 & 水域.

他们, 还有音乐和礼拜仪式总监, 克里斯托弗·克洛, 3月11日至14日期间，他一直穿着救生衣, 厚厚的运动衫和牛仔裤, 及膝长靴和手套. 他们在渔船上工作，在潮湿的环境中跋涉, 把泥泞的海岸挖出来，捡起人们不小心扔到一边的垃圾.

"My eyes have really been opened to the tragic amount of pollution we are willingly or ignorantly tossing into nature,艾米丽说. “自从在密西西比河上的第一天起，我就改变了我的习惯."

校园部 和 竞技宝app下载安装和平与正义 offered three spring break service trips this year, 和 each was an immersive experience. 学生, 以及担任小组领导的教职员工, 与生活在这个世界上的人并肩服务和影响这个世界.

除了孟菲斯之旅，五名学生和牧师. Thom Hennen spent the week in Wilmington, North Carolina, working with Community Collaborations Inc. 他们帮助受佛罗伦萨飓风影响的居民更换地板, 清理被水淹的房屋, 并为栖息地恢复整理捐款.

Two students 和 Director of Faith Formation Tammy Norcross-Reitzler spent the week at Well of Mercy in Chicago, 哪些房屋和帮助待产和新妈妈, 还有他们的孩子. The families who live at the Well receive on-site childcare while the mothers work or attend school. SAU小组帮助照顾孩子, 组织捐款, 已完成的清洁工程, 最重要的是, 与母亲和孩子建立关系.

“今年所有的旅行都很顺利,凯特琳·鲍曼说, 校园部的服务和司法主任. “能够为我们的学生提供这些体验是一种荣幸."

洛根参军是因为他怀念参军. 他高中时经常去传教. “我想再次做出改变. 我想结识新朋友，”他说.

凯特琳说，对她来说，服务是天主教信仰的重要组成部分. “这让我能够回馈上帝和竞技宝app下载，”她说.

"Acquiring skills 和 knowledge are useless unless they are used for the betterment of all,佩拉说. “上大学并获得学位是一项了不起的成就, 但如果工作的唯一目的只是为了赚钱, there is a lack of fulfillment 和 self-actuation that comes from helping others. 你为别人服务，服务也会为你服务。.

艾米丽说，这次经历远远超出了服务的范畴. "There were so many fun adventures we had while at work 和 relaxing during our evenings off. We tried topping each other's odd finds 和 built friendships, 字面上的, based on trash,她说.

生活的土地 & 水域 is a nonprofit established in 1998 by Quad Citian Chad Pregracke '03 (HON). 他和船员一年要在驳船上生活和旅行九个月. 他们 host river cleanups, watershed conservation initiatives, workshops, tree plantings 和 more.

在过去的20年里，生活之地 & 沃特斯已经从水道中清除了超过1000万磅的垃圾, 包括密西西比河, 伊利诺伊河和俄亥俄河, 在110的帮助下,106名志愿者.

In June 2002, Pregracke was the recipient of the Jefferson Award for Public Service. 2013年，他被CNN评为“年度英雄”, exactly a decade after receiving an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree from St. 竞技宝app下载安装.

阿米莉亚说是"生机之地"的船员 & 水域 made the work fun 和 let the students know how much they appreciated their time, 努力与服务.

“整个星期, Chad 和 the team would give us a speech on why our hard work makes a difference. 他真的很感谢我们在那里帮助组织. Over the course of the four days, college students collected tens of thous和s of pounds of trash. 对我来说, 这表明团队合作可以实现梦想, 我们可以通过一次捡起一块垃圾来帮助拯救地球,她说.

Amelia was one of two students on the trip who had spent past spring breaks serving with 生活的土地 & 水域. 阿米莉亚在2017年帮助孟菲斯的清理工作, 凯特琳去年在格拉夫顿从事伊利诺伊河的清理工作, 伊利诺斯州.

