Today, I'm recruiting for PULSE on Waynesburg University's campus. I'm so excited to go back with my good friend and current PULSEr Sarah to talk to current students about our experiences thus far with the program.
Waynesburg, smallest town I've ever lived in, is one of my favorite places. I've lived in teeny tiny city/big small town Greensburg, huge city London and small city/giant town Pittsburgh and enjoyed each of them. for different reasons. While I'm discovering that I'm truly a city girl at heart, this little town has a special place in it.
Why do I love Waynesburg? The ridiculous one-way streets? The complete lack of parking. The crazy squirrels? The getting older and in need of some love buildings? The somewhat apathetic student body?
Yes. (Except for that last bit, I tried not to interact with that last bit too often.)
But it's also the football games. And nights spent on the front porch of the house I shared with my friends senior year. And feeling a genuine sense of community for the first time. And wasting time in the caf with a friend instead of going to class. And going to class. And walking across the lawn in front of Miller Hall on my first day on campus to be welcomed into the WU (or, at the time, WC) family. And walking across the lawn in front of Miller Hall on my last day of campus, to receive my diploma.
So, one of this city girl's favorite places is a coal mining town with a population of less than 5,000. Surprise! What's one of your favorite places?
Showing posts with label Waynesburg. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Waynesburg. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
If only I waited two more days...
I could have claimed a solid 5 months of no blogging. But then I realized that would make me a very, very bad blogger. So here goes a blog, LESS than five months after my last post!
A lot has happened in the past five months. They have flown. My sister & her family surprised my mom for Christmas. I can't for the life of me remember what I did in January, but I'm sure I had fun. February was a visit to my sister & a week of watching my niece. In March I turned 23, and my housemates and coworkers all made me feel very loved. Those three months--they went quickly.
April...April, I remember a lot better. My friends got married! Erika and Eric were married on April 9, and it was beautiful. It was such a wonderful chance to catch up with some of my closest friends. I spent the remainder of that weekend in Waynesburg, enjoying the parks and all of the green space on campus. What a beautiful, relaxing day that was.
That Monday, I was honored to be a panelist at the kickoff event for the Waynesburg University Department of Communication's PR Week. I, along with two other young alumni, gave brief presentations and honest, frank answers about being a young person in the field. It was so great to be able to give back to my alma matter in that way. The students, mostly freshmen, were quite engaged and asked excellent questions. Props to those students, and the WU PRSSA chapter, for being such great hosts.
April 15 was a big day for PULSE! We had our annual event, PULSEations, at Union Project. I was blessed enough to have friends, family AND coworkers attend the celebration, where we revealed some pretty big news...PULSE is adding a second house! We are expanding into neighboring Garfield, which will provide such an opportunity to continue our mission of cultivating young servant leaders to transform Pittsburgh. (PS...want to read about us? Check out former PULSEr/current PULSE board member/super cool person/friend Kate Stoltzfus' blog, Yinzpiration! You can even peek into our house!)
May has been exciting thus far. The Pirates, despite their best efforts, were one game over .500! What a glorious 24 hours that was. We're now one below that miracle number, but I bet we'll get there again. If not this year, maybe next. In the first three weeks.
A lot of people have been asking me about next year, and rightfully so. PULSE "graduation" is coming nearer every day. I have some exciting prospects, which I'm not quite ready to share with the world just yet. Know that I'm excited and confident that God is making some cool things happen for me here in the 'Burgh.
Quick story time: when I graduated from high school, my family came from far & wide to celebrate. After my party, a group of us gathered at my grandmother's house to continue celebrating. My cousin Ruth and her daughter Charlotte, both residents of Manhattan, were there. We showed Charlotte a postcard of New York City and asked her what it was. Her response? "My city!". That's how I feel about Pittsburgh, every time I see it.
What is Pittsburgh? It's my city. I've recently come to realize that my passion is this place and the people who live here. I want everyone to love this place as much as I do, and I want to commit my life to making that happen.
So here we are--one blog post down. Promise I won't make you wait 5 months for another.
A lot has happened in the past five months. They have flown. My sister & her family surprised my mom for Christmas. I can't for the life of me remember what I did in January, but I'm sure I had fun. February was a visit to my sister & a week of watching my niece. In March I turned 23, and my housemates and coworkers all made me feel very loved. Those three months--they went quickly.
April...April, I remember a lot better. My friends got married! Erika and Eric were married on April 9, and it was beautiful. It was such a wonderful chance to catch up with some of my closest friends. I spent the remainder of that weekend in Waynesburg, enjoying the parks and all of the green space on campus. What a beautiful, relaxing day that was.
