Spiritual Life @ Bucknell

Amma Boamah-Appiah ’25

“The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they aren’t true, but they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story”- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

When one goes into vulnerable spaces that they are not privy to, it is easy to see the narrative that the media portrays or that your eyes only allow you to see. It takes immersion and the removal of self to get an accurate depiction of the multidimensional story that should be told. Today, we went to Our Daily Bread, which is a soup kitchen. We were designated groups and I chose to be a server ​​for the purpose of being a newscaster. What do I mean by newscaster? I mean someone who is in the field, someone who observes and takes in information directly from the source in order to retell the story. First experience that I had in Our Daily Bread: there was a lady who came in and sat at my table. She was crying and seemed in a lot of distress, and as the empath that I am, I was not able to just sit down and watch her being distressed. I went up to her and asked her if she wanted a certain type of food and if she was okay. I went to get her food and I asked if she wanted me to pray for her and she obliged. As I was praying for her, I realized that I have so much to be grateful for.

Continue reading “The Danger of a Single Story”

Lexi Rhoads ’26

Who do you imagine when you hear the word change?

Growing up I learned that the world where I lived was in need of change. I did not know what kind of change or how it would happen, but I knew that someone had to do something. My family was constantly moving around and trying to survive off of my dad’s income as a taxi driver. We were relying on food stamps and WIC to make up for the low income we had. Due to this, once the food stamp card ran out, we  would turn to the resources in our community such as the food bank and soup kitchen. Hence, visiting and volunteering in the kitchen at Our Daily Bread was a full-circle experience for me. 

Continue reading “Who is change?”

Barbara Wankollie ’25

Being surrounded by people that share the same experiences, and are actively seeking solutions to solve social issues while promoting the importance of community, is always inspiring and a blessing to me. Today we had the honor of fellowshipping with the  Liberty Grace Church in Baltimore. Going into this experience I expected to see all of the amazing work Mr. Terris King II and the Liberty Grace Church are doing in the Black community surrounding food security and the ecosystem, but what I was not prepared for was how passionate they promote community or what I assume after our meeting “Family”. There were two things or instances that I connected to on a personal level. The first was the bowling center in the basement of the church and the sermon.

Continue reading “those “little” things”

Da’mirah Vinson ’26

Today we had the chance to go on a tour of the city with Terris King II. He showed us a couple of places where his Temple X Forrest School works with various plots of land to either clean up trash, plant new trees or whatever the kids of the school imagine the land to look like. One of the locations that stood out the most to me was the urban forestry behind the Ashburton Elementary/Middle School. Terris and the students from the school have been working with the land for about 4 years and their main goal is to keep the forestry clean. The area suffers from a lot of litter because it is a usual dumping spot, people often walk through, and it is public property. What is frustrating about the land is that every time the school works to clean up the area, it is filled with trash again.

Continue reading “Years and Small Steps”

Zoe Kemp ’24

It is almost impossible not to feel joyful when you are witnessing the Black Church Food Security Network in all its glory, hearing about its successful 250 congregation outreach, interacting with its staff including Executive Director Linneal, Executive Assistant Brahein, and fellows Shawne, Azaria, and Nash, and while helping unbox merchandise and organizing a space. You feel its mission at every step of the way, and perhaps you envision yourself with a successful mission of your own, if only for a brief moment. This is something Rev. Heber Brown mentioned while we were sat down for a delicious lunch after helping them organize a room piled high with boxes, and having a “detective session” with Rev. Brown in helping him brainstorm ways of connecting a community in Houston, Texas.

Continue reading “March 9, Visiting the Black Church Food Security Network”

We can’t wait to travel and learn and partner with these 12 wonderful Bucknell students! We’ve been reading and studying and preparing, and we’re off to Baltimore today, follow along with student reflections here.

Huge thanks to our Commuity Partners:
Black Church Food Security Network
Liberty Grace Church / Temple X Academy
Our Daily Bread
Temple Beth El
Strength to Love Too
Islamic Society of Baltimore
MD Food Bank
Baltimore Food Planning & Policy
Bread for the World

What a week it has been! I am so glad that I have had the opportunity to come to Baltimore for Food, Faith, and Justice a second time. This week was filled with meaningful conversation, learning, connection, joy, and laughter. Thinking back on this experience, I will of course remember all of the amazing people and organizations we met with, but I will also remember the many rounds of spicy uno and pit, the communal cooking and meals, fun car rides, late night conversations, and shared reflections. As we have been saying ever since the course began, one of our main goals was to form a learning community, and this is exactly what our group became. I could not be happier with how the 13 of us came together this week. 

Continue reading “The Value of Community – Dora Kreitzer ’25”

If I had to describe the sofa in the hall that’s how I’d do it. So velvety and soft; It’s like hugging a giant, prone panda. I digress. Aside from the sofa today had some extremely memorable events. The group headed to the Baltimore Food Policy and Planning (B.F.P.P) Office where we concluded weeks of study and buildup to understanding the reality of food security and interventions in Baltimore. They shared with us how they partnered with over 19 other agencies to implement policies that promoted food security for all people.

Among their accomplishments were changing the name of food deprived areas from food deserts to Healthy Food Priority Areas (HFPA), created farmers markets and making land accessible to the people of Baltimore (which counteracts the root cause of the food divide).

Continue reading “Ludicrously comfortable – Sethumte Asamoah-Nani ’26”