What Makes FAB Awesome
Pre-Trip/Post Trip Service
FAB trips are educational service trips. A core component of FAB is learning about a specific issue, addressing that issue in your local community, and then going to another community to learn more and continue to help. This process makes a full circle. Participants begin their journey in Gainesville and are encouraged to bring back what they have learned from their trip so that they can continue to impact their Gainesville community. Pre-trip service exposes participants to the issue while post- trip service reminds them to continue on the path to becoming active citizens.
Education/Pre-Trip Meetings
At the core of social change is education. We must first understand the issues that plague our community before we can address them and begin to act. This is why education is fundamental to each FAB trip. At pre-trip meetings, throughout ones trip, and even after the experience Site Leaders and members will continue to educate each other about their social issue and how it can be addressed. Education is important not only to enhance your current service trip, but also to serve as a basis for future community service work. Knowledge is power and the educational component of FAB serves to empower our participants so they can spread this knowledge to others.
Reflections
We do not learn from doing, we learn from thinking about what we do. Thus, reflections are a crucial part of community service and are a central part of FAB trips because they allow participants to look back on, think critically about, and learn from their service experience. Reflections may include acknowledging and/or sharing of reactions, feelings, observations, and ideas about anything regarding the activity. Reflection can happen though writing, speaking, listening, reading, drawing, acting, and any other way you can imagine. Above all, reflections can be fun as well as educational. They are a great chance to learn from others and develop a bond with your trip.
Journals
Trip journals are a form of reflection. Each trip's journal is uniquely their own. Some trips use journals to reflect upon their service while others use them to write down inside jokes and reflect upon the new friendships they have developed. No matter how these journals are used, they serve to remind participants of the experience they had, how they have grown, and what they have learned throughout the trip. At the end of each trip, journals are distributed to that specific trip's members so they can look back and remember their FAB experience in the years to come.
Friendship
FAB trips are not only educational, but also a lot of fun! Throughout the week, you will develop a strong bong with the 13 other people you spend your time with. Reflections, service, cooking dinner together, and down time all provide the perfect catalyst to develop long-lasting friendships and bonds that extend past casual pleasantries. Many FAB trips come back to Gainesville and continue to meet regularly in a social setting. Like the Gator Nation, FAB has its own network of alumni that extends throughout the country and provides a common bond for all of its members.
FAB Wide Events
Being part of FAB is more than being a participant on a single trip, it is a commitment to a year-long organization. FAB Wide Events such as Orientation, Reorientation and FAB Olympics are a great chance for members to meet each other, learn about other trip issues, bond with your own trip and have a great time. These events will happen periodically throughout the year and serve to integrate FAB as a whole and to increase interaction within all of FAB, ultimately adding to the overall FAB experience.
