by Anna Dunbar

I often wonder why we don’t have more people participating in curbside recycling in Waco. We have about one-third of our Waco households participating in the blue cart recycling program now, but why don’t more households participate? After all, participation is pretty easy and it is available with no extra fee! We even have a recycling drop-off center that accepts recyclables from those who do not have easy access to curbside recycling service. Let me explain:

Curbside recycling is available at no extra charge!

If you are a Waco resident with Waco trash service with a grey trash cart, you can have curbside recycling at no extra charge. Put all recyclables together in your blue curbside recycling cart:

A. Any paper that is clean and will tear.

B. Metals such as aluminum cans, aluminum baking tins, steel (tin) food cans and lids. No need to rinse soda cans unless you just want to (ants!), please do rinse food cans.

C. Plastics, all colors, numbers 1 thru 7 and plastic bags.

D. Please do not put glass or Styrofoam into your recycling cart.  Glass of all colors may be taken to the Cobbs Recycling Center located on 44th Street between Cobbs Drive and Trice Avenue. For more information, call (254) 751-8536 or go to waco-texas.com.

Recycling is not hard!

The City of Waco has made it pretty simple. You put all recyclables in one blue cart, loose. The blue cart system is intended to be hassle free, no sorting! If you are new to recycling, you do not have to recycle everything possible, just start with a couple of categories. For example, if your household has magazines, cardboard and newspaper, start with that! Later you can add water bottles, soft drink bottles and aluminum cans such as soda cans. Those items require minimal preparation for recycling, and everyone knows what they are, cutting down on decisions and confusion. Your recycling day is the same day as your trash day, but every other week. If you do not remember which week to set out your blue recycling cart, go to Waco-texas.com or call (254) 299-2612 for a solid waste and recycling calendar. Or if your neighbors recycle at curbside, copy what they do!

It’s easy to get a blue cart!

If you do not have a blue recycling cart, you can pick one up at the Cobbs Recycling Center, 2021 44th Street, or the Operations Center, 501 Schroeder Drive. Please bring your water bill and proof of Waco residency. If you are unable to pick up your cart, please call (254) 299-2612 to request delivery of the cart.

Still think it’s not worth it?

Think again! Your reduced waste can make a difference for the environment and for our landfill. If every Waco household recycled everything they could, it would make such a great impact on the amount of waste going to our landfill! It is estimated that about 50% of the trash we generate in the US is recyclable. That is important because it is estimated that the Waco landfill has a remaining life of just twelve years. What that means is that Waco will have to expand the landfill within the next twelve years in order to contain our ever increasing “mountain of trash”! I think we all want to save landfill space because doing so delays the expenditure of money to expand our landfill.

Come on, Wacoans, join me in keeping Waco Clean and Green!

This week’s Act Locally Waco blog post is by Anna Dunbar. Anna is the Recycling and Public Outreach Administrator for the City of Waco Solid Waste Services. She is responsible for informing Waco residents and businesses about recycling and waste reduction opportunities as well as solid waste services in Waco. Her husband is a Baylor professor and her daughter is a senior at Trinity University. She serves on board of Keep Waco Beautiful and is a member of The Central Texas Audubon Society and Northwest Waco Rotary. If you would be interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco blog, please email [email protected] .  

by Abby Loop

Women at the Kate Ross Apartments in Waco now have the opportunity to join in the fight against hunger by learning and sharing cooking ideas through an innovative program called “Cooking Matters.”  

Cooking Matters is a part of the nationwide “No Kid Hungry” campaign to end childhood Hunger. In the program participants learn to shop smarter, use nutrition information and prepare delicious meals that are affordable even on a SNAP (food stamp) budget. Founded in 1993, volunteer instructors from Cooking Matters have helped thousands of low-income families across the country learn how to eat better for less. Now, the Cooking Matters program is offered every Friday, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., right here in Waco in the Kate Ross Apartments. Sponsored by the Waco Regional Baptist Association and with instructors provided by Acts Church, the program is in its fifth week. It will continue through August 8, 2014.

I attended one of these sessions at Kate Ross. The group included about 18 women. Many were from Kate Ross; some were from other areas in Waco and had heard of the program from friends or family.

The session started off with a discussion led by Conway Del Conte, the Waco Regional Baptist Association’s (WRBA) Hunger Ministry Coordinator who also attends Acts Church. For the Waco classes, Ms. Del Conte integrates the Cooking Matters educational materials into a curriculum called “Hunger in God’s World” which has been developed in collaboration with Seeds of Hope Publishers.  Her goal was to teach the mothers and other participants in the class more about food insecurity. We discussed ways to provide for our families and avoid hunger. We also learned about food insecurity in Waco, and around the world. The standard definition of the physiological phenomenon of hunger is a feeling of discomfort or weakness caused by lack of food, coupled with the desire to eat. The term “Food insecurity” goes beyond these physical symptoms, and includes the lack of sufficient and reliable access to healthy food.

As we went around the room, many different words were mentioned as each woman shared her own definition of hunger:

“Depression.”

“Not having money to buy food.”

“Having food but not wanting to eat it.”

“Sickness.”

“Stress.”

One woman brought up the feeling in your stomach you get when you’re so hungry it hurts. Another brought up the feelings you get of not being able to provide for your family with the little money you have. Hearing these answers really put into perspective for me how hunger is affecting lives in the community, all in different ways, but all problematic.

Patara Williams, a Baylor student, volunteers as a Cooking Matters instructor and cook for this particular course. She explained to me how she’s in charge of planning the meals for the program based on a standard SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps) budget. She prepares the meals for women involved in the program, and then teaches them how to plan for and cook their own healthy meals.

I took a tour of the kitchen as Williams explained to me how she decides on the meals. She buys all the food at HEB and focuses on nutritional factors, cost, and convenience. The meal for that day was barbequed chicken (baked, not fried), with cornbread and cabbage. Each meal is supposed to cost $1.50 for each person, an amount one would usually have when budgeting with SNAP. For drinks, she served organic strawberry lemonade. The goal of each meal is to create a “Smart Plate,” a plate that includes vegetables and protein and is based on USDA recommendations that encourage a balanced and healthy diet.

“I relay Cooking Matters material, give information on how to spend wisely, and also how to prepare food wisely,” Williams said, referring to her role as a Cooking Matters instructor. “I have a passion for cooking and service. As an instructor this has been educational for me as well. Even the most educated [person] could learn something from this course.”

As we learned practical tips together, including how chicken should be baked instead of fried, how a meal should always have something green, and how one can make a meal for a large family and still be within budget, I realized there was much more I could do to start engaging in healthier eating and spending.

The women around me realized the same thing. A woman sitting next to me said, “I have three boys at home. They all eat like horses. Wait till I cook them up something like this,” she said, gesturing to her plate of food. Another woman sitting behind me had brought her children along that day. I could overhear the little girl sitting with her saying, “This is good, I thought I wouldn’t like it but this green stuff is good.”

Everyone left the course that day with new insights into eating and cooking. I could hear the women discussing what meal they were going to make for their families next. Some were even planning group trips to HEB to pick out foods to eat and cook for their families. Hearing such positive feedback from my fellow participants showed me the great impact a program such as this one can have not only as a step toward reducing food insecurity, but also as a step toward building support and community.

Many of us don’t know how we can shop for and make healthy and affordable meals. Attending or volunteering with a program like Cooking Matters can help us find new ways to cook meals and better ways to stretch a restricted budget.

For more information about Cooking Matters, visit http://cookingmatters.org/ . To learn more about the Cooking Matters/Hunger in God’s World program in Waco and other WRBA hunger ministries contact Hunger Ministry Coordinator Conway Del Conte at [email protected].

This Act Locally Waco blog post was written by Abby Loop. Abby is from Brownsville, Texas and is a senior journalism student at Baylor University. She loves traveling, good music, and making a difference. She’s currently hoping to bring about positive changes through anti-hunger work. If you would be interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco blog, please contact Ashley Thornton via email at [email protected].

 

 

 

 

 

by Cameron Goodman

Introduction to Recidivism

The issue of recidivism is what brought me to Waco just six months ago as a Volunteer in Service to America (VISTA). When I told my family and friends about the impending move, I found that many had no idea what the term recidivism even meant, let alone why it is such an important issue for our society on the National, State, and Local level. Until very recently, I myself did not have a great understanding of recidivism or its importance, but the past six months have opened my eyes to the struggles that many formerly incarcerated individuals face when they leave jail or prison and return back into our community.

