What This Week Means To Me (Brad's Take)

I was not much of a joiner in high school. In fact, I'm not much of a joiner now, but I can mingle with folks alright. In high school, you would not have seen me within four feet of a "service project," because not only was I not a joiner, but I was also pretty much a jerk.

This was brought home to me this week when one of my former classmates, whom I think the world of now, told me that the nickname for the crowd I ran with was "the mean boys."

Ouch.

That is one reason that this week of doing service with fellow Roeper alumni on behalf of Detroit, where I grew up, is so important to me. I have struggled for some time at being a better person than I was when growing up. I have so far to go, but at least I don't think I am in the "mean boys" crowd anymore.

Now, still the kind of person who does not get involved in group efforts, I was given the opportunity to take part in a series of meaningful acts with others. So, instead of quietly supporting from the sidelines and begging off with protests of being "too busy," I committed to coming back home to Detroit and working.

It has meant a lot to me. For me, it is a marker of the kind of person I want to be -- the kind who pitches in and helps.

And it is a testament to the power of the ideas behind The Roeper School, which seems to mold such people even in spite of themselves. Roeper showed great patience with my and my crowd's immaturity.

Roeper believes in the best within all children. I can remember a story a former administrator told me. A particular student had . . . well, let's say the chemistry lab needed a lot of cleanup and was smoldering a bit. (At least that's how he told the story.) The student's punishment? He was assigned to be in charge of the security of the chem lab for the rest of the year.

Once, I can recall that one student used a racial epithet against another. Classes were canceled and we worked together on racism.

Yes, Roeper is that kind of place.

To all the people who comprise the Roeper community, and especially to Jenny Hansell, Pam Victor, Amy Voigt, and Asa Watten who really got the Roeper Alumni Service Corps off the ground, thank you for this chance to work at being a better person.

~Brad Rourke

A Thousand Flowers (Brad's Take, Day Three)

Well, not a thousand. But, did you know what 100 flats of flowers look like when they are delivered? Like this:

As Jenny said, when she saw all the flowers being delivered, "We're going to need a bigger boat."

Today we took delivery of all these flowers in anticipation of an influx of young volunteers being led by Summer In The City folks . . . we did not know how many, but it turned out to be about fifty. It was pandemonium, as we asked them to plant the flowers in the many flower beds in a pocket park across from the old Bell Building.

While the kids were working, Channel 4 (WDIV) came by in the person of Lauren Podell and shot some footage that appeared on the 5 O'Clock news.

Yes, we were really on TV! Here is where you can see that.

Meanwhile, the Pergola Team completed the pergola in the wet.

After lunch, we came back to finish a few things up on the pergola . . . planting a few vines that will grow and begin to provide shade.

Then, it was back to the pocket park. We had barely made a dent in the flowers. Eric Peterson jumped into action and identified a bare flowerbed that could use some love. He and a handful of Bank of America volunteers quickly had the bed in shape.

Focus:Hope is planning to use the rest of the flowers in other parks, so we are not worried.

Tomorrow, we will be working in the food warehouse, distributing food for people in the community who are in need.

Tomorrow's our last day. What an incredible and meaningful experience this has been. I am so glad to have been a part of it. Jenny Hansell, thank you for having the initial idea to do this.

~Brad Rourke

Are We There Yet? Day Two: Brad's Take

Like Jenny, I found Day Two to be harder than yesterday . . . even though I had to leave a little early. My guilt at leaving early was doubled when I learned that my fellow Team Pergola members were still at work at 5:30. Yikes!


We were erecting a 12' structure. When I left, we had gotten the beams up, but we still had to tie them together with rails at the top, and then lay a lattice roof over it.

Those are tall beams.

Anyway, the portable power tools (drill and saw) kept running out of juice, necessitating quick requests of Focus:Hope for more power.

In the end, we quit with the rails installed at the top. Now we just need to put on the roof. We will need tall ladders tomorrow, but I think we will be up to it!

Jenny's right, the unsung hero is Stephanie.

A reporter from the Detroit News came and interviewed a number of us including Jenny, Asa, and Abe. We will see what comes of that!

Eric Peterson

Jenny Hansell and Clint Spevak

Asa Watten

Jenny Hansell, Pam Victor

~Brad Rourke

Holes: Thank You To Eric And Paul

Day One of the first Roeper Alumni Service Corps project is under our belts, and boy are my arms tired. Ba-dump-BUMP.

By the end of the day, you could barely see that we had made a dent in our project -- most of the work ended up below ground. We had to sink six 3-foot holes with an 8-inch diameter through hard-packed clay. Then we needed to fill the holes with concrete and let it set, so that on Day Two we could erect a shade-giving structure they call a "pergola."

There were about 7 Roeper alumni there on this first day, and it took us almost the whole time to just dig the holes. It was hard labor with no power tools of any sort to help us. Pickaxes, post-hole diggers, and a long bar with a point at one end that is called, according to its label, the "mutt." This turned out to be the most helpful implement.

Anyway, we dug six of this:

But then, with Day One drawing to a close, we still had to level the holes, and fill them with concrete.

Enter Eric and Paul. Our local sponsors, Focus:Hope had sent over a few high school-age volunteers to help out with some of the planting and weeding that we were beginning. Among them were two young men, Eric and Paul. Eric had been to masonry vocational school, and both boys were highly skilled around the job site. And, they were eager to pitch in.

We very quickly took a back seat as Eric and Paul leveled the holes (Asa and I were disputing one particular level measurement, with dueling iPhone apps, and Eric pulled out a water bottle and placed it on the board. "Water doesn't lie," he said, and told us that Asa was right and I was wrong. From then on we used his water-bottle level and kept our iPhones in our pants.)

We pitched in and all, but these guys really knew what they were doing. Because of their attitude and effort, we completed pouring the concrete and are now looking forward to having a secure foundation for the pergola.

Thanks guys.

~Brad Rourke