This month we spotlight one of our student volunteers, Saira. Let’s learn more about her volunteer experience.
I learned about Wellspring Community through my mom, Natalie, who used to be a teacher at Wellspring before assuming the role of resource coordinator. She told me about how amazing the STARS are and how much fun she had with them. My sister and I joined her for some of the Wellspring Community fundraising events. It inspired both my sister and I to join. After my older sister volunteered a couple of years ago, I thought that it would be a great experience after hearing about it from her.
Volunteering at Wellspring for me means a chance to try something outside of my comfort zone and help others in need. I was scared to be working in this new environment, but Wellspring helped me to change my mindset- to be open to others and not be afraid to show who I am. Not only this, but Wellspring is a means of helping a group in the community who may be less fortunate than me and can benefit from my help. Volunteering here in order to get volunteer hours for high school has allowed me to use those hours for a good cause. Waking up every morning to volunteer during the first virtual class of the day was one of the highlights of my week and always got my day started on the right track. The positive attitude of the STARS and staff was a nice change from the morning atmosphere of high school and helped to develop my mindset for the rest of the day. This was especially beneficial for the tough times that we are currently facing with the Coronavirus. I also had the opportunity to explore a community of people who I don’t interact with on the daily and see life from a new perspective!
There was one time I was online for Share Time in the morning and I hadn’t been volunteering very long at Wellspring. I was in a breakout room with a teacher, Alison, for the morning. Alison is an awesome teacher but she was somewhere where her internet connection wasn’t very good. I had to take over the class a little bit since she was fading in and out. I was so scared because I hadn’t been volunteering long and I didn’t remember what to do! Thankfully, the STARS were so flexible and they were able to laugh with me about it and help me relax. We made it through the class fine, although it was a bit hectic, and after that, Alison even requested me for her breakout rooms in case it ever happened again. The STARS are always so positive in situations like that, and I’m so thankful for how flexible they are!