That Monday, I was honored to be a panelist at the kickoff event for the Waynesburg University Department of Communication's PR Week. I, along with two other young alumni, gave brief presentations and honest, frank answers about being a young person in the field. It was so great to be able to give back to my alma matter in that way. The students, mostly freshmen, were quite engaged and asked excellent questions. Props to those students, and the WU PRSSA chapter, for being such great hosts.
April 15 was a big day for PULSE! We had our annual event, PULSEations, at Union Project. I was blessed enough to have friends, family AND coworkers attend the celebration, where we revealed some pretty big news...PULSE is adding a second house! We are expanding into neighboring Garfield, which will provide such an opportunity to continue our mission of cultivating young servant leaders to transform Pittsburgh. (PS...want to read about us? Check out former PULSEr/current PULSE board member/super cool person/friend Kate Stoltzfus' blog, Yinzpiration! You can even peek into our house!)
May has been exciting thus far. The Pirates, despite their best efforts, were one game over .500! What a glorious 24 hours that was. We're now one below that miracle number, but I bet we'll get there again. If not this year, maybe next. In the first three weeks.
A lot of people have been asking me about next year, and rightfully so. PULSE "graduation" is coming nearer every day. I have some exciting prospects, which I'm not quite ready to share with the world just yet. Know that I'm excited and confident that God is making some cool things happen for me here in the 'Burgh.
Quick story time: when I graduated from high school, my family came from far & wide to celebrate. After my party, a group of us gathered at my grandmother's house to continue celebrating. My cousin Ruth and her daughter Charlotte, both residents of Manhattan, were there. We showed Charlotte a postcard of New York City and asked her what it was. Her response? "My city!". That's how I feel about Pittsburgh, every time I see it.
What is Pittsburgh? It's my city. I've recently come to realize that my passion is this place and the people who live here. I want everyone to love this place as much as I do, and I want to commit my life to making that happen.
So here we are--one blog post down. Promise I won't make you wait 5 months for another.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Summing up a month in a blog post.
It's been awhile. A month and nine days, to be exact.
So, what have I done? That's a good question. The answer is, a lot. I've gotten more put on my plate at work. Not so much that I can't handle it, but there are definitely always things to be done. I don't really get "bored" at the office and if I do, it's because I'm procrastinating....which clues me in that I need to get back to my ever-evolving "to-do" list.
Things at the house are going well. We're still eating together four nights a week and cooking in pairs. It's so wonderful to serve each other like that; it really brings us together, I think. It ensures that we spend a solid amount of time together each week. Some people don't make it to every meal, but in general we eat as a family. Even when we don't all cook for each other, we tend to eat around the same times and pull up a spot around our (tiny) kitchen table.
My favorite new tradition (is that a contradiction?) in our house is popcorn Sundays. Every Sunday evening around 7, most of us gather 'round the same tiny kitchen table for popcorn and chit chat. I come home after church to the smell of popcorn (not microwave...the real thing) and the sounds of everyone laughing and talking. It's a good thing.
Seminars have been interesting. It's hard to remember what all we've done over the past 6 weeks since I last blogged but I'll try to recap. We visited the food bank one week and I got to see Waynesburg's former Bonner coordinator, Brian. It was good to see him, and to pack boxes at the food bank. We also went to the Pittsburgh Project and learned all about what they do. I'd never been into the classrooms before so it was great to see what they used to look like, and how they've changed. We also got to see the farm, which I helped to dig last November. It was great to see something (even just ground cover) growing where we had spent so much time digging in the chilly rain.
We had retreat in October! Unfortunately, it was the same weekend as Waynesburg's Homecoming game. I wish I'd been at the game to see everyone, but it was a good weekend nonetheless. I'm pretty hesitant about retreats because I always feel like they aren't really retreats--they're usually pretty time-consuming and more exhausting than a typical weekend at home. This retreat, thankfully, was different. We had plenty of time to just relax and hang out, which was great. We went to Ohio Pyle for a few hours; it was great to see everything during the fall with the beautiful colors. This fall isn't the best for the leaves but they were still pretty.
I've spent a lot of time lately reflecting--reflecting on what I do every day, how I react, etc. It's helping me to determine what I do and don't want to do in the future. For example, I like to have lists. When directions are vague, I feel less motivated to get a project done. I've been trying to take note of my feelings and reactions to different situations, in hopes that these observations will lead me towards a clearer path. Even knowing the field I'd like to pursue would be a big step for me right now!
