From the Editor: This essay was written by Henning V. at the conclusion of his one year internship in Chapel Hill.
by Henning V.
My one year of community service, organized by United Church of Chapel Hill, is almost over for me now. I have gained a lot of experiences, received a lot of impressions and a lot has happened during my year here in Chapel Hill.
But before I am really able to evaluate my community service, I have to remember why I actually decided to come here, thousands of miles away from my family, my friends and my girlfriend.
Certainly one reason was to improve my language skills. Although my English is far from being perfect, I feel more confident and more secure when I speak it. Since here in North Carolina the number of the Spanish speaking population is high, I hoped to also improve my Spanish. Due to other focuses in my projects, I wasn’t able to use my Spanish very often, but I guess I’ll have more opportunities in the future.
It also appealed to me to live in another country for a year and to get to know another culture. Unconsciously I compared both countries, Germany and the United States, to each other all the time and could find many similarities but some differences as well. Many people asked me about those differences and it was hard for me to answer, because I felt like I was seen as the German ambassador. Sometimes I had to justify things, or I was praised for something, that I wasn’t connected to at all.
Other reasons for my community service were to gain some distance from my parents, to become more independent and to see more of the world than Cologne, Germany and Europe. I think this worked out pretty well.
In total I lived with four different families with whom I had a great time. At this point I want to thank Tye and Wanda H., Jeff and Cindy K., Ernest and Eunice K. and Tim and Leslie D. and their daughter Hannah. I became friends with all of them very quickly, and it was hard to move on to the next family after three months, just when we really got to know each other. Every family had their own characteristics, habits and was special in their own way and I really enjoyed living with all four families.
Before I arrived here in Chapel Hill I hadn’t really thought about what it means to get to know so many new people and to find new friends. But now I can say, that this is probably one of the most important parts of my community service. I will go back to Germany, knowing that I have a lot of good friends on the other side of the ocean and that I will be welcomed whenever I decide to come back.
Sam H., the son of my first host parents Tye and Wanda, and I became really good friends. Without him I wouldn’t have had such a great time here in Chapel Hill and I am really grateful for our friendship.
Another really important experience was to help other people through my work at my projects. This aspect probably came too short when I still lived in Cologne, because school, friends and sport-clubs are a good excuse to stay socially inactive. My community services showed me that it isn’t necessary to spend money or work for a good thing. Sometimes it’s just about having a conversation with a homeless person, when you show him that you respect and care about this person.
Seeing how many people appreciated my work at my different projects motivated me a lot and it was great to know that I could help people with my commitment. Another good part was that I enjoyed working at all my projects and was on good terms with my co-workers.
In conclusion I can say that I had a great time here in Chapel Hill and I want to thank the whole congregation for being so opened, welcoming and friendly to me. You made it easy for me to feel comfortable and respected at United Church and I am looking forward to seeing you again!