Essay by Jeff Donofrio, Fairfield Prep, Grade 10

[Note: This is not the article where you should vote for this contestant. This is essayist No. 6, so in the voting article, which is here, just post a comment that says ‘6' to vote for this student. Voting is limited to one person per finalist per day, and closes at 8 p.m. on May 13. The finalist essay follows.] 



I believe that empathy is the greatest trait of maturity. The sometimes-humorous, sometimes-aggravating antics of young children often result from their being unable to see the world through the eyes of others. Teenagers, and even adults, can hold on to this trait and be restricted by so narrow a worldview as what concerns them. To me, community service is a brilliant approach to understanding others.  

Doing service takes us out of our comfort zones. For example, Fairfield Prep runs a service trip called the Urban Plunge where students stay in the East Side of Bridgeport for a weekend to do service. When I attended this trip, I came to more closely examine my own views of others. For example, my group immediately visited a local school, where the children had just been let out of class for the day. I initially was unsure of what to expect. I feared that the kids would be shy upon meeting so many new faces, or that our interaction would be strained.  

My fears proved to be unfounded, as the children immediately pulled us into the games they were already playing. Soon, almost everyone was playing kickball together. I was surprised even more when a little boy, without saying a word, seized my arm and towed me over to play Four Square. I soon discovered that his version of the rules was different than I remembered, and invariably favored him. While retrieving a wayward kick ball, I wondered how I had ever thought that these kids would not be so welcoming. I had not even been there for two hours, and I already was questioning my earlier assumptions.  

Later on in the Plunge, my group assisted at a warehouse where materials such as food, clothing, and medical supplies were sent to Nicaragua. We mainly sorted and boxed clothes and medical supplies. While working with the latter, I briefly met a Prep alumnus and doctor who had volunteered to use his knowledge to catalogue the equipment. Again I was impressed: long after leaving teenage years and school behind, he continued to embrace the vision of service and took time off to use his skills for the common good.  

I have had similar experiences working with Fairfield Prep Alumni at certain soup kitchens around the holidays. This is service done for the sake of doing service; these men are past the point of needing to fulfill high school requirements or to impress colleges. For me, they exemplify the transformative power of charity and the true spirit of community.  

A community, by definition, cannot be exclusive. In a community, everyone is tied by common bonds and chooses to look out for each other, not because it is convenient, but because it is right. A community is made of individuals, who are all equal in their humanity. Service has changed me by bringing me into contact with people who I would have not met otherwise and by amplifying my capacity to unhderstand and empathize with others