In a minimum of 500 words, please respond to the following prompt: The department of Speech-Language Pathology at Monmouth University celebrates core values to include respect, service, and compassion. How have you displayed these values in your life and how would you bring these values to your career as a speech-language pathologist?
*do I need a more concrete opening?
*is the closing too cliche? If so how can I fix it?
*Did I explain each of the values in enough or too much detail? Did I get the point across?
Any and all feedback is appreciated- thank you!!
respect, service, and compassion
This past summer, I was fortunate enough to work as a camp counselor at a one week sleepaway camp called "Camp Chatterbox." Camp Chatterbox is a family camp,sponsored by Children's Specialized Hospital, for children who use AAC devices. As I sat through the 2 day training learning about all the children, their families, and all the devices that they used, I was so incredibly anxious. As I laid down to go to bed the night before the children arrived,millions of questions flooded through my head, "Will the children like me?" "What if I don't know how to communicate with them?" "What happens if I don't understand them?" Little did I know that the next morning I would wake up to start one of the most exhilarating weeks of my life. At Camp Chatterbox, my role as a counselor included aiding SLP's in therapy sessions, leading arts and crafts and games, singing songs, interacting with families during meals and down time, and helping the independent campers with ADLs. The great part about this camp is that many of these children and their families have been coming to Camp for years. They have created special bonds with each other, and the therapist and it was really heartwarming to see how excited they were to see each other again.
Originally, I was excited because I was going to help teach these children important skills to help them communicate throughout their everyday lives, but I later realized that they taught me so much more than I could ever teach them. They taught me patience, to respect the time it took them to respond to my questions and statements. They wanted to communicate, and they had a lot to say, but while using a device, responding takes a bit longer, so I learned to respect their time. They taught me that everyone comes from different backgrounds, their families all have different ways of doing things and that they have all been through their fair share of hardships, I learned to respect their feelings and their actions, that there is a reason behind everything that these families do, and they do it with the best interest of their child in mind.They taught me that their disability does not define them, while they all have special needs, they are just like everyone else, and they are intelligent, determined and loving individuals, and I learned to respect these intelligent, determined, loving individuals.
"Live to serve, love to serve" is a saying that I keep very close to my heart, it is the motto of Circle K International. Circle K International is a collegiate service organization, which has opened my eyes to the power of service. As a freshman, I joined Circle K at Stockton University, within no time, this organization became my home away from home. I was able to share my passion to volunteer with so many like-minded individuals. Throughout my time in Circle K I have been able to volunteer with various different populations, in different settings, and with different community organizations. Some of these include playing blackjack with residents at the Spring Village Assisted Living Center, serving food to the community at the Atlantic City Rescue Mission, making crafts with the Children at the Ronald McDonald house, playing sports with the athletes of the Special Olympics league, and sewing pillows and christmas stockings to give to hospital patients. Since my first semester, Fall 2014, I have volunteered close to 1,000 hours in my community.
After spending a few years in this organization, I have immersed myself in many different leadership positions, these include fundraising chair, editor, two terms as club president and the district Kiwanis Family Relations Chair. What I enjoy about being a leader in this organization is that I get to influence others to always keep service close to their heart. As club president, besides from planning regular events for the club, I have the opportunity to plan projects for over 400 members of the community for the University's Day of Service, which happens two times per year. I have also traveled to Toronto and San Antonio as a delegate at the International Convention, where I was given an opportunity to serve in other cities besides from my campus community. As Kiwanis Family Relations Chair for the district, I get to work with other branches of the K-Family which include Kiwanis, Aktion Club, Key Club, Builder's Club, and K-Kids. There is a Kiwanis Family Club for everyone no matter what your age or ability is. I enjoy being able to interact with these other branches, especially the younger clubs, and being able to leave an impression of how service can impact your life and the lives of others. Service has given me the ability to see other people smile, to give something to someone who has nothing, to create valuable relationships with community partners, and help make a difference in the world.
Compassion is a value that I have gained through my experience as Survivor and Caregiver Chair of Stockton University's Relay for Life. Relay for Life is an all night walk for the American Cancer Society. Each year at our event, we have raised over $40,000 and have seen over 600 participants. As survivor and caregiver chair, my job is to recruit survivors and caregivers, and to find ways to honor them at the event. One of the main components at the event is the survivor speaker, and the reception. Each year, I help find an individual who has suffered from cancer and invite them to share their story at the event. At the reception, I work with donors from the community to provide survivors and their caregivers, dinner, cake, favors, decorations, and roses. I have the opportunity to interact with these individuals who have fought for their life, and they are some of the most inspiring people I have met.
Relay for Life as a whole is an event about love and passion. Relay for Life brings the community together to celebrate, remember, and fight back. It is an event where all participants, whether they have known each other for years, or literally just met, we are all there to support each other, and because of that, I am very proud to be a part of something bigger than myself. I am proud to have raised so much money as an individual, a team, and a school for a cause so near and dear to my heart. Relay for Life money doesn't just go towards funding cancer research, but it helps support cancer patients and their caregivers. Fundraising dollars help fund Hope Lodges, Look Good Feel Better programs, Road to recovery programs, and counseling services for those who have been affected by cancer in any way.
Throughout my experiences, I have learned to value respect, service, and compassion. I plan to keep these values evident throughout my career as a Speech-Language Pathologist. As an SLP, I will be interacting with many different clients, families, and professionals, and they will all have strong opinions on each situation. My main goal as an SLP is to take into account all of their needs, and to incorporate them into each therapy session to help my client succeed. I will respect their needs and wants, and their reasoning behind them, I will serve them and provide them with resources to reach their therapy goals, and have compassion, because it might not always be easy for them, but I want to inspire them and I want them to know that I am committed to help them effectively communicate, no matter what it takes.