Hope*sters team members (right to left) Karen Dulitz, Jennie Kerr, Aaron Kaminsky, Kendra Sippel, Elizabeth Lein and Yael Cohen have raised over $1,200 for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life.
Student volunteers inspire by example
April 17 marks the beginning of National Volunteer Week, a time the nation officially pays tribute to the critical role volunteerism plays in American society. The 2005 theme is “Inspire by Example,” celebrating the power of volunteers to inspire the people they help and to inspire others to serve.
At the LBJ School, where public service is a core value, volunteerism is a common feature of student life. According to volunteerism expert Sarah Jane Rehnborg, interim director of the School’s RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service, LBJ School students represent a special breed of volunteers.
“They are what I call informed volunteers,” said Rehnborg. “Because of their analysis of policy issues, they are more aware of critical needs and pressing problems in our society.”
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For students, volunteer experience is enriching on many levels, carrying personal, social, academic and professional benefits. According to Rehnborg, engaging in community service helps create a well-rounded public affairs education.
“Insight gained through volunteering can bring to life classroom discussions on public policy,” she said. “It can also provide an opportunity for students to sustain interest in an area that lies outside the scope of study but remains important on a personal level.”
While there are countless numbers of outstanding LBJ School student volunteers, the five cases described below truly inspire by example.
Teaming up against cancer
A team of LBJ School students and friends lead by
Yael Cohen have joined the fight against cancer by participating in this year’s
American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, which will be held at the
University of Texas Main Mall on April 15. They will be among 3 million people
from 4,200 communities nationwide to participate in the 12-hour-long overnight
gathering. Team members include LBJ School students Karen Dulitz, Aaron Kaminsky,
Jennie Kerr, Elizabeth Lien, Johanna Sevier and Kendra Sippel, and friends
Brandy Hayden Blood, Emilie Satterwhite and Carol Wattenbarger.
Named the “Hope*sters,” Cohen and her teammates have raised over $1,200, exceeding the initial goal of $999.
“I did not want to put any fundraising pressure on my teammates, but they have risen to the occasion,” said Cohen.
The goals of the Relay for Life are to celebrate and remember cancer survivors, to support research, to increase awareness in the community about the life-saving effects of prevention and early detection, and to call upon elected officials and policymakers to make cancer issues a priority.
“I have participated in the Relays before, and it is truly a 12-hour special event!” said Cohen. “I decided to lead a team this year in honor my dad and the many out there who are suffering from cancer, and in memory of those who did not make it.”
To see the Hope*sters’ web page visit
https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?
ievent=72934&supId=70786530.
Supper Club shares more than meals with HIV-positive
community
As part of the Supper Club, groups of four to six
students volunteer an evening each month to prepare and serve dinner to clients
of Project Transitions, a residential care program for individuals with low
incomes who are HIV positive. The students buy food and cook a healthy meal
for 15 to 25 people.
“We entrust a lot of responsibility in our volunteers,” said Andy Reichart, Project Transition’s volunteer coordinator. Supper Club volunteers sign a waiver of confidentiality, are given keys to the facilities, and are trained to use the industrial kitchen in accordance with Texas Department of Health codes.
“The residents enjoy the food and interaction with the people who come and share their time with them,” said Reichart. “It’s really a meaningful experience for them.”
Spending time with Project Transitions clients, said LBJ student Albert Sim, has helped him move past the perspective of policymaking and analysis and look at this vulnerable population as everyday people. Volunteer service reminds him of his reason for enrolