StreetFest is for Scientists Too

The beginning of the academic year means that, once again, the Service-Learning Center of Calvin College has pulled of another great StreetFest. Over 1000 first-year students ventured into the city of Grand Rapids to service-learn with their peers. I, Anna Casto, was audacious enough to take on the task of coordinating StreetFest 2012. Many great StreetFest Coordinators have gone before me, and I'm sure they too gave up  amazing opportunities to be a part of the particularly amazing opportunity of being StreetFest Coordinator.

I'm a biology and biochemistry major pursing graduate studies in agronomy, so one would expect that I spend my summers in one of Calvin College's many student research positions. I would expect that too. After spending one summer doing research (and loving it), the next summer seemed planned out in advance. Alas, God has an interesting sense of humor. I had my qualms about spending a summer planning a student life event that seemed to have no direct application to my post-graduation goals. In the end, I learned a great deal and I gained many skills that I believe will serve me well in graduate school and beyond.

This post isn't about my feelings about StreetFest, though they are many. The reality of being a StreetFest Coordinator is that the experience teaches a person less about how to do a job and more about how to approach problems, speak with civility, and trust people.

What I learned:

1. Problem solving - StreetFest comes with a whole package of problems and puzzles. Coordinating over 1000 first-year students, over 100 student leaders, and 70 non-profit organizations is a giant puzzle, and naturally, it takes some time and persistence to fit all the pieces together. Science is the same way. There is a large cloud of information, but to solve a problem, you have to pick the right pieces of knowledge and keep trying.
2. Professionalism - People aren't always nice or easy to work with. Sometimes people misunderstand you or don't realize how much your job entails. (My favorite conversations this summer often began like this: "Wow, I just realized how many pieces you had to fit together to pull this off!"Those moments of enlightenment were golden.) I learned a great deal about civility this summer because people weren't always happy with our work or the way we were doing it. Misunderstandings happen often when there are so many people to communicate with. Still, we carry on and hopefully forgive each other for our short comings.
3. Public speaking - Let's just say I never expected to speak to over 1200 people at once. It's thrilling.
4. Delegate - You would think that having an entire summer to work on StreetFest would mean that one StreetFest Coordinator can accomplish every task by herself. Somehow, though, come the last few weeks of August, I was so happy to see my 11 co-workers and pile the task lists on them. My biggest challenge to overcome was letting go of those tasks and trusting my friends to do them well. (They did.)

How does this all apply to my future? Well, even scientists work in groups, so civility and professionalism is as important in a lab as in the Service-Learning Center. Almost all of science requires critically thinking about a problem. Presenting research is one of the primary ways scientists share their discoveries. The list goes on. Practical skills were a great gain, but I also found some surprising internal gains from coordinating StreetFest. I gained a feeling of confidence in my ability take on something new and different. I also found that no matter what I'm working on, I have a passion for what my fellow Calvin people would call a vocation. We are agents in the work of shalom, and the work we do, whether that be coordinating StreetFest or studying agronomy or teaching or painting, is called to the higher purpose of kingdom building.

So whatever you might be doing, may you see great things. May you ask illuminating questions. May you discover something new. May you be open to new possibilities. And most of all, may you catch a glimpse of the kingdom in the weed-pulling, face-painting, house-building work you do today and every day.