Recidivism may sound like technical jargon. Here’s a definition: “Criminal acts that result in the rearrest, reconviction, or return to prison with or without a new sentence.” The “recidivism rate” typically refers to the percentage of formerly incarcerated individuals who return to incarceration within three years.

Why Recidivism Matters

Nearly 95 percent of State Prisoners will return to their communities at some point in time, with 600,000 prisoners released annually nationwide. While some of these men and women will successfully make the transition out of incarceration and back into a community, many are not so fortunate. Nationally, the recidivism rate hovers near 41 percent.

High recidivism rates may mean that ex-offenders are committing new crimes when they are released. This becomes a public safety issue. Working to help ex-offenders build positive behaviors and supporting them in their transition out of incarceration can mean a safer community for us all.

High recidivism rates also impact local families. Children of incarcerated parents are more than 5 1/2 times more likely to be expelled or suspended from school than students who do not have an incarcerated parent. They are also 5 times more likely to end up behind bars themselves. In order to stop this cycle of crime, it is important to help formerly incarcerated parents avoid returning to jail or prison, and to help them become a positive presence within their own families.

The economic implications of the recidivism rate are also very important. In a time of tightening budgets, saving money by reducing the number of inmates in county jails, as well as state and federal facilities, can help to direct tax dollars that would have been used to keep people behind bars to other more productive areas.

To put things in a local perspective, the average daily cost to house the entire jail population in McLennan County adds up to $52,628 dollars per day. Another way to think about these costs is that it costs more to house an inmate in jail for 5 months than the average price of tuition at a public university in Texas. The high cost of keeping offenders behind bars means that even a small percentage decrease in the recidivism rate in our county can help to save a significant amount of money for taxpayers.

Lessons That I Have Learned

While it is easy to get lost in all the reports and data regarding recidivism, some of the most important lessons that I have learned have come from informal conversations with those who have been behind bars and are currently making strides to get their lives back on track.

One of these conversations was particularly eye opening in that it demonstrated just how many obstacles exist for people who have a criminal record. This person had already completed a very arduous two-year drug rehabilitation program and had also managed to find employment, but he opened up to me about the other struggles that made life after prison so difficult. The very modest paycheck that he earned had to cover probation fees, child support payments, and tuition at a local community college. This left him with very little after all of his obligations had been met. Instead of being downtrodden, he beamed with excitement while telling me about how he was finally working towards his dream career and how all of the hard work in his rehabilitation program had finally started to pay off.

While many fall back into old habits when faced with adversity, this individual helped to show me that successful reintegration is possible when programs and support systems exist to help those who want to turn their lives around.

How You Can Help

A report released by the Council of State Governments Justice Center stated that it is of special importance that ex-offenders get support in their own communities rather than looking to centrally based institutions. This finding demonstrates the necessity of a community wide effort to help reduce recidivism and provide these fellow citizens with the support that they need to help put their life on the right track and stay there.

Individual efforts to educate the community are helpful. Mission Waco Legal Services Lawyer Kent McKeever’s “40 Days in Orange” campaign helped shine the light on recidivism in McLennan County, and his story even reached the pages of the New York Times. We may not all be able have our own story in the one of the most circulated newspapers in the country, but we can help to educate our friends and neighbors by simply having a discussion about recidivism and what we can do to help reduce the number of people returning behind bars.

If you are an employer, consider giving one of these returning citizens a chance. Many of these ex-offenders have marketable skills. The employers to whom I have spoken claim that many of the ex-offenders that they have hired have been dependable and have displayed a great willingness to work. Also, employers may be eligible for a Work Opportunity Tax Credit when they hire an ex-offender.

The McLennan County reintegration Roundtable

If you wish to become involved this effort at the community level, then I encourage you to learn more about the McLennan County Reintegration Roundtable. There are four interest groups that work on subjects such as providing counseling to ex-offenders, linking ex-offenders with existing resources in our community, increasing employment for ex-offenders, and measuring the success of reintegration efforts in McLennan County. To find out more information about the Reintegration Roundtable, please visit www.McLennanCountyReintegration.weebly.com.

