Finding similarities in unexpected places

Today I struck up a great conversation with a younger man named Jason. I knew when I saw him walk through the doors of the Father McKenna Center around 7:15am I needed to talk to him. His pleasant smile and genuine wave was so captivating! We talked about his journey through school on a football and track scholarship. He became homeless due to the financial struggles that come along with paying for college. It's crazy to think that his same situation could happen to anyone! However, he was excited to tell me he started his new job as a waiter at Denny's yesterday!! I told him how proud of him I was for going out and taking a step in the right direction. Throughout the conversation he continued to light up more and more! :) Eventually, we were both surprised to find out we both are involved in Greek Life! He was a member of Omega Psi Phi while in college. It's amazing to find similarities with people who you never thought shared your interests and passions. Today was a great second day filled with memories I will never forget. Our group is getting along so well. The time we have together is always fun, inspiring, and productive. I am anxiously awaiting the three days to come!

-Carly

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Safe Arrival Back in Erie

We have arrived back in Erie! After a week full of encountering new people and reflecting on our experiences at the Father McKenna Center, we have all returned safely to our home base. Thank you for following along with this blog of our trip. The implementation of our knowledge into our daily lives will not be an easy task, but we are well prepared to take it on. We all have learned so much through our experiences this week and are excited to share and show others what respect for human dignity truly means. Homelessness is an extremely complex problem in our country, and we have all struggled to grasp what the best response on our part should be. At the end of this trip, I have come to affirm that complex problems do not have easy solutions, and that solving huge problems like hunger and homelessness involve more than one person or one ABST group. However, the power of one is still strong and present everywhere- we experienced that through meeting amazing and inspiring individuals th...

Day four!

Day at Capitol Hill! Hey Guys! Today we got the honor and the privilege to go to Capitol Hill to meet with Representative Mike Kelly. He is the representative in Erie where Gannon is. We were able to tell him our experiences so far this week and the stories we have heard. We advocated for policies to help the homeless both here in DC and back home in Erie. He was able to tell us his feelings towards homelessness and poverty and his possible solutions to the issue. We would like to thank Rep. Kelly and his office for giving us the opportunity to talk to us during his busy schedule. We then got an amazing tour of the Capitol building. After that, we all walked to get lunch at District Taco and reflect on our time in the Capitol building. Then we walked to The White House to take a picture with the Gannon flag. After the picture, we all split up and went to different Museums. Being able to enjoy the amazing weather in the nation’s Capitol was a great way to relax during this busy...

We arrived safely!

Arrival in D.C. Today, we left Gannon at 12:00pm to head for D.C! After a long ride, we arrived safely at Holy Redeemer around 7:30pm and got settled in. Tomorrow we will be working at the Father Mckenna Center serving food to the homeless shelter. -Ellen

Gannon ABST Washington, DC

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