Participation in SUNY Cortland's
NYPIRG
New York Public Interest Research Group
When asked, in the beginning of the semester, to participate
in a political function, I did not even know where to begin. I kept
trying to think of all sorts of volunteer activities I was already involved
in, but none seemed to fit the criteria of a political function.
So, though I dreaded it, I was forced to go to a meeting on campus for
NYPIRG-New
York Public Interest Research Group.
For my two years here, all I could see were the "Nypirgians"
harassing me to register to vote on campus. I did not want to become
one of those people I harshly ignored and laughed at. There had to
be a way around this assignment. So...
I attended the first meeting of the semester, and I was
a little uncomfortable actually. Now, it takes quite a bit to make
me feel uncomfortable, but I was feeling out of place. Everyone here
seemed to really push for what they believed, and they wanted everyone
to believe the same as them. A bit radical you might say! But,
I stuck with it and listened to what everyone had to say.
Immediately, after looking through the agenda, I found
something I was interested in. Oh no, I was interested in a part
of NYPIRG! It was the Hunger/Homeless
Coalition. Their efforts to help fight hunger and homelessness in
Cortland sparked my interest. I had always wanted to volunteer at
a soup kitchen, and that was one of the opportunities listed in their agenda.
Great, I could participate in a political function and volunteer in the
community at the same time! This was too good to be true!
So, I went and spoke to the girl in charge of the Hunger/Homeless
Coalition. I expressed an interest and she informed me of the meeting
times and places. The meetings were held every Tuesday at 6pm, in
the NYPIRG office. Okay, I thought.
This will be a piece of cake.
As I attended my first meeting, I noticed, when the people
in NYPIRG feel strongly about something
they make it known. A little more known than I am used to, but hey,
it is what they like. So, I pretty much took notes and soaked in
what the meeting was really about. We mostly talked about the upcoming
events of the semester, and how we wanted to go about planning them.
I pretty much moved the meeting along with random comments
to get everyone back on track. I really wanted to get out of there,
because I got the feeling they were the kind of people who would not mind
being there all night. I was not all about that, but I actually did
want to help out in the upcoming events.
So, I attended the meetings after that, learning a little
more about other branched of NYPIRG.
There was a big NYPIRG
conference held at Cortland a couple of weeks ago, that I learned a lot
about. Actually, they tried getting me to come to it, but I did not
feel I was interested enough to devote my entire weekend to this organization.
I felt I was doing my part by planning the Trick-or-Eat. And so I
did. I continued planning the event, making a banner to advertise,
I announced the event to my classes and clubs I belong to, and I recruited
outside volunteers. I also tabled outside of Corey Union, to help
get volunteers. I was not assertive enough to actually walk up to
people and explain to them what I was doing, but I recruited some volunteers.
Maybe they just felt sorry for me siting there, but at any rate, I got
quite a few people to help out.
I learned the importance of tabling, and even though
it seems many people walk right by, many people actually do hear what you
are saying.
I also had to call people who said they would volunteer
and remind them about the event the night before. I was really nervous
to do this, because I prefer to confront people in person, but it was not
too bad. Most people remembered they had signed up and were really
looking forward to participating in the Trick-or-Eat.
So, I guess you could say, I participated in a political
event, but I also helped organize one as well. And I must say, this
was a great experience for me. My plan did not go as I had thought
it would, participating in NYPIRG and
volunteering at the soup kitchen, but I think that is a good thing.
I initially set out to volunteer at the soup kitchen,
but I was turned away.
How a person can be turned away from volunteering I am
not sure, but I was. I had the opportunity to volunteer there twice,
which opened my eyes up to a lot, but that was all I was needed for.
The first time I went to the soup kitchen, I bagged cookies
for 15 minutes, and then there was nothing left for me to do. I was
extremely disappointed, I was hoping I would be able to work with the people
a little bit. I left upset, but I decided not to give up, I really
wanted to help out. So, I went again. The second time I volunteered
here, I bagged cookies for the next days lunches, and then I was able to
help serve and clear tables. However, before that, I was asked to
clean the pews in the sanctuary. As I went in, I noticed people sleeping
in the pews. I was not prepared for that at all. I realized
people were hungry, but to think of people sleeping in the pews I was cleaning,
totally opened my eyes up to reality.
I cleaned the pews, then served dinner to the people
I saw sleeping. I kept wondering why these people were hungry, why
they were homeless. I actually thought about how I was complaining
of the dorm and college food to my friends the night before, and I immediately
felt guilty. How could things be so rough for people, it just was
not fair.
However, the people there were really friendly.
Some of the people were there just for the company, and others were there
because they had no choice. I sat down with some people and ate the
food they offered me. It was not very good, but to them it was a
feast! I talked to some of the people, and listened to them. For
some, that was the most attention they had had in a while. I played
with the children there, and I talked to the adults. I helped in
the kitchen, and then I left.
There were many volunteers there, like most every day,
so I felt a true volunteer opportunity could not be satisfied there, but
I am glad I did it. Besides, I was helping to plan the Trick-or-Eat,
so my time was really spent there.
So, actually, my political function and volunteer function
were found through each other, but
the opportunity i had in the soup kitchen was a real
eye opener. I am glad i had the chance to do this first, because
i knew exactly who my food was going to help when i did the Trick-or-Eat.
Through my participation in a political function, I saw
plenty of opportunity for community service. The experience above, though
not my main volunteer project, was actually what I had planned to do.
But, through my involvement in NYPIRG,
I found there were other ways to get involved in the community, even if
I was not directly dealing with the people in need.
Overall, my political experience with NYPIRG
was
not too bad. They do try and get you to help out with everything,
which I am not doing, but they do stand for a good cause. It is good
they get their opinions heard, because they represent us students, but
I am not that opinionated, well, vocal with my opinions!! However, I was
asked to run the Hunger/Homeless meeting this Tuesday. We will see
how this goes!
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