This Act Locally Waco blog post was written by Cameron Goodman. Cameron is a recent graduate from the Bush School of Government and Public Service and is serving as an AmeriCorps Vista member through Baylor¹s Office of Community Engagement and Service (CES). For more information on programs offered through CES, please visit http://www.baylor.edu/engage/.  If you would be interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco blog, please contact Ashley Thornton by emailing [email protected] .

 

 

 

 

 

by Ryn Farmer

 Each year, nearly 9 million dollars are drained from the Waco economy because of excessive fees charged by predatory lenders.

Recently, a documentary came out called “Spent: Looking for Change.” It follows the lives of four different families who are struggling to get by and end up using payday loans and auto title loans to help supplement their income. One of the individuals in the documentary states, “It’s not an irrational choice. It’s just not a productive choice… and it’s a costly choice.” And sometimes working families do not have any other option. You can watch “Spent” by clicking here.

Payday loans and auto title loans emerged in the 1990s. They were developed as a way to provide small cash advances to individuals who had poor credit and could not get a loan from a financial institution. Gary Rivlin with AlterNet writes, “By 2006, the payday loan was a $40-billion-a-year industry with more storefronts scattered around the country than the combined numbers of McDonalds and Burger King, each offering a kind of fast-food finance to the working poor at annual interest rates as high as 500 and 600 percent, depending on the state.” (“Meet the Man Who Made a Fortune Exploiting the Poor With Payday Loans”)

This issue has garnered much conversation, both in the state of Texas and in Waco, over the past several years. In many other states payday and auto title lenders are highly regulated, but in Texas few regulations exist to keep these entities in check. Because of the lack of regulation, there has been a tremendous growth of payday lenders in Texas. They use coercion to reel in consumers and then extort them by keeping them in a tangled web of debt through excessive fees and multiple refinances of the loan.

Under the current state law:

• No limits on fees
• No limit on interest rates
• No limit on the size of the loan
• No limit on rollovers or refinances
• No limits on ability to repay based on income

The impact on consumers is devastating. In Texas, the loan rate can be upwards of 500% APR. The average amount borrowed in Texas is $500 for a payday loan and $800 for an auto title loan. The average payday borrower in Texas pays $840 for a $300 loan. Many payday borrowers take out additional loans to cover previous loans resulting in a vicious cycle of debt. In the greater Waco area, there are 65 storefronts and 55% of consumers refinance their payday loan (Citizens for Responsible Lending, 2014; Texas Appleseed, 2013).

All of this seems absolutely ridiculous, right? So how is it legal? The diagram gives a short explanation. The consumer pays the money to the Credit Service Organization (CSO) or the Credit Access Business (CAB), which is the storefront, and only interacts with them. The storefront (the CSO/CAB) is unregulated in Texas and can charge any amount they want in fees. The lender (usually a bank) provides the loan capital at a 10% interest rate to the CSO/CAB and the lender does not have a direct relationship with the consumer. The consumer pays the 10% interest plus the additional fees that the CSO/CAB adds to the loan.

A woman from Waco tells her story about using a payday lending service after experiencing some unforeseen difficulties: “My husband was injured at his work place and had to go on disability. That meant we were on a fixed income. I started with a cash store because I saw an ad on TV. I got $300. Every 2 weeks there was a repayment due. I would pay $67 or $70 in fees to refinance the loan. I’m on a part time income. I have paid $150 in interest and I still owe $300. Because I couldn’t pay it back I got another one and another and another one to pay back my other loan. My husband also took out 4 other loans. After a year of this they let me break down the loan into 4 payments, but you have to ask for this plan. They don’t advertise it, and you have to qualify. We barely had enough money for food… I closed my bank account and stopped paying on the loans. I know it’s probably on my credit report. If you’re going to do work with legislation you should tell them to offer payment plans to customers. The payday lenders don’t tell their customers about that option. It would help to have payment plans instead.”

Little is being done at the state-level to address these concerns. There has been a push in the state of Texas to pass ordinances at the local city level and to create ethical alternatives. So far, 18 Texas cities have passed ordinances to limit payday and auto title lenders. Waco has worked to address this in the past and is currently ramping up efforts. However, few viable alternatives exist in Waco so far.

Citizens for Responsible Lending is a group of individuals from a variety of sectors in Waco who have formed several task teams to work on addressing predatory lending. They are looking at what type of ordinance could be passed within our city and in the greater Waco area to limit payday and auto title lenders. They are also seeking to develop an alternative to these negative business practices that exploit our citizens. If you are interested in joining Citizens for Responsible Lending or would like more information about this issue, please contact Ryn Farmer or Alexis Christensen at 254.235.7358 or email them: [email protected]  or  [email protected].

This Week’s Act Locally Waco Blog post is by Ryn Farmer. Ryn is a Community Organizer at the Waco Community Development Corporation (Waco CDC). Waco CDC helps to inspire and cultivate healthy neighborhoods. They consider a healthy neighborhood to be one that is safe, clean, and diverse; one in which it makes economic sense for people to invest and one where neighbors manage change successfully. If you would be interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco blog, please send an email expressing your interest to [email protected].

 

By Erin Venable, Marketing Director, Waco Transit

Thank you, Laura White, for your recent foray into Waco’s public transportation system! Your recent blog post helped shine some light on why a robust public transportation system is so very important for our community.

You are correct in your conclusion that riding the bus can be time-consuming – we would love to increase the number of vehicles we run to decrease the wait and route time. However, until we receive an increase in funding, we are limited in what we can offer. Additionally, we are working hard to serve a rapidly expanding urban area with our already stretched-tight resources. We hope that stories like yours will help raise community awareness and public will to support that much-needed investment.

As for your experience riding our buses, I am sorry it was not as pleasant as it could have been. I want to make sure that you and our other Waco riders know about the services we offer that can help make using our current system easier.

Because we recognize that riding a city bus for the first time (and navigating the routes/time points) can indeed be intimidating, we offer free travel training upon request. In this training we take individuals or groups through the ins and outs of reading a bus map, planning a route, tracking the bus, and actual boarding and disembarking from the vehicle. We work with many local schools, social service organizations, and other community partners to make riding the bus as easy as possible for those who want to take advantage of our system. (If you are interested in arranging such a class for your group or organization, please email Denise Rodriguez at [email protected].)

Additionally, one new development we recently rolled out is our free GPS app, which allows riders to track the buses as they move along the routes. The Ride Systems app can be downloaded on any smart phone, and users can see the route in its entirety, where the bus is currently, and the expected time of arrival for the main stops along the route. We feel like this has revolutionized the bus riding experience in Waco, and we have been working since our January roll-out to market the fact that this tool is available. (If you would like to track the routes via your desktop computer, please visit www.ridewaco.com .)

We do have some exciting plans in the pipeline that we feel would address many of our current challenges, but we need the public to rally around public transportation and encourage the powers-that-be to increase funding so that we can make needed changes and improve public transportation in this city. While we are thankful to have the support of many city and community leaders, we need citizens to speak up and make their requests known in our Downtown Transportation Study surveys, our MPO meetings, and wherever else you have a voice.

We would love to hear from you! Visit www.wacotransitsystem.com to fill out a Downtown Waco Transportation Study survey.

Also, The Waco Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is in the process of identifying transportation needs for Metropolitan Waco through the year 2040. They have invited all interested people to make their priorities known. You can submit feedback in writing until June 15. Suggestions may be submitted by fax at (254) 750-1605, by e-mail to [email protected] or by mail directed to Christopher Evilia at the following address: Waco Metropolitan Planning Organization, P.O. Box 2570, Waco, Texas 76702-2570. Please take a moment to urge them to make improving public transportation a priority. Transportation is an important issue for all of us!  

This Act Locally Waco blog post was written by Erin Venable. Erin, a Waco native, is the Marketing Director at Waco Transit. In addition to her work at Waco Transit, she also moonlights as a mother of five (ages 5 – 13) and serves on the Keeping Your Sanity board. Erin and her family are preparing to move to Cameroon via Antioch Ministries International and the Medical Centers of West Africa, where she hopes, among other things, to continue dialoguing about her beliefs and passions. If you would like to write for the Act Locally Waco blog, please contact Ashley Thornton by email at [email protected].

by Cheryl Allen Resource Coordinator for VOICE  

I recently began working for VOICE (Viable Options in Community Endeavors), a nonprofit that serves sixteen counties, including McLennan and its neighbors. Before joining the staff, I was aware of VOICE’s existence, but not exactly what they did. Turns out, I was not alone in that lack of knowledge. Several friends and colleagues have asked me to clarify the role that VOICE plays locally. I am happy to explain! Here are six things everyone should know about VOICE:

1. We offer successful programs. – The purpose of VOICE is to strengthen families and help young people lead healthy and productive lives. We offer fourteen programs that approach this goal in a variety of ways. In some programs, such as our Curriculum-based Support Groups and “Project Toward no Drug Abuse,” we work with young people to help them develop the self-control and sound decision-making strategies to resist drugs. We also have programs such as La Voz Para Familia and the Strengthening Families Program in which we work with whole families to create an environment where children and youth can thrive. The Department of State Health Services (DSHS) grants under which we operate require that we use curricula that have been assessed and demonstrated to be effective. For a list of VOICE programs and the counties in which they are offered, click here: VOICE programs.

2. We change lives…lots of lives. – I have seen first-hand the difference that our programs make in individuals, families and communities. Our funding sources require us to be very diligent in reporting who we have reached, how we did it and the outcomes of our efforts. In fiscal year 2013, we touched 25,000 lives in McLennan County alone.

3. We are an autonomous organization with a successful history. – VOICE began in Corsicana in 1992 as the dream of Lois Hart, a retired educator who was passionate about helping children and youth. This grassroots beginning allows us to be autonomous, and we can tailor our programs to meet the needs of each community that we serve. Because of our successful history, in 2010 we were asked by the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to include Region 7 (Bosque, Coryell, Falls, Freestone, Hamilton, McLennan and Milam) in our service area.

4. We play well with others. – VOICE’s philosophy is that working with local nonprofits, schools and churches increases the impact that we can make in a community. With that philosophy in mind we actively seek and maintain partnerships. For example, we are very proud that we have recently become a Waco-McLennan County partner agency. Also, we received funding to form the VOICE Against Substance Abuse Coalition (VASA Coalition) to work with stakeholders throughout McClennan County to implement environmental prevention strategies that will reduce the use of alcohol, marijuana and prescription drugs. Please contact me if you would like to learn more about our partnerships or the VASA Coalition.

5. We have funding to accomplish our goals. – In 2013, we received ten five-year grants totaling 2.6 million per year (1.4 million for Region 7). To qualify for the funding, we must raise five percent in matching funds from each region; thankfully, we are allowed to count volunteer hours and in-kind donations as part of that match!

6. We have diverse, dedicated and well-trained staff. – We have twenty-eight program staffers and five administrative employees for our sixteen-county area. Our staff reflects the demographics of the populations that we serve, and we receive extensive training on an ongoing basis.

If you would like to learn more about VOICE, please contact me. I am very excited about the work that we are doing and am more than happy to visit about it! I can be reached by phone at 254-855-2259 or by e-mail at [email protected].

This Act Locally Waco blog post was written by Cheryl Allen. Cheryl has served the community professionally and as a volunteer for many years. She is the Resource Coordinator for VOICE and is an adjunct lecturer in Civic and Community Service at Baylor University. If you would be interested in writing a post for the Act Locally Waco blog, please email [email protected].

by Laura L. White, recent Baylor graduate

I may not drive the “coolest” of cars; it is a hefty station wagon that gets me from point A to B in a safe and timely manner. I have always been appreciative of this luxury, but after a recent experience, my appreciation has grown ten-fold.

On a Friday afternoon, I made an appointment at the McLennan Community College (MCC) Family Health Center to get a simple blood test. I decided to take public transportation to get there. The night before, I researched the bus route on the Waco Transit website. Let me just say, I can understand complex Organic Chemistry problems, but I could not seem to understand the bus system! After about 30 minutes I finally decided on my route.

My Spanish class ended at 2:10 pm and I immediately headed to the bus stop on 12^th St. According to my research, a bus was supposed to arrive at 2:24, which would take me to the downtown Waco bus terminal by 3:10. From there, I would hop on a different bus line that would take me to MCC. According to these plans, I would arrive by 3:32pm. My appointment was at 4:30, so I thought I had plenty of buffer time.