Our house had a late "housewarming" party on Saturday night. It was so great to see my Waynesburg friends that have stayed around Pittsburgh. I love my housemates, but it's so nice to see a really familiar face sometimes. I think I'm so blessed to have two worlds colliding like I do; I get to experience the newness of the city and our relationships with my housemates but can experience the familiarity and ease of my friendships with my WU friends on a pretty regular basis.
I'm getting pretty tired and remembering is becoming even more difficult...but I am still enjoying myself here in Pittsburgh. Your prayers and support mean so much to me and my housemates as we continue to serve the Lord in the City of Champions!
p.s. I'm trying to convert the girls into Pittsburgh fans...so far, I have one Pens fan (unfortunately, she's also a Browns fan!). A few of them are happy when the Steelers win, but just for me. I'll win them over, yet.
So, what have I done? That's a good question. The answer is, a lot. I've gotten more put on my plate at work. Not so much that I can't handle it, but there are definitely always things to be done. I don't really get "bored" at the office and if I do, it's because I'm procrastinating....which clues me in that I need to get back to my ever-evolving "to-do" list.
Things at the house are going well. We're still eating together four nights a week and cooking in pairs. It's so wonderful to serve each other like that; it really brings us together, I think. It ensures that we spend a solid amount of time together each week. Some people don't make it to every meal, but in general we eat as a family. Even when we don't all cook for each other, we tend to eat around the same times and pull up a spot around our (tiny) kitchen table.
My favorite new tradition (is that a contradiction?) in our house is popcorn Sundays. Every Sunday evening around 7, most of us gather 'round the same tiny kitchen table for popcorn and chit chat. I come home after church to the smell of popcorn (not microwave...the real thing) and the sounds of everyone laughing and talking. It's a good thing.
Seminars have been interesting. It's hard to remember what all we've done over the past 6 weeks since I last blogged but I'll try to recap. We visited the food bank one week and I got to see Waynesburg's former Bonner coordinator, Brian. It was good to see him, and to pack boxes at the food bank. We also went to the Pittsburgh Project and learned all about what they do. I'd never been into the classrooms before so it was great to see what they used to look like, and how they've changed. We also got to see the farm, which I helped to dig last November. It was great to see something (even just ground cover) growing where we had spent so much time digging in the chilly rain.
We had retreat in October! Unfortunately, it was the same weekend as Waynesburg's Homecoming game. I wish I'd been at the game to see everyone, but it was a good weekend nonetheless. I'm pretty hesitant about retreats because I always feel like they aren't really retreats--they're usually pretty time-consuming and more exhausting than a typical weekend at home. This retreat, thankfully, was different. We had plenty of time to just relax and hang out, which was great. We went to Ohio Pyle for a few hours; it was great to see everything during the fall with the beautiful colors. This fall isn't the best for the leaves but they were still pretty.
I've spent a lot of time lately reflecting--reflecting on what I do every day, how I react, etc. It's helping me to determine what I do and don't want to do in the future. For example, I like to have lists. When directions are vague, I feel less motivated to get a project done. I've been trying to take note of my feelings and reactions to different situations, in hopes that these observations will lead me towards a clearer path. Even knowing the field I'd like to pursue would be a big step for me right now!
Our house had a late "housewarming" party on Saturday night. It was so great to see my Waynesburg friends that have stayed around Pittsburgh. I love my housemates, but it's so nice to see a really familiar face sometimes. I think I'm so blessed to have two worlds colliding like I do; I get to experience the newness of the city and our relationships with my housemates but can experience the familiarity and ease of my friendships with my WU friends on a pretty regular basis.
I'm getting pretty tired and remembering is becoming even more difficult...but I am still enjoying myself here in Pittsburgh. Your prayers and support mean so much to me and my housemates as we continue to serve the Lord in the City of Champions!
p.s. I'm trying to convert the girls into Pittsburgh fans...so far, I have one Pens fan (unfortunately, she's also a Browns fan!). A few of them are happy when the Steelers win, but just for me. I'll win them over, yet.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Dear Mother Nature,
From here on out, I am respectfully asking that you halt the rain between the hours of 8 and 9 a.m. and 5 and 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. Thanks.
Walking to work in the rain today was somewhat of a miserable experience. I had my umbrella and--of course--my Waynesburg rain jacket, but neither of those protected my legs. I was soaked from my feet up to my knees. I was trying really hard to be positive about the mile walk (that usually seems quite quick) but it, in a word, sucked. Hard. Luckily, the morning was not an omen to the day.
