Student Hero Package

Serving the Community, One Project at a Time

The typical college student is obsessed with the latest designer clothes, newest tech gadgets, or hottest new band on the radio. Julia Collins is not your typical college student.

Julia, a junior information design major from Hartwell, SC, spends her free time at Winthrop University volunteering through a program called Close Scholars. In exchange for volunteering a specified number of hours every semester, she receives a scholarship towards her tuition. But this isn’t how she got involved in volunteering, in fact, she started serving her community from an early age before getting more involved during her junior year at West-Oak High School.

“I’ve always done it [community service] because my family is involved in non-profit organizations, like therapeutic wilderness camping.”

Since coming to Rock Hill, she has gotten to participate in numerous service projects throughout the community, but her primary service site is Family Promise downtown. This program is designed to help homeless families get back on their feet, but finding them with financing and budgeting for getting a home. They also help by providing a network of churches for the families to stay at while they save for their new home.

It’s obvious when talking with Julia that she really cares about the people she’s helping.

“I really have always enjoyed being involved with the community. I generally really have a heart for helping people.”

She doesn’t try to sugarcoat volunteering though. It can be hard to go serve strangers who don’t always appreciate what you’re doing for them, but in the end, Julia believes it’s worth the effort.

“[The people you’re serving] don’t necessarily need to know where you’re coming from, but they can still receive from you in various ways. It’s been something cool to be involved with, I really enjoy it.”

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Julia Volunteering Slideshow

Julia Collins, of Hartwell, SC has been volunteering for years. In this slideshow, you will see pictures from some of the projects she has participated in here at Winthrop, as well as some that feature the people she volunteers with, giving you a better idea of what she has worked on.

Community Service Podcast

Julia Collins just started her junior year at Winthrop, and she's

already giving up her time to help others. In this interview,

she talks about the time she spends working with the Close

Scholars program, but she also gives of her time through her

church, Eternal, in Fort Mill.

Julia (center) at a service project at the

Greenway.

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Super Slack

So, I have not started updating this any more. Sorry.

Anyway, my band Polar War is playing our first show October 4th at New Brookland Tavern.
You should come. Check us out, and let us know what you think. Hopefully it won't be too terrible.

End Post.

Summertime, Summertime...

...it's all over now. School starts back up on Tuesday (it is currently early Sunday morning), and my life is (hopefully) going to slow back down a bit. As awesome as the experiences I had this summer were, it will be nice to see some friends again - while I'm still fairly awake! I apologize to the one or two people who may in fact read my blog (thanks Mom and Dad!) that it has been so long since the last update, but when you're working 70 hours a week, some things can fall by the wayside.

Anyway. The last month was crazy. I ended my internship with Elevation Church and then left immediately to go to New York with the family. Good times were had by all (I think). Since then, it's been Chick-fil-A and getting ready for school, which I'm looking forward to for some odd reason.

Boom. My month in very few words. Hopefully I'll get back into the habit of updating more often, with some more interesting stuff. But for now, I'll leave you with this. Enjoy.

Halfway Through the Summer

OK, it's the first week of July, and I realized that I haven't written anything on here since April...so, here goes.

This summer has been crazy, and awesome. I am working as the graphic design intern at Elevation Church, and I am having a great time with that. It has been so much fun to get back into the habit of designing and stretching my creativity every day. I had some trouble in the beginning just since it had been so long, but I feel like my concepts and designs are getting a little better each day, so that's good.

I'm also working at Chick-fil-A - just about every night. This means I've been working 60 to 70 hours a week for the past 5 weeks, with a couple more left to go. Overall though, it hasn't been a bad summer. I miss seeing all my friends and family since I really don't have much time to just hang out or anything, but I think it'll be worth it in the end. I'll have some great experience, plus some money in my account by the time school starts...hopefully!

Oh, and I was spending time with a couple friends on the 4th, and someone showed us some videos on YouTube. Go check out Autotune the News if you get a chance. They're hilarious.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

I'm ready for the semester to end. Right now.

Procratinating yet again...

I have a paper due Monday, and two more due on Tuesday, so you would think I would be a little more motivated to do my work than I currently am. I mean, it is just hanging over my head right now, stressing me out, so why don't I want to do it?

