I had an absolute blast participating in our domestic violence service work down in Knoxville with my lovely ASB ladies, and I really thought that such an amazing experience could never be duplicated. But after today, I've realized how wrong I was.
It began with a few of us meeting in Hornbake Plaza at the University of Maryland. We had one box of chalk, some facts and figures, and a vision in our heads. Soon Shahana, Abbey, Nicole, Lisa, and I set to work transforming the circle into a colorful monument to domestic violence victims by educating passersby on various statistics related to such abuse.
After a few more of our group joined in, mainly, Jackie, Mary, Sydney, Mia, and Amber, we headed down to McKeldin mall where we continued to write statistics and shocking messages along the sidewalk. Many people were taking interest and it felt unbelievable to capture their attention with a message and topic that desperately needs more awareness.
The main reason as to why this was such a meaningful activity was because it mirrored the service we all performed down in Knoxville. We had chalked in Market Square two days of our visit and had a great time getting to know each other while helping other people to get to know our cause. And today, while other people still got to know our cause, we got to reconnect and reestablish ourselves in each others' lives.
I never thought what we achieved in Knoxville could be repeated, but if all of us continue meeting and dedicating ourselves to the cause and each other, there's nothing we can't do.
UMD Alternative Spring Break in Knoxville, TN bringing awareness to domestic violence.
