The Reverberation of STAND by Allyson

The Reverberation of STAND by Allyson - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

As I have grown up, I have been exposed to many outlets to encourage some sort of community service whether it be aimed globally or locally. I consider myself very fortunate to have been involved in such activities as it has opened to my eyes to the magnitude of aid required in the world. In addition to that realization, I have suddenly become conscious of how lucky I am to live the way I do. The group that I’ve been the most appreciative of is the Students Taking a New Direction for Humanity club at my high school. It is a student-led activism club with the mission to spread awareness and raise funds to provide relief to our community and communities beyond our own. I have been a member of STAND for two years.
Within STAND, I hold the executive position of treasurer. As treasurer, I have the responsibility to manage club funds raised in our plethora of fundraisers as well as ensure that the money we raise for a cause reaches the organization we raised the money for. Other efforts are typically put towards organizations on a global scale such as Doctors Without Borders, Heifer Project International, and Walk 4 Water. In addition my responsibilities as treasurer, I head a committee within STAND with our own individual, smaller fundraisers. Our most recent humanitarian effort was a coat drive for local Phoenix homeless shelters. We gathered over 700 coats and $200 to donate. This display of charity was achieved by advertising the coat drive to our school as well as writing to newspapers and radio stations asking them to mention our service project either in the paper or on air. The fundraiser we are most known for is the STAND Movie Night. We show a popular movie in the school auditorium and sell snacks and ask for donations at the conclusion of the showing. 100% of the funds we raise are directly sent to organizations dedicated to humanitarian efforts. Our “Napoleon Dynamite” Movie Night in October raised over $220 all of which was given to Doctors Without Borders. My favorite of our projects is the Flowergrams we do at the beginning of February around Valentine's Day. We sell carnations to be delivered to the recipients homeroom on Valentine’s Day. The purpose is to both spread kindness in our school community, and raise funds for organizations such as Walk 4 Water.
The hard work completed in STAND has a powerful impact both in my community and around the world. The Coat Drive is a fantastic example of our local impact. The 700 coats donated were given to homeless people in Phoenix with the intention to help combat being cold in the winter. STAND was able to touch at least 700 individuals through our efforts. As for our global impact, the funds raised from the December Movie Night were used to purchase three goats for destitute families through Heifer Project International. The mission of the organization is to promote sustainability by providing families in foreign countries with livestock. This mission is something that STAND believes in.
These successful service projects have not come without their own levels of strife. One of the most common challenges we are met with is an overwhelming apathy and scorn regarding STAND efforts. When we present a new project for the school to participate in, it is difficult to motivate over 4,000 lazy teenage students to become active and mobilize. Even with one on one conversations, apathy or excuses are often a common response to our plea for assistance. It is difficult to raise money when attendance is to our events are scant. The second common challenge is the contempt that occasionally arises when we educate our peers about certain projects or even the club’s mission statement. STAND is sometimes considered “lame” or “goodie-two-shoes” to the public eye. This epidemic of disdain for humanitarian efforts retards the productivity of the club; therefore, making it difficult to get things done and make our cause known.
My exposure to great service groups, such as STAND for Humanity, have inspired me to try to be a part of the “good” in the world. I consider myself very fortunate to have been involved in such activities as it has opened to my eyes to the magnitude of aid required in the world. Despite the challenges that have presented themselves, STAND has been a successful club having made both a global and local impact. I am grateful to have been a member of STAND for two years.