Volunteering in High School

I really enjoyed volunteering in high school. I loved helping others, especially kids! I assisted many different organizations throughout my teenage years. I gained valuable skills and learned a lot about myself.

I began my volunteering journey at age 13 when I started volunteering as a Program Assistant with my skating club. I adored working with kids and teaching them how to skate. I continued this for five seasons. Through my former skating club, I was offered other volunteer opportunities like volunteering at a Demolition Derby running the concession. I sought out other opportunities to grow my newfound passion.

At 13 and 14, I assisted at my town's Canada Day celebration face painting or monitoring bouncy castles. I learned I really enjoyed working with kids, especially in creative settings. (Little did I know this would encourage me to pursue a degree in developmental psychology). I loved giving back and interacting with my community.

In December 2019, I was offered a position on Youth Action Sparwood's Youth Commission, because of my involvement in volunteering from my early teens. Youth Action Sparwood's Youth Commission is a group of youth who work with the District of Sparwood's council and RCMP to improve the community's facilities and activities for teens. My hometown is known for having addiction problems, especially in teens. Part of the commission's goal was to provide activities to promote healthy social and emotional development. I was ecstatic to join and was ready to dive right in, but soon after I started, the pandemic hit and my aspirations of volunteering were halted. Still, I was eager to help my community, especially in a hard time like the pandemic.

Featured in the Newspaper

I was featured in my local newspaper again when a project, led by Youth Action Commissioners and our boss, was completed. We took a survey and found teens in our community liked ping pong and wanted access to a ping pong table. We got funding and built a ping pong table at our leisure centre!

I continued to help the Youth Action Commission virtually, but I couldn't wait to volunteer in person again. That summer, I had the opportunity to be a leader at a Horse Camp. I taught kids how to horseback ride and care for horses. My passion for volunteering and working with people was revitalized. I was back in fullswing!

This opportunity allowed me to see the positive impact animals had on people, especially when going through a hard time like the pandemic. Volunteering at the Horse Camp has inspired me to offer animal and other alternative therapies in my future practice!

I sought out any and all opportunities to volunteer. Some smaller volunteer jobs I did included sorting bottles with friends for our local animal shelter, sorting bottles for my town's Lions Club, assisting kids backstage at our singing lessons' concert, and helping at my local thrift store.

In high school, I was involved in the Student Council and a founding member of the Nicotine Task Force. I was even quoted in my local newspaper after making Christmas decorations with my class. Through student council, I volunteered my time at my local elementary school. I helped with the Breakfast Program and One-to-One Reading Program. One-to-one reading especially fuelled my dreams of working with children, I attribute this experience as one of the main reasons why I am pursuing developmental psychology.

In late 2020, I was recruited to volunteer on the Youth Advisory Council with the East Kootenay Foundry. Foundry is a BC program dedicated to providing integrated wellness services to youth aged 12-24. My job on the Youth Advisory Council was to help canvas for donations, attend community council meetings to request funding, help design the building, and help plan ways to bring services to remote communities (like mine). I was featured in a video updating the community on the new Foundry building (see below). Through my involvement with the East Kootenay Foundry, I had the honour of applying to volunteer with the Foundry Provincial Youth Advisory Committee. In January 2022, I was one of 40 youths from across BC chosen to participate. I was even able to virtually attend the Annual Knowlegde Series National Conference, hosted by Frayme in November 2022.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejO22AzYNjs

Throughout my teens, I was so very fortunate to have many amazing opportunities to volunteer, give back to my community, and help others. I grew so much from my experiences and they made me a better person. I gained lots of skills like leadership and communication, but also compassion and gratitude. I made lifelong friends and met many amazing people. I am so lucky to have had these experiences and look forward to many more in university and beyond!