Monday, March 24, 2014

DAY 2! ARNO

Hi friends!

I write to you with a warm heart, open mind, and beautiful weather outside our windows.  We are hoping the snow will be gone by the time we return :)

Today was our first day of service and it was a blessing.  We began our day with breakfast and a quick meeting with the United Saints project manager.  The Hamline team went to assist at the Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO).   While there, we saw many dogs and cats that needed love and attention.

We each organized, scrubbed, and mopped, but we were also given the opportunity to interact with the animals.  It was nice to walk and play with the animals that we were helping.  The individuals running the organization are extremely dedicated and compassionate people.  They shared stories and showed great appreciation for our hard work.  This compassion is a trait that flows through the blood of the many people I have already had the fortune of learning from here in NOLA.

Our reflection session was fun and forced us to become creative with the team experience.  My group sang a rendition of the song "My Girl."  We changed the lyrics to interpret the ray of sunshine and hope that ARNO is for the animals and other animal shelters in the area.  We are thinking of taking the song to American Idol ;)

It was a special beginning to our learning experience and we can't wait to share more with ya'll !

Tyler

3 comments:

  1. Thanks Tyler. Pretty inspiring. We have a rescue dog from Kentucky and our neighbors have one, "Brando", who is a one-eyed survivor of the horrible Joplin, MO tornado. Have a good rest of the trip. Michael Darger

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  2. I see you must be picking up the language already....ya'll! Can't wait to hear more. Connie M.

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  3. Sounds like you have already touched the hearts of many and vice versa. I am very proud of you and all of the Hamline students who are volunteering. Mom

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