First post!

Hello everyone!

Before I start, I just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to read, skim or glance at this blog in support of my year with Lutheran Volunteer Corps (LVC). I am highly indebted to and eternally grateful for everyone's support in getting me here.

So, where's here, exactly?

(from Wikimedia)

I am living on the north side of Omaha, NE, in an old convent with five other lovely LVC volunteers. Yes, this means our rooms are a little smaller than what we've probably been used to, but my bed is extremely comfortable, and we all have sinks in our rooms, not to mention three bathrooms and a ton of common space.

We met at orientation at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN last Sunday, with about 140 other volunteers who will be working in cities all over the country from DC to Atlanta to San Francisco and more. Most volunteers are just out of college, but some have been out for a few years or even more than a few. (You have to be at least 21 to apply to LVC, but beyond that there's not a ton of restrictions, though you do need willingness and willpower to fill out a substantially long application.)

I'll post links to the LVC website and Facebook page on the side of this blog, but since we all were asked to recite the LVC mission statement a few times together at orientation, I now know it by heart and will just go ahead and write it here:

"LVC is a community of faith united to work for peace with justice."

The three LVC core practices or tenets are intentional community, living simply and sustainably and social justice. LVC volunteers live together in houses or apartments for a year (August-August) and are all working at non-profit organizations whose mission statements are aligned with LVC's. We get a stipend which is enough to live on, but not too much more. See how those core practices work??

At orientation, we had lots of time to get to know our housemates, sometimes using some guided questions about, for example, our preferences with regards to spirituality or sustainable practices. We also had a day of self-defense or personal safety training; a day with sessions about raising money for LVC, ways to have community discussions, and city-specific information; and two days of anti-racism training which profoundly affected me and which I am so grateful to have had.

The most important realization that I had from anti-racism training, which I really wanted to share, is that in order to work towards anti-racism and the "journey to an inclusive community" (as LVC calls it), I have to acknowledge and confront the racism that has shaped me and is present in me. The training, which was led by two trainers from Crossroads, took our group through the history of racist actions in the United States, challenged our definitions and conceptions of race and institutions, and more, including watching this video.

I would strongly recommend anti-racism training to anyone, because it gives you a way to talk about something that is really hard to talk about. I am very glad to have had it before I go into my first day of work, which is tomorrow!

I will be working with the pastors and staff at Grace and St. Luke's Lutheran Church on community outreach and program development. Today we (myself, my housemates, and our awesome city coordinator Janelle) drove all over Omaha to see everyone's placement, so I met one of the pastors and tomorrow morning I will meet with both of them to figure out the details of what exactly I will be doing. My housemates are working at Trinity Lutheran Church, Together, INC. (a huge food and clothing distribution center), Hospice House, Eastern Nebraska Community Action Partnership (ENCAP), and Voices for Children. I feel like this sounds a little cliché, but I am really looking forward to our dinner conversations.

I'd say we're feeling pretty comfortable here. We have done some exploring of our neighborhood and the park right across the street from us, and we also enjoyed our first taste of beautiful and fun "downtown" Omaha on Saturday night. We still have a few chores to take care of this week, but I am really looking forward to more settling in and getting to know the city.

Also, I feel terrific. Many of you know that I was working very hard (rather ridiculously so, I guess) this past year, and it is very comforting to know that I cannot work more than 40 hours a week so that I have time for spirituality, community time, and personal growth. I'm going to read for pleasure, practice violin and piano more than I did last year, do some crafts, cook, write and explore the city!

That is plenty for now. Later I will post some pictures. I'm going to try to write fairly regularly (maybe twice a month, approximately?) specifically with updates on my work but maybe with some other stuff I find relevant. I'm maintaining another blog, but this one here is specifically for my LVC year.

Again, thank you all so much for your support!

Anna