Alex Friedman Blog Post 1

Hi, I am Alex Friedman!  I'm a rising senior psychology major and education minor, hoping to go into the field of social work/counseling with a concentration in Autism Spectrum Disorder.  With the first week of summer service coming to an end, I feel excited for all the opportunities to come and motivated to make a positive impact in the Memphis community.  I will be spending my summer at the Exceptional Foundation West Tennessee.  The EFWT is dedicated to enriching lives of those with intellectual disabilities and developmental challenges by providing social, educational, and recreational activities.  The organization is open from 7:30 to 6:30 daily, and offers participants the full day option, morning, or evening hours.  Most of the participants are over the age of 21, so they no longer qualify for government funded education or camp activities.  As a team of fifteen staff members, we will take the participants on daily field trips to places such as the pool, bowling alley, Starbucks, markets, and a variety of others.  The EFWT really strives to provide the participants with “normal” and “typical” activities that are age appropriate.  

I chose the Exceptional Foundation because I felt strongly that the organization fits well into the field of work I feel passionate about.  The past three summers in St. Louis, I have worked at day camps for children with Down Syndrome and children on the Austism Spectrum.  The camps served the ages of 5 to 18; the exceptional foundation is very unique in that it opens its doors to the adult population, as well.  Not only the age differences, but also, working in the Memphis community will provide me with many new perspectives and techniques while working with a different demographic group. 

I am very eager to start the summer camp program, June 8^th.  My first week on the site was dedicated to staff training and information sessions. It was really unique because the organization treated it more like a conference; we had different informative speakers each day that were really interesting.  For example, Jill Samuels came and spoke to us about group engagement, and a professor from the U of M discussed disability perspective.  I felt that the week of training has successfully prepared me for the upcoming week, and I’m excited to see what is in store. 

From my observations so far, the EFWT team embodies the idea of service that we discussed our first day together.  It’s very evident that both the staff and the participants are bettering each other, while bringing happiness and energy.  Personally, I think intentionality, purpose, and awareness are crucial in service.  There is a tremendous difference between thinking about doing something, talking about it, doing it mindlessly, and totally devoting yourself to completing the task with a  strong purpose.  My goal for the summer is to embrace the challenges presented and give my best effort to this experience by making personal connections with the participants, being willing to do any type of work needed, and being dedicated to the purpose of the EFWT. I have big expectations  for the summer, but from what I have experienced so far, I think I will achieve that and more.  Between the Rhodes Summer Service team and the staff at the EFWT, I am excited to be surrounded by so many people that are passionate about their field of work.  For right now, I’m ready for the first week of the summer camp program to start so I can meet all of the participants!