Cold dreary days call for warm gathering spaces to network with friends. On Wednesday, October 19, 2011 the Minnesota Council of Non-profits congregated in Concordia University's BEC to host a non-profits organization fair to students seeking volunteer opportunities or career connections. Approximately 30 booths were set up representing different non-profits in the twin cities area. The Minnesota Council of Non-profits aims to inform, promote, connect and strengthen non-profits in Minnesota. Alum from Concordia University, Katie Benke spoke about how volunteer work and internships helped her to make career connections for after college. Two representatives from MCNP spoke about the mission of MCNP and the general things of what their organization does within and within Minnesota. MCNP compiles statistics about non-profits in Minnesota and puts together an annual report. From their report: In Minnesota there is 3,750 non-profit employers, offering 290,000 jobs. MCNP hosts networking lunches and workshops to help people become acquainted with the non-profit community. MCNP shared that their job board website has at least 600 positions posted at any given time. MCNP helped Concordia University to bring in the representatives from the different non-profits to have a booth at the fair. Each booth had information about the organization and representatives to speak with about the organization or learn about how to volunteer.
A component of the Honors Program is to experience the physical world. Experiencing the physical world through activities like walking around a park, or observing social interactions in a mall, but one of the greatest ways to experience the physical world is to be involved with it for a long period of time. Volunteering or interning within a community for a longer period of time is a way to be involved and to be interacting with the physical world. A natural part of the human world is community. Community is living with one another. All human beings live in the same world together--community is inevitable. Human beings should want to interact with and help to improve the community that they are a part of. The Christian perspective is one of servant hood to others. Jesus was known to serve others by washing their feet. Being a servant to others means to put them before oneself. The convocation proves a way to reinforce the Christian perspective and the lifestyle to live like Jesus did. MCNP chooses to promote non-profits to sustain community. The world is interconnected and even more through interaction through communities and servant hood.
Of all things that I value, community is one of the things at the top of my list. I value interaction with communities and working to improve parts of communities that seek aid. I am passionate about volunteering because I think that it benefits communities but also myself awareness of different perspectives. The convocation was an aid and a push as to why I choose to volunteer. This summer I worked at a Lutheran camp. The camp had a strong standing to show kids how to serve others. Every time a service project was done the kids would be reminded of how Jesus was the ultimate servant and taught that the first will be last and the last shall be first. It was a great reminder to me that Jesus taught me how to serve and I choose to do it because I should as a Christian. I appreciate that the convocation is encouraging students to go out and be servants to the community, whatever religion you choose to follow. The convocation is an aid to my college education next semester in finding a service-learning project. It also serves my college education in how it could help me choose a career that I am truly passionate about. I would like to make my college career more hands-on experience than classroom learning, I think the convocation prompted me to realize that interning without pay is a good thing and it will be a benefit for me.
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