I feel like this a lot in my walk with God. I neglect prayer for a while, or skip my quiet time for a day or two, and things pile up and eventually I can't remember the last time I really spent time digging into my Bible for real spiritual food. This only worsens my downward spiraling relationship with God, which then serves to discourage me from starting back up again. I wait until my confidence in my faith is circling the drain, before I cry out for forgiveness. This definitely seems like a pretty messed up relationship, and one that I would not enjoy this if the roles were reversed.

So, there's a little look into my current thoughts and whatnot. So, does anyone know a cure for procrastination? 'Cause I could certainly use one about now...

So, this past week was not as relaxing as I thought it would be. But I definitely enjoyed being at home. It was a great break from the daily grind of school. I already have spring fever pretty bad, and I don't think it will improve any between now and the end of the semester. We'll see how it goes.

My friend George just showed me an incredible climbing video.



This guy is ridiculous.

Spring Break!

I'm looking forward to a week of no classes.

Hopefully everyone else has as awesome of a week as I'm expecting.

Sweet!

This movie looks incredible!

Check, Ch-Ch-Ch-Check It Out

I am finally pretty much done for this week as far as classes go. I mean, I actually have three tomorrow, but there's nothing due, and looking at the syllabi, it should be an overall easy day. Then BCM, then I'm heading home, for the first time this semester. Last weekend was a rough one with papers and studying for tests earlier this week, so I'm ready to go home and relax.

I also found a great resource for when I'm feeling a little down (this weekend it was from writing so much). Craigslist Rants and Raves. They're incredibly hilarious. And a pretty effective self-confidence boost. A lot of those people can't form complete thoughts, much less clear, understandable sentences. It really makes me feel better about myself, especially since I usually think I'm a bad writer.

And here's just a pretty sweet video I found on YouTube. Check it out and be glad it isn't you.

Where to?

It is hard when things start to change. I'm open to advice on this one, if any of the 1 or 2 people who read this have an opinion.

God asked me to commit to a ministry, so I did, and I did so whole-heartedly (sp?). But I no longer feel like it is what I'm supposed to be doing in the future. I'm having trouble discerning whether it is my own personal preferences or if God is telling me that I've played my part in this particular place. I also have to keep in mind that I committed for the duration of the school year. It has really been bothering me over the past few days, and I don't seem to be moving any closer to a resolution. So any advice or feedback would be awesome. Or prayer. That's pretty important too.

So, the new semester is in full swing, and it seems like it will be better than last semester (which is good). Classes are not too bad (so far) and it is nice to be back with my friends. In other news, my band, Sleep Set (www.myspace.com/sleepset), is going into the studio over the next week, week and a half, to record a five song demo/EP type deal. It should be fun, and I can't wait for people to start hearing what we've been playing. So that's pretty cool.

Ok, now that the recap's over, on to my recent thoughts.

Last night at the RUF Super Bowl party, I was sitting near some people that went to high school and/or church with me. We started talking about high school in general, and then we moved on to youth groups at our churches and how the churches were doing now. Looking back on my years in youth group now, I realized that youth group had a lot to do with the person I am right now. Our youth group was basically a revolving door for youth pastors and interim pastors and no leaders, which made us really self-reliant. We pretty much ran everything and had nobody pouring back into us. (Now, that's not to say that we didn't have Sunday School teachers and people supervising us on Wednesdays or speakers or anything. And there were a couple people that did everything they could and probably more than they should for us, but they had "real" jobs and couldn't devote time or energy overall. And I am more than grateful to those who were there for us.) After having this conversation and hearing about what had happened at my friend's church, I realized how much negative influence those years have had on my life.

I was so burnt out after high school, that I have never since been able to fully give myself to anything.

Our numbers in youth group fell so much that I am terrified of being the person in a leadership position.

Not having an adult to lean on has made me untrusting of the people in charge of the different things that I'm involved with.

All these things kinda became clear after talking with my friends last night. And I'm not trying to make excuses or explain away my actions or saying that those are the sole causes of my behavior - I just want to be held accountable for trying to change those things about me. I don't want to live the rest of my life with all of that hanging over my head. So, please, tell me step out and trust God. Call me out if I try to do something halfway. Help me be the man God wants me to be.

One other thing I learned from youth group is that friends will always be there for you. So I thank God for my friends. For the real, deep, lasting relationships that I have been given. For the people who know who I am and hang out with me anyway. Thank you.

Its Been a While

So, I haven't updated in quite a while. I got kinda busy with exams and the end of school and whatnot, and since then I've kinda been relaxing. I've enjoyed spending time with the family, and eating good food. I've seen some old friends, and that's been pretty sweet. Really its just been a nice break from classes.

