Serving Others: It’s About ‘the Big and Small Things That We Do’
Photo courtesy of SCP
“2023 was a challenging year for me in my personal life and my relationships with other people, but through our service projects, Shine City Project helped me to realize that each person is essential for building a more loving and peaceful world,” said Khary Dixon.
Dixon, a member of the grassroots Shine City Project (SCP) volunteer group launched by Unificationists in 2013, discovered more personal fulfillment and a higher purpose serving others. “The biggest life lesson that I've gained from joining Shine City Project every week is that serving others doesn't just happen on Saturday mornings,” she said. “It happens every day with both big and small things that we do.”
Throughout 2023, SCP commemorated its milestone 10-year anniversary with more service projects and partnerships with other Unificationist organizations, such as the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (CARP) and the Universal Peace Federation (UPF). By the end of the year, the group of young Unificationists and other twentysomethings had committed nearly a thousand volunteer hours.
“There has been more collaboration and teamwork between Shine City Project and CARP Las Vegas in particular,” noted SCP National Director Jeffrey Silerio. “More of our service projects have been able to be attended by members of CARP Las Vegas.”
“Additionally, in the fall semester, Shine City Project decided to support more monthly Divine Principle workshops hosted by CARP Las Vegas,” he said. “We were able to dedicate two weekends over the last few months for the workshops, instead of our weekly service projects.”
A founding member of SCP, Silerio has seen firsthand the team’s growth and transformation over the years as they seek to improve the greater Las Vegas area. And, amidst his leadership, 2023 marked a huge life change for Silerio personally.
“In March 2023, we were unable to hold an event to commemorate the [founding of SCP], but in the same month, our volunteers were invited to attend the commitment ceremony of me and my wife, Valeria Pellejero, who leads Youth and Students for Peace in Uruguay,” Silerio said. “We later received the Blessing together in May in her country. My wife was able to visit Las Vegas a couple times this past year, and she was able to join and support our service projects.”
As SCP has evolved, it’s also become a family endeavor of sorts — quite literally composed of brothers and sisters. Inspired by her older brother, Jennifer Silerio became increasingly involved in SCP, investing in her community while developing a more public-minded outlook.
“One of the highlights from volunteering at Shine City Project this year was being able to explore and learn more about different communities in Southern Nevada,” Jennifer said. “We were able to do some service projects outside of Las Vegas, such as a planting event in Moapa Valley, a cleanup in Lake Mead, and some gardening in Boulder City. It was nice that we got to explore and hang out in the areas after working hard at our service projects, and also meet so many new people.”
“I had a lot of fun working with Shine City Project this year doing things like feeding the less fortunate, or planting native plants to restore areas of our natural environment here in Las Vegas,” shared another volunteer, Saracelia Hardarson. “It was fulfilling to give my time and energy to healing our environment and also laughing along the way.”
Other major service projects included the group’s work with UPF Las Vegas for a local Peace Road event during the summer, conservation efforts with Generation Peace Academy (GPA) members participating in the Cheon Il Guk Youth Missionaries program, and honoring the 70th anniversary of the Korean Armistice Agreement at the Nevada State Veterans Memorial.
Still, for SCP volunteers like Dixon, serving others is about the interpersonal connections and relationships built along the way.
“[Regardless of our differences], cultivating healthy relationships and creating a heavenly culture is essential for becoming true children of God,” Dixon said. “If we make an effort to grow our hearts and our capacity to love by serving others, we can develop love for even people that we have never met before.”
You can learn more about the work of Shine City Project here, and connect with a Unificationist community near you here.