Healing Heart Observation Report

Although I volunteered with three different organizations this semester I wanted to focus this service-learning journal on Healing Hearts. We met with Julie Walls one of the coordinators of Healing Hearts, and started volunteering with them at the end of August.

Healing Hearts is led by a group of social workers. They start off Healing Hearts on the second floor of the human services building in downtown Newport News, here the kids are provided dinner. Once it six o’clock we move the kids upstairs to the sixth floor where we get into a circle for what we call opening circle. This is where we go over the rules of the center (i.e. Don’t talk while others are talking, treat others the way you would like to be treated, even a rule stating that everything said in the room stays in the room, no one is told not even the foster parents or the biological parents). Once we state the rules, we go in a circle and state our name, age, who we’re missing, and a fun fact about yourself. On average there are

The first time we were in opening circle I was scared, I didn’t feel like I had a right to say that I missed a family members when I would get to see mine in a few weeks, while some of these kids don’t get to see their families ever again. I wasn’t sure how easily our trainings would be put into practice. I guess over all I wanted to treat these kids as normal as possible while still giving them opportunity to open up about their feelings. I think this whole experience has made me grateful for what I have in my life, and respect others feeling toward situations because ever situation affects people differently and they are entitled to their own opinions. I do appreciate how these kids look at life and I think it gives a new perspective on the subject. I enjoy the energy the kids bring to the night and the enthusiasm that they use to talk about their relationships whether its positive or negative