I was at the bus stop by 2:20pm… and no bus came. Confused, I used my iPhone to call the main bus transit authority. The person who answered the phone explained that the bus I was expecting was not going to be making that stop. He redirected me to a different bus. I had to walk three blocks over and wait for another twenty minutes until the (free) Baylor Blue Line bus arrived.

We drove around the Baylor campus and various students got on and off. The bus then pulled up outside the gas station near 5^th St. The bus driver instructed me that this was where I needed to get off to catch the next bus. I waited outside for another ten minutes until the new bus pulled up. I hopped on and asked the driver if he could take me to the main bus terminal. Unfortunately this bus did not stop there, but he said he could take me to within four blocks. He drove for about 25 minutes, then informed me that he was as close as he would be getting to the terminal, so I got off.

I walked the four blocks to the terminal. No one else was there, but I waited hopefully. More people started arriving, and after 30 minutes the bus finally pulled up.

The other two buses I had ridden had been filled with Baylor students. On this bus there were two young women with babies; an older gentleman who had difficulty walking and smelled of body odor and alcohol; a grandmother and her three-year-old granddaughter; and a young family of a mom, dad, and infant son.

Several other people got on the bus at the next few stops. By this point, it was almost 4pm and I could hear my stomach grumbling. I noticed several people pressing the button to request a stop. When the driver pulled over, I realized that we were outside of a McDonald’s. Half of the people on the bus got off at this stop! I always preach the importance of proper nutrition, and I have not eaten at McDonalds in years, but I had a feeling rush over me in that moment that all I wanted to do was to join them.

This experience made me almost ashamed of the lack of challenges I usually face in making healthy food choices. When I go to the grocery store, I purchase only fresh produce, meats, and dairy. Once I have all of my groceries, I load my car and go home. Now I realize how hard that process would be without a car. Carrying more than a few bags would be completely out of the question. And, if you are waiting a long time for the bus in the Texas heat, I’m sure that’s not the best for the milk, eggs, or vegetables you purchased.

As I said, after being on the bus for nearly two hours, I, Laura White who does not eat fast food, wanted nothing more than to stop in McDonald’s. If I were one of the young moms on the bus, eating an inexpensive meal while the children played in the safe environment of the play-area would seem like a completely wonderful plan. Needless to say, I now have a new appreciation of the difficulties people in poverty face when trying to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Finally, I heard the driver alert everyone that we were coming up to the MCC stop. I exited the bus, but having never been to this clinic, I wasn’t sure where it was. I aimlessly meandered through the parking lot until I found a person who gave me directions. I specifically remember her saying as I began walking away, “You definitely don’t want to walk all the way there. It’s really far. Just take your car.” A sinking feeling came over me and I politely responded, “I don’t have one. I took the bus. Thanks for the directions.”

The one thing this experience taught me—understanding. What would have taken me less than twenty minutes in a car, took me two hours and twenty minutes. I took three different buses and I had to walk well over a mile to get to my final destination. I am an able-bodied, well-educated, twenty-one year old woman and I still left this experience with frustration and exhaustion. What if I had a physical disability, or if I were elderly, or if it was a day of extreme weather? I challenge any physician that reschedules a patient’s appointment because of tardiness to rethink what might have led to the patient’s late arrival. There could be more to the story…

Note: The Waco Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is in the process of identifying transportation needs for Metropolitan Waco through the year 2040. They have invited all interested people to make their priorities known. You can submit feedback in writing until June 15. Suggestions may be submitted by fax at (254) 750-1605, by e-mail to [email protected] or by mail directed to Christopher Evilia at the following address: Waco Metropolitan Planning Organization, P.O. Box 2570, Waco, Texas 76702-2570. Please take a moment to urge them to make improving public transportation a priority.  Transportation is an important issue for all of us!   

This post was written by Laura White from Warren, NJ. She just graduated from Baylor University in May with a Bachelors of Science in Biology. She remains in Waco, TX for the upcoming year to serve as an AmeriCorps member working within the Family Health Center clinics. After once year of service, she hopes to attend medical school in Texas to ultimately pursue a career in Family Medicine. She was inspired to ride the bus by her experience volunteering at the Family Health Center as a part of her Family Medicine and Community Healthcare Course at Baylor University. If you would be interested in writing a post for the Act Locally Waco blog, please email [email protected].