I have felt quite accomplished lately. Things are moving forward with the website overhaul, and I'm beginning to handle things with that on my own. I still need my supervisors, but I'm slowly taking the project on as my own.
I'm also slowly getting the rest of my projects under my control. I'm intimidated by the scope of the things I have to accomplish, but also grateful for the challenge and the opportunity to expand my skills. It's certainly not all daisies and roses. I still have to psych myself up to make phone calls and get nervous when I hear the phone ring, because it might be for me. But it's all about baby steps, people. Okay, maybe most of my job is about giant steps similar to Hagrid's brother Grawp, but some things deserve to be baby steps, just to balance everything out.
This weekend was all about Waynesburg! Friday night, John and Brett came up to visit and we ended up meeting up with Jillian and Jen (who I hadn't seen since she got married over a year ago!). Saturday, I had to talk to some first-year Pitt students about East Lib and all that ELDI has done in the past 10 years with all of our various partners. Then I went with Jillian and Jen to Natalie's housewarming party in Sewickley, where I got to see many more WU grads. It was also nice to meet some people who are outside of the East End. Not that I don't love having friends here, but I like expanding my circle as well. Jen, Aaron and Jillian all joined me for church on Sunday evening as well. So did Brett Probert! Hopefully, we'll see each other again in the next 6 years.
We went to the great race! My wonderful housemate, Laura, placed 11th out of all the women in the 10K. Eleventh over all! She's an amazing runner, and I can't wait to watch her run again. After her race, we went to Pamela's. SUCH an excellent decision, despite our 45-minute wait. Once we were there, our food came quite quickly. Mmmmm. Sunday was a big day for a few other reasons--our housemate Beth got engaged, and Alicia found out that she's going to be an aunt! So a good day all around.
I can't believe we're on our 5th week already, and the 4th at our placements. It doesn't seem like much now, but we're one month down. Only ten to go! How did that happen? Thanks so much for all of your support thus far; your prayers are much appreciated! Continue to pray for us as we battle cases of the Mondays, making it through hump day Wednesdays, and enjoy the relief that comes with Friday. =)
Walking to work in the rain today was somewhat of a miserable experience. I had my umbrella and--of course--my Waynesburg rain jacket, but neither of those protected my legs. I was soaked from my feet up to my knees. I was trying really hard to be positive about the mile walk (that usually seems quite quick) but it, in a word, sucked. Hard. Luckily, the morning was not an omen to the day.
I have felt quite accomplished lately. Things are moving forward with the website overhaul, and I'm beginning to handle things with that on my own. I still need my supervisors, but I'm slowly taking the project on as my own.
I'm also slowly getting the rest of my projects under my control. I'm intimidated by the scope of the things I have to accomplish, but also grateful for the challenge and the opportunity to expand my skills. It's certainly not all daisies and roses. I still have to psych myself up to make phone calls and get nervous when I hear the phone ring, because it might be for me. But it's all about baby steps, people. Okay, maybe most of my job is about giant steps similar to Hagrid's brother Grawp, but some things deserve to be baby steps, just to balance everything out.
This weekend was all about Waynesburg! Friday night, John and Brett came up to visit and we ended up meeting up with Jillian and Jen (who I hadn't seen since she got married over a year ago!). Saturday, I had to talk to some first-year Pitt students about East Lib and all that ELDI has done in the past 10 years with all of our various partners. Then I went with Jillian and Jen to Natalie's housewarming party in Sewickley, where I got to see many more WU grads. It was also nice to meet some people who are outside of the East End. Not that I don't love having friends here, but I like expanding my circle as well. Jen, Aaron and Jillian all joined me for church on Sunday evening as well. So did Brett Probert! Hopefully, we'll see each other again in the next 6 years.
We went to the great race! My wonderful housemate, Laura, placed 11th out of all the women in the 10K. Eleventh over all! She's an amazing runner, and I can't wait to watch her run again. After her race, we went to Pamela's. SUCH an excellent decision, despite our 45-minute wait. Once we were there, our food came quite quickly. Mmmmm. Sunday was a big day for a few other reasons--our housemate Beth got engaged, and Alicia found out that she's going to be an aunt! So a good day all around.
I can't believe we're on our 5th week already, and the 4th at our placements. It doesn't seem like much now, but we're one month down. Only ten to go! How did that happen? Thanks so much for all of your support thus far; your prayers are much appreciated! Continue to pray for us as we battle cases of the Mondays, making it through hump day Wednesdays, and enjoy the relief that comes with Friday. =)
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