Blob Tag, Peeps, & General Group Cohesion

As Mary described in the previous post, today we focused on issue education at the Domestic Violence Forum hosted by the Blount County Sheriff's Office. It was an intense experience to say the least, and affected all of us at many different levels. It's no wonder we spent nearly two hours in discussion after dinner-- there was A LOT to reflect on.

To lighten things up, I thought it would be fun to post a few of the random pics that made it to my camera this week:

Reenergized after Blob Tag

Cupcake Decorating with PEEPS!

Post-Zumba with our instructor, Becky!

Playing Apples to Apples

Practicing our group problem solving skills

 "Bedpan Banjo" at the Museum of Appalachia

The infamous "Chicken Man" (as seen on the Tonight Show!) performing as Willie Nelson

Focusing on the legal side of the issue...

   Today we were part of a Domestic Violence Forum hosted by the Blount County Sheriff's Office. We heard about many different issues and experienced many different emotions. The forum began with a delicious breakfast and an introduction by Blount Memorial Hospital Director of Senior Services, Ed Harper. Following his intro we discussed the issue of privacy among social networking sites and social media and were provided tips about how to avoid putting ourselves in vulnerable situations. We then heard the law enforcement and patrol perspective of the domestic violence issue from Sgt. Keith Fletcher of the Alcoa Police Department. It was interesting to hear the challenges and viewpoints from the person called to intervene during a domestic dispute. After hearing from Sgt. Fletcher we took a break from the speakers and headed down to the court room to observe some court cases pertaining to Domestic Violence and Orders of Protection. 

     As we filed into the court room is was more empty than I expected. Shortly after we sat down they brought up the first case. Over the course of about five cases we saw a variety of domestic violence dynamics. This included a wife with an Order of Protection against her husband, a husband with an Order of Protection against his wife, and a young male inmate who had violated his Order of Protection against his younger girlfriend. It was very interesting to hear and see all the different scenarios because it helped many of us expand our perception on the people involved with  Domestic Violence. After watching a few of these cases we headed back upstairs to complete the rest of the forum and eat lunch!

    Lunch was delicious! We walked back into a room with tables filled with grilled tuna, grilled chicken, salad, pasta, rolls, fruits, veggies, and cookies. There was quite a spread and we all really enjoyed it. As we ate our lunch the judge whose court we had just been in came up to speak with us and answer any questions we had. Judge Robert Headrick was the highlight of the day for many of us! He was extremely welcoming and appreciative of our group being in town. He was eager to provide us with a deeper insight into what he does. After a great discussion he headed back downstairs to proceed with his docket and we continued on with our forum. The rest of the forum became filled with alot of heavy and emotional material. We saw images of victims who had been killed by their partner as well as alot of images of the terrible injuries that some victims have suffered. It was disturbing yet opened our eyes to the reality of it all. We also discussed elder abuse and heard a Deputy's story and her personal connection to the issue of Domestic Violence. Upon the conclusion of this forum we were given a tour of the Blount County Jail. Through this tour we saw the entire inside of the jail and learned how the jail operated and the lifestyle of the inmates in the jail.  Again, this was an extremely emotional and eye-opening experience.  After the tour we headed back to the cars and back to the church.

   When we got back to the church alot of people needed a little break from the day. We had some free time to relax and nap before it was time for dinner and reflection. After our break we headed downstairs and ate dinner. As we ate we reflected upon the day and shared our "highs" and "lows". It was great to release our feelings and emotions from the day with each other and it brought us even closer! After over an hour of reflection we cleaned up and headed back upstairs. Everyone began winding down and getting things ready for tomorrow! Overall, today was an emotionally and mentally challenging day but one that provided alot of us with an experience that we will take with us for the rest of our lives! I cannot believe tomorrow is our last day! This week has gone by too fast but I am excited to see what tomorrow holds in store for us!

