Community Service Essay Anonymous

Sarah - with her floral, lilac shirts, bluish, clairvoyant gaze and bass-y Southern accent - is a remarkable woman. I met her whilst serving in the Chelsea House Ministry, several years after she was rehabilitated by the program. Inspired by the program's emphasis on personal value and innate abilities, she overcame her challenges and became a mentor to other women in crisis.

Benevolence in itself is often a poor driver for social progress. Initiatives that make lasting impacts recognize the intrinsic potential of the individual and seek to eliminate the 'victim mentality'. In other words, people are empowered to regard themselves as the drivers to their own socio-economic advancement. This is not to say that traditional 'bread-and-butter' initiatives are wholly ineffective. When harmonized with sustainable objectives, charitable aid can promote personal and social responsibility. Community empowerment is gaining prominence in today's uncertain world. The treatment of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in my country, for instance, is transforming the concept of service. Members of my church community organize clothing items, soap, and other necessities which Boko Haram victims may find useful,but policy makers argue for...