Reflection on the project
By Bella Sison
Although it feels hard to believe, I have finished up my time on the “Compass the City” outreach project and will be headed home June 24. I arrived in Seattle on May 15, and the past month and a half have been a whirlwind of outreach, church visits, city exploration, and more. Now, as I’m getting ready to head back to Virginia, I’ve taken some time to reflect on my takeaways from my time here.
The outreach itself was a great experience, but also different from anything I predicted. When I accepted the offer to come here, I loved the idea of performing outreach with The Christian Science Monitor Weekly, but I had no clue what that would look like. I started out by just watching Izzy to see how she did it, since she was here working the same job last summer. The work was more intuitive than I expected - our offer to each business worker was fairly straightforward, and most of our interactions with them were fairly short and simple. After watching Izzy a few times, I gave it a shot by offering some sample copies to the next business. Although it took a while to feel less nervous about it, I was able to keep participating in the outreach and getting more comfortable as the summer progressed.
Our strategies for outreach changed over time as well. We developed a system where I would record the information for each business that wanted a subscription while Izzy would take photos to document them. With this system, we were able to keep a nice balance in the workload. For my own conversations with workers, I adjusted as I went. For example, I noticed that business workers were more likely to pay attention and be receptive to our offer if I began by saying, “Hello! We have a question for you!” rather than simply starting with the offer of a sample copy. We interacted with dozens of workers every day, so I paid attention to their reactions and adapted my approach to be the most clear and understandable to them.
One of my favorite parts of this summer has been getting to interact with so many different branch churches. As someone who comes from an area without any Christian Science churches nearby, I had a great time visiting several churches in Seattle and the surrounding area! We spent each Wednesday doing outreach in an area with a branch church so that we could stay there and attend their Wednesday Testimony Meeting in the evening. We also visited a few different branch churches on Sundays, and we visited as many Reading Rooms as we could when we were doing outreach in their areas. Everywhere we go, the local church members are supportive, loving, and excited to have us there. We have had so many lovely conversations with local Christian Scientists, and it has truly brightened my day every time we are able to do so. I feel so lucky to have met so many wonderful people here, and it has been really meaningful for me to see how Christian Scientists are at work in a different area of the country!
I have also had an amazing time exploring the city. As someone from a small suburban town, living in a big city has been incredibly exciting! I loved visiting different areas of Seattle and the surrounding area, even if we were just walking around the streets. I have also loved all the types of city transportation we have tried - the monorail, light rail, bus system, ferries, and - most exciting of all - seaplanes! I have had such a great time visiting different parts of the city, and I am glad to have many fun memories to take with me!
All in all, my time here has been amazing, and I feel so lucky that things worked out as they did. Izzy, Cindy, and I made a great team, so our outreach has gone well as we have all brought our different perspectives and skills to the table. I truly believe that our work has had an impact on this city, and I sincerely hope that this program continues in the future.
I wasn’t sure what this summer would look like for me, but I’m so glad that God led me here to work on this project. I’m deeply grateful to Izzy, Cindy, and everyone else who worked on this project, along with everyone we met along the way. I’ll miss you all, but I know the impact of this project will continue on, and I’m so grateful that I got to be a part of it!