Empowerly

Student profile

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds.  Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc.  Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the University of Washington. (300 words)

Imagine a community built on love, trust, kindness, and fun. I come from this community: it is called Service Space. 

ServiceSpace is a non-profit organization whose aim is to change the world through small, collective acts of kindness. This community is filled with people from all kinds of backgrounds who all have one mission: to make the world a kinder place. ServiceSpace has taught me the value of small. The small actions you perform or the small words you say tend to have a big impact. This was true when I gave a free snack to a veteran who told me that no one has ever shown him this kind of love and kindness.

Every Wednesday, the ServiceSpace community hold Awakin circles. These circles provide an open platform where people express their viewpoints freely. We start off with one topic and go around the circle, each expressing a different viewpoint than the previous. It is through these circles that I learned about the importance of perspectives and understanding.  

The community I come from is a small one, but like I have learned, small can be powerful too. ServiceSpace shows you the utmost level of love and kindness. It is a community that doesn’t judge, but rather makes a point to understand and care. I will bring myself and small acts of kindness and love to the University of Washington community. I will be an individual who is understanding and who listens. I will be a person to cares and loves. Whether it be by leaving small notes of encouragement on dorm doors or paying for another person’s meal, I will spread the love and kindness that was taught to me by Service Space and thereby add to the diversity through my actions.