Profile of a Volunteer

The person I am profiling is Mr. Jones, he cuts the grass around the school, beautifies the area for free. And every Tuesday and Thursday he comes to the school to read to as many classes as he can. He bought pink tee shirts for all the children when they participated in the Breast Cancer Awareness week. He bought all the children age-appropriate books for Christmas which was over 80. He gave the teachers smoked turkeys for Thanksgiving, and a ham for Christmas. All these things take up his valuable time and money and he expects nothing in return doing all these things.

The children love him as if he were there grandfather, they listen and respect him. All the teachers enjoy when he reads to their classes because the children listen, and the teachers can do other things while he reads.

One teacher was stressed about the holidays and having enough food for her family, and when Mr. Jones called me about who needed a turkey she was first on my list. He smoked the turkeys and delivered them to the teachers who needed them.

His kindness and sacrifices are encouraging and inspirational. The impact he has on children with behavioral development is amazing because these children respond to his attention and give him their attention. Personally, I am amazed that he finds the time each week faithfully to come and read. He is dependable and always ready to help. He happens to hear us talking about the children wearing pink tee shirts and just volunteered to buy them for the school.

My takeaway from this volunteer is his selflessness, his willingness to help, his thoughtfulness, and consistency. I think these are all traits of a profile of a volunteer. Because it is all about giving in a world centered on taking. Children are the innocents in our world, and they all deserve love, safety, and guidance. Volunteering should always be about positive interactions and serving others for however long you have.