Wheaton students lend helping hands
September 10, 2007
All Katie Wilshusen '11 did was wash the windows in Arthur LeFaivre's apartment in the John Shea housing complex. But that simple act of kindness made his day.
He has lived in the Taunton housing complex for low-income elderly and disabled residents for two years. But he has not been able to clean his own windows in all that time.
''I can't do it. I've had two heart attacks already and four bypass surgeries and a new hip,'' said LeFaivre as he stood watching Wilshusen delicately move aside the curtains on each window and quickly wipe away the dust. ''This is wonderful.''
LeFaivre's sentiment was expressed throughout the neatly kept courtyard complex and in other buildings managed by the Taunton Housing Authority, which is directed by Wheaton alumna Colleen Doherty '90. One recent Saturday morning 100 first-year Wheaton students spread out to do everything from washing walls and flipping mattresses to cleaning ovens and raking courtyards for residents who welcomed the extra hands.
The effort was all a part of the Season of Service sponsored by the Office of Spirituality, Service and Social Responsibility. The work began this month and will continue into October. Students will work with a dozen social service and educational organizations at 25 local sites. Other upcoming projects will include work at the Women at Work Museum in Attleboro, the Woodward Forest in Norton, Norton Library park, Norton Headstart and several other locations.
The Season of Service is part of Wheaton College's ongoing commitment to surrounding communities. The community service projects give new students a chance to know their neighborhood and their new classmates. The projects also allow them to tap into the ethic of civic engagement that Wheaton stresses as a significant part of the learning experience.
The work also gives them a chance to extend themselves beyond the grounds of Wheaton and their own familiar personal territory.
''It's nice to get off campus,'' said Wilshusen. ''Many people at Wheaton are from affluent backgrounds. It's really good to be around other people. It opens up your eyes.''
Jesse Swift '11 spent part of his Saturday morning working with Kevin Twomey '11 flipping the mattress and cleaning ceiling fans and blinds in the apartment of one resident who is in a wheelchair.
''It's not what I would normally do on a Saturday,'' said Swift, who said he had stayed up the night before until 2 a.m. watching a DVD of the ''Scrubs'' TV series. ''But it's great to do something that you wouldn't normally do to help people.''
Wilshusen and Swift make points that Doherty stressed to students as she gave a preliminary talk to them on a yellow school bus before they rode from Norton to Taunton. ''The price of housing is a crisis for many families. Some of the families who end up here have been homeless or evicted. It hasn't been an easy road for people to get here. Some of our waiting lists are five years long,'' she said.
Doherty, who worked with Wheaton to coordinate this project, grew up in Taunton. She worked at the Taunton Housing Authority while attending Wheaton as sociology major and then at the Brockton Housing Authority after graduation.
''I believe community service has an impact on young hearts and minds and may shape their decision and biases in the future,'' she said. ''The residents are excited to see the students doing work for them. They can see a larger community that cares about them and their well-being. My hope is that the students see the faces behind public housing and walk away with a better understanding of the need to provide such government programs in our society.''