"I loved last year's trip 和 didn't want to spend my senior year spring break just sitting around or working. 这是艰难的一周, 但是时间过得太快了，以至于你忘记了自己到底有多努力,凯特琳说.

四天之后, 整个小组收集了40个,000磅垃圾, 包括电视机, 生锈的丙烷罐, 废金属, 更多的是来自水和海岸. 

凯特琳找到了一个齐腰高的娃娃.

阿米莉亚找到了很多鞋子，工作人员戏称她为“人字拖”."

艾米丽找到了两杯满杯的百威淡啤和半加仑的牛奶. “我的鼻子不喜欢. I also was surprised about the number of toys we found, some in very good condition,她说.

他们 used shovels to release tires encased in mud 和 pulled trash out of weeds, 包括毒葛.

"A member of the group found a shoe almost completely covered in moss,佩拉说. "It gave a visual indication as to how long it must have been in the environment for the moss to grow like that."

SAU的学生们对他们收集的聚苯乙烯泡沫塑料的数量感到震惊. “到处都是。. 有些是冰箱包装的大块, 还有一些碎成碎片,艾米丽说.

"The team 和 I full-heartily agree to avoid Styrofoam at all costs," Amelia said. “这不仅需要, 字面上的, 它永远不会分解, 但它也对生活在河边的野生动物构成了威胁."

Plastic 和 glass bottles, 和 straws, also made the top of the ‘most collected' list.

"These things take many, many years to degrade,洛根说, "so, they will end up somewhere. Bottles need to be recycled 和 people need to stop using one-time use products."

凯特琳说，他们发现的打火机数量让她感到惊讶. "There were some spots where I could sit 和 pick up five or more without moving. One thing I wish people knew about the trash is that some city drainage systems don't get cleaned before they go into a river. If you throw a bottle in a drain in Memphis, it will go straight into the Mississippi她说.

Every person needs to realize what they consume goes far beyond convenience, Emily said. “如果他们继续使用这些产品, they need to make sure they do their part in disposing of them in the correct manner; recycling or trash. 这些废物不仅在陆地和水中造成混乱, 但它们也污染了水源和动物的栖息地,她补充道.

大风和波涛汹涌的海水造成了生命之陆 & 周四早些时候，沃特斯宣布停止清理工作. After lunch on the barge, the students 和 Clow returned to the marina for the last time.

“不，这还不够，”洛根谈到他们所做的工作时说. “外面还有好几英里的垃圾. 我认为我们需要创造一种新常态. 我们必须教育我们的孩子良好的环保习惯,他说, 加上这次旅行，激发了他改变自己的习惯.

“如果我能停止或减少我使用的一次性产品的数量, it may contribute to a new normal while also helping to minimize waste in the world,洛根说.

"There were times where we would have to ‘choose our battles' 和 leave trash some places so that we could pick up more trash elsewhere,凯特琳说.

“这方面有点令人沮丧, but underst和able - we had to choose between filling multiple trash bags with bottles 和 other medium-sized trash or sit 和 pick up one-inch pieces of Styrofoam for hours. I hope that the work that Chad 和 the crew does can inspire others to help out 和 cut back on pollution,凯特琳补充道.

驳船上的垃圾袋一天比一天多, 肌肉酸痛值得你这么做吗. "But knowing there was still trash out in the river also inspired me to further pursue my own academic work in attempting to find a solution. I am studying to become an environmental engineer to solve issues such as the disposal 和 collection of waste in nature,佩拉说.

“这就是春假来推广生活之地的地方 & “沃特斯的口信，”阿米莉亚说. 经历之后, I am more willing to educate people on what happens if they don't recycle or throw their trash away,她说.

Every person needs to do their part to solve the overwhelming problem, Emily said. “然而, 在这宏大的计划中, 我是大海里的一滴水, 是达到最终目标的垫脚石, 我很自豪地说，我参与了比我自己更大的事情,她说.

“我希望通过我的经历影响更多的人. 我的工作绝对不够, but it made a dent with the goal of making the whole front fender of a vehicle fall off; which we found one on the river!"