Encouraging Discouragement

Today, we headed to Market Square in downtown Knoxville to resurrect our messages of chalk the rain washed away from Monday. As much as I dislike chalking, I did love watching a handful of the girls display their artistic abilities through the colorful dust. A couple of us were also successful with spreading information on services offer to the community through the YWCA, unfortunately I wasn't a part of this group either but I learned a lot from watching them!

We were encouraged to watch passersby reading the many facts on domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking offered to us by the YWCA. It is definitely an effective and attractive way to inform the Knoxville community on a relevant issue that is often pushed under the rug.



For the afternoon event, we headed to the YWCA branch that houses the after school program for middle school students. We spent quality time creating an effective skit for them focusing on sexting, respecting authority, isolation, and saying no. Unfortunately the behavior of the children weren't cohesive with the skit, but we were still proud of the performance and our efforts.

 The one thing we walked away understanding was that we are truly privileged to be apart of such an edifying environment at the University of Maryland and not everyone receives the same opportunities we do. We also noticed the limited resources the YWCA has to distribute to these students. There is such a high need but it also appears to be a low priority. It is also easy to criticize and suggest from the outside, but interacting with the kids let us know that there is a lot to be done.

The experience it self was discouraging because of the situation the students are in and the lifestyles they lead, but it was encouraging to know we are in a position to empower them and improve ourselves in order to advance them in the future.

The most appreciated reflection of the day is how supportive and comfortable we are as group. Everyday we are growing closer and breaking down walls of injustice in the Knoxville community, but also the stereotypical walls that we had of each other at the start of this trip.

The last few days are going to make it harder to leave this city and this group!




Here is a surprise we found at the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame yesterday:

Some pictures from downtown Knoxville:

Our Angel Circle!

Get to Know Knoxville.

Our team got to know our host city for the week, Knoxville, TN, today. It was such an eclectic, vibrant and historic city. Our group had so much fun exploring the University of Tennessee, and the downtown area. Here are some photos that showcase our experience:

This is me, posing with some statues in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. As evident in the picture, I was really excited to get the chance to look around in there.

Today, we met students who attend the University of Tennessee and are actively involved with the service center on their campus. In fact, some of these guys are headed to DC next week for their very own Alternative Spring Break!

We got to ride in style on the Knoxville Trolley. We felt so classy riding around town. The best part: it was free. 

We found Alyssa Thomas' jersey hanging in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. GO TERPS!

Some of our beautiful ladies stopped to pose in front of a funky bistro located in the 'Old City' section of downtown Knoxville.

Uh-oh, we have some troublemakers...just kidding. These ladies are wonderful!

We are having so much fun in Knoxville, TN! Up next, we are going back downtown to spread awareness on the issue of domestic violence and might some educate some middle schoolers, as well. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this week holds.

Today was definitely a day that we'll all remember as a great day! After some rain yesterday, we were more than thrilled to explore the University of Tennessee in perfect weather. We did so much today, so I'll start from the beginning! We started off the day by going to a self-defense class. That was A LOT of fun!!! We learned so many helpful techniques that could be really useful if we were ever put in a sexual assault situation. Even though that's a scary situation to think about, it's important to be aware of what we can do to escape. Our instructors had the perfect combination of being hilarious and informative, which made it an awesome experience. Too many women fall victim to this misfortune which is why it is so important that we all know how to protect ourselves.  After that, we took a tour of campus, had lunch with some really friendly UT students, and then did some souvenir shopping at the UT bookstore.
From there, we had an amazing view of the city from the Sun Sphere at the World Fair. After that, we went to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. We ended that trip by shooting some basketballs and playing a fun game of Knock Out. Then, we were off to venture the city of Knoxville. We were able to get around by using UT's bus system which were really cute trolleys! We went to Old City, visited some thrift shops and into a really cool antiques store. After, we went to Market Square and enjoyed the sunshine together. To top it all off, we ended the day with a DELICIOUS dinner-eggs, bacon, and pancakes!! It was a great Tuesday :)

TUES: Exploring Knoxville

Today we...

• Self defense class courtesy of the UT Police Department
• World's Fair Park and the Sunsphere
• Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
• Historic Downtown and Market Square