Cultural Experience

Ashley Mock: CE 534

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Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is a worldwide organization that assist human needs without discrimination.

The Salvation Army has resources like supplemental food shelf, the lunch program, and the bread pantry. All of which participants are allowed access to food, a limited or unlimited amount of times. Some other amazing resources they have are rent & utility assistance, low income housing, emergency social services, good Samaritan clinic, family stores, emergency assistance and more.

The local resource I would have loved to have attended for the experience was the salvation army’s lunch program. In the Worship and Service Center lunchroom, they free lunch is provided and served on weekdays from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Due to COVID-19 and the risk of exposure, I decided to not attend at this time. However, in the summer or fall when more vaccines has been distributed my plan is to attend to still gain the experience.

When viewing the website, I realized once again how much privilege I have. I do not need any of these services that the salvation army are offering, only to give out my services. I can volunteer and donate to help the community. I remember volunteering at the salvation army family store a few days and thinking “wow I can imagine being in this situation again”. I say again, because my family and I was once in the people who I was assisting shoes. My mom was a single mom with five daughter, new to Minnesota on unemployment until she could find a job. When she could find a job it would be temporary work. Not to mention being African American women at that. Remembering my mom crying at the table because she was scraping by paying the bills, but not having food to feed us. One day we had only enough food to make a cake and my mom made us a cake and we had that as a meal. She cried because not one of us complained, we were happy as kids to have cake for food! However, we didn’t know the real circumstances behind my mothers pain. I have been to free meal services, not once but many times. After staying in Minnesota and my mother getting a good job, and becoming stable, we started to not need as many of the services. Now we don’t use them at all. But, to grow up with the experiences that I have had, it humbles you. I appreciate everything I have. My mom and all of my sisters have this thing about eating everything on our plate, so we don’t waste food. Others would think we are being greedy, but for us it is not always having food on your plate to begin with.

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Salvation Army Rochester Mn

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OPA!

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Opa Opa

One might ask, what is Opa Opa? Opa Opa is a Mediterranean restaurant located in Rochester, Minnesota. The term “Opa!” is a Greek expression of emotions like of joy, happiness, surprise, etc.

Opa Opa is a wonderful place I went and order food from there and did not dine in and choose to dine outside. The variety of food was interesting, and I decided to go  #12.Gyros Plate Beef and lamb, mixed with spices and sliced hot from a vertical rotisserie. The side came with these homemade chip fries. To finish it the Tzatziki sauce was amazing. I was a little nervous to try it though, eating lamb sounded a bit scary but it was worth it.

I will say my bias came out when walking into the restaurant because of how familiarized I am with American restaurants and foods. No excuses for it but I am a very picky eater and I am a straight American eater, cheese burgers, fries, sandwiches. My friends who are of different races that eat their homemade authentic food from their culture always tell me I eat the Americanized version of it. For example, I love orange chicken and fried rice from panda express but am afraid to try my best friends homemade Chow Mein.

I became aware of another of my bias when I was looking around confused at all the crafts and statues inside the restaurant. But, as I was waiting on my food, I took a closer look and I realized how much of it had to do with their culture. Religious artifacts and pictures on display, it felt like I was in a different destination outside of Minnesota. I believe that was the intent though, for it to feel like Greece, home for them. I looked at the layout and thought of how the dine in at applebees was and thought how different it was. I had to check myself and say two way different establishments. Opa Opa is family owned, different culture, different business equity, probably even different clientele.

Being Greek the non-dominant group living among the white middle class dominant society can be challenging. There are language barriers and prejudices and discrimination that occur due to those barriers. When you have an accent, you are immediately categorized as someone who don’t belong. Interacting with the workers at the restaurant it is easy to hear their accent because it is quite thick. It is actually beautiful in my opinion, but that is just because I love hearing different accents. 

This makes me think of the term ethnocentricism, which is stated in the Asking and Listening text as “centered on your own culture’s vision, distortion and all.” That can mean thinking your way of living cultural and all is the “normal” way and only natural. All humans are ethnocentric to an extent, kind of like everyone has unconscious bias. The only way to get in control of it is to identify it, and to do that is self-awareness. The way I explained my experience walking in to Opa Opa and the culture shock because I am so Americanized, proves of my ethnocentrism.

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Opa Opa from website

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Client Experiencing Co-occurring Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorders

As a clinical mental health and addiction counselor having a client with a different cultural background than myself will be a challenge. That is why it is important to have that multicultural competency under your belt. Using a client from the Greek/Mediterranean culture would be a challenge for me. I am not the most familiar with this culture expect from the restaurant Opa Opa, I have visited and watching “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. By the way it is one of my favorite movies. However, that is just what it is, a movie. I cannot go into a session with preconceived notions or bias based on a film that I find funny.

I believe when assessing and applying counseling strategies to a client with a  different cultural background is to begin with being culturally sensitive. Going into this session knowing that it will be a challenge, and you will experience cross-cultural communication is key. Figuring out if the theoretical approach you currently use is the best for this particular client. It might work on your normal clientele and their cultural background isn't as diverse, but set outside the box to see what will benefit the client best. It is important to have to make sure your communication skills are very respectful and open. By finding out if they are respectful, try educating yourself on their cultural. Or asking the client if they are comfortable, is the room set comfortable, if there is communication style they prefer. Values and beliefs are essential to working with clients with different cultural backgrounds. Understanding their values and belief like religion, family-system, spirituality, etc. Making sure as a counselor that you are aware of your of own bias. That will be harmful to a client if they come out during session due to differences of values and belief. All that is due to the counselor (me) not being self-awareness of bias. I believe it is important to just be accommodating and flexible to the client who comes from a very different cultural background. However, we aren’t foreign aliens and the more you build that therapeutic alliance (hopefully), similarities would come up. Self-discourse on the counselors part can play a tremendous role on the effectiveness of the clients openness in sessions. 

After being able to build that working alliance, or understanding the client and their background, you get a sense of their life. The co-occurring disorders and substance abuse. Where it might stem from, and how as a counselor options to treat it. Using the DSM-5 diagnostic manual and coming up with treatment plans that best suit the client. Finding resources for the client, if needed; for example, job placement after treatment, insurance, homeless (place of stay), child care, etc...

However, if the therapeutic alliance isn’t built or there is a disconnect. The client is comfortable with me as a counselor and chooses to be resistant or there is just a barrier that can’t be broken. I would try referring the client, because their needs come first.

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The Rochester Salvation Army assists residents of Olmsted County with a wide range of programs.

Direct link to Rochester, MN Salvation Army. It gives high quality information on their services, including contact information, location, volunteering, and more.

“Need immediate assistance during evenings or weekends? Please contact United Way's First Call for Help by dialing 211 or visiting www.211.org.”

-Salvation Army

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507-282-1212 - FREE drinks for students. Loyalty program. Catering delivery. Greek restaurant. Catering. Mediterranean food. Gyros. Lunch. Dinner. Takeout.

Information on Opa Opa in Rochester, MN. All the services they provide, including the menu and contact information.

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Salvation Army in Rochester

#benefits #freemeals

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Opa Opa in Rochester MN #MediterraneanRestaurant