Caregiver Companion: A Service-Learning Initiative in Tippecanoe County

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In this paper, we share our reflection of our semester-long service learning and community engagement project in partnership with a local organization in Lafayette called Caregiver Companion. Caregiver Companion is a non-profit organization serving the elderly and disabled community in Tippecanoe County by providing companionship and respite breaks for overwhelmed caregivers. Our English 420 Business Writing class assisted Caregiver Companion on publicizing the organization to Purdue students as well as community members with digital communication materials. With a close partnership with the Caregiver Companion staff, we created materials such as newsletters, brochures, advertisements, and videos to bring their mission to the public’s eye. During the class, we used various research methods to produce white papers and communication materials that provided Caregiver Companion short- and long-term volunteer and donor engagement strategies. During our semester, we were also able to receive a grant of $3400 from the Office of Service Learning and Engagement, that enabled us to implement four different class projects in class. Through this service-learning experience, we learned the importance of business communication, project management, and community engagement. In this paper, we reflect back on our semester on how we were successful at helping our community partner via service learning and community engagement. We also reflect on how this work-place based class provided us with real experiences and made us serve our local community.