Most recently our club had the pleasure of serving one of DC’s shelters for women who have encountered great difficulty and need to regain their foothold in society and most importantly in their lives. The program called DASH is different from other similar shelters in that it allows women of a variety of hardships to seek 2 years of refuge for reasons including domestic abuse, sex trafficking, drug addiction and others. Their children are also invited to come regardless of age. At DASH, women are not confined by curfews and invasive rules but are able to be supported, encouraged, and independent at the same time.
At the Valentine’s Day event we brought activities, chocolate boxes, flowers, and FUN! We were given the privilege of planning and staffing this Valentine’s Day party for children ages 5 to 13. We arrived expecting to entertain the children and were pleasantly surprised to find that they were eager to entertain us. As the children came into the activity room to meet us they screamed with excitement and introduced themselves without prompting! We talked, listened, and learned what colorful personalities these children possessed. The DASH program provided fresh fruits for snack time at the end of the event and the children were met by their mothers. The mothers thanked us individually for coming. We all agreed that the attitudes of these people despite their great hardships were inspirationally optimistic.
This event took place not far from our campus. Our president, Jessica Stamp plans to organize future trips to this shelter so that we can get to know the children more. Do let us know if you are interested in taking part!
by Marissa Torres
CSPC Member since 2012