In other news, I just got back this afternoon from Charleston. Sleep Set (minus Dave) met in Goose Creek for an intense three-day (not weekend) writing/brainstorming session. It was a lot of fun and pretty productive. I have a pretty good feeling about what we're doing as a group. We seem to be making music that we can be proud of and actually enjoy ourselves. Definitely worth the time and energy being put in.

So, that's the break so far. I've still got a week. But right now, I'm going to go enjoy my New's Years Eve. So, here's to a happy and blessed new year to everyone out there. I hope we all make the most of it.

Spilled Milk and Finals

So, for an advertising project, I got to spill a bunch of milk all over my parent's kitchen table and do a photo shoot. I'll be honest, it was pretty fun. I mixed in a bunch of flour to thicken the milk and make it photograph a little better. Hopefully the ads will come out alright. Its part of my final project grade in Ad Principles.

Speaking of finals, this is the week. A week from tomorrow, the semester will be over, and I can't wait. It has been pretty tough at times, but I think I learned a lot, at least about myself. I'm still not where I should be in a lot of ways, but I think I might be on my way.

This Sunday is a show that I've been looking forward to since I found out about it back in like August. Kevin Devine, All Get Out, and....wait for it....Manchester Orchestra. Manchester's show back in May was the best I've ever been to, and the lineup is even better this time around. I am incredibly pumped. Tickets are sold out, but if you're in the Columbia I recommend showing up and hoping for the best. I'll try to put up some pictures.

And I just found out the Chuck and Heroes got preempted in favor of a Panthers game. That is a little disappointing.

So, two papers down this weekend, one more to write by Tuesday. Then it's time for Thanksgiving break. I'm pretty pumped.

I'm also watching A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! I highly recommend it. I don't think I've stopped laughing yet.

Alright, this was probably too much of a break, so I'm going to go keep writing.

This Weekend

So, I basically love Elevation Church. There's really no other way around it. Not only is the worship awesome (which is very important to me), but Pastor Steven Furtick pretty much kicks butt with every sermon. Today I kinda got schooled in the art of having the right perspective. Just because my bank account is down right now does not give me a reason to be stingy. I still have a car and a place to live (or two, school and home) and plenty of food and friends and family that love me. So there financial analysts, I am rich.

Also, this weekend was Fall Retreat with BCM, where Phud spoke and laid the biblical smackdown on everybody, so that was sweet. We learned how to be true worshipers in every situation. Like Paul and Silas in prison. They were sitting there, beaten and bruised, chained down, and they held a worship service. That's what I want my life to be. Wholly surrendered to God.

Still Alive

So, the election is over...finally. This two year process ended and I'm pretty pumped. Even though Obama won, the world will continue to turn. His lack of experience honestly scares me, however the alternative was not a whole lot better. Pretty much, I need to remember not to put my faith in the government or other people, but in God alone.

OK, that's that.

I just picked up Manchester Orchestra's new EP last weekend...And it is outstanding. But really, I didn't expect anything less from such an amazing band. And the DVD it came with is pretty sweet too. I can't wait for the new Right Away Great Captain and the new MO full length coming out next year. Andy Hull is an amazing songwriter, both lyrically and musically.

So yeah, that's about it right now. Later.

Let's Give This A Try

So, my only experience in blogging is the oh so amazing LiveJournal back in high school. I just read a bunch of my old posts, and it was really kinda depressing. I don't think I was a very fun person back in the day. So I would like to apologize, even though I doubt that any of you are going to see this - Thanks for putting up with my crap. You guys are awesome.

OK, done with that. Moving on. There's a pretty important day coming up soon, and I'm still a little unsure of how I'm going to spend that day. I've never voted before, and I'm not quite sure who I'm going to vote for. Nobody's really looking good to me. McCain is scary because of his health, and I don't really think Palin knows enough to step up. Obama is just straight up inexperienced, and I haven't heard enough to have any confidence in him. So, I need to work on that.

This next week is not looking particularly fun in as far as school goes. I have a lot of writing to do. You would think I was an English major. And speaking of majors, I'm considering going to a double major in IMC and Guitar Performance, just because I love music. I think I would enjoy it.

Alright, that's probably more than anyone cares to read right now (not that I really expect anybody to read it), so I'm going to call it a night and hopefully do a little work. Getting a page written out of the 10 or so I have this week would be a good start tonight.