Volunteering, Soccer, and Amazing Views

Hello! This first blog post marks the start of this amazing adventure ahead of us. We have been in Chattanooga only two days yet we have already done so much. The Institute staff have really done a great job with the arrangements and we are very excited for this upcoming month.

Today, was filled with volunteering, football, sightseeing, and nature. We met at 8 am and went straight to what is starting to feel like our second home -the van. Our dear SUSI mentors took us to excursion number one for the day which was volunteering with the Red Cross Organization.

As I am a volunteer for the Red Cross in Sweden, I was very excited to see how the organization operates here in Tennessee, what types of projects they lead here, and what challenges they are facing. Today, our job was to install fire alarms as well as educate families in need about fire safety. The leaders from the Red Cross told us about their work here in Tennessee and it was very inspiring to see such engaged individuals working hard for the community.

We did learn one thing or two about fire safety, but I would say meeting the families and seeing their homes was the most memorable part of the volunteering experience.

After the volunteering session it was time to grab a quick lunch before heading to Rock City. Rock City is located on Lookout Mountain and offers, unsurprisingly, a fantastic view. Together, we walked to the top to the famous 7-state panoramic views. The nature is spectacular!

The third and final adventure of the day was a soccer game at Finley Stadium. We were greeted by the program directors at the Chattanooga football club who told us about their work. As always, we felt more than welcomed and I was once again struck

by the strong sense of community here in Chattanooga, and the willingness to give back to the community. I can sense a very strong "pay it forward" effect here which I hope to bring back to Sweden when I leave. We had some dinner outside before entering the stadium and we were absorbed by the excitement in the air. 90 minutes later we had experienced our first American soccer game and Chattanooga won! I’d say a perfect ending to a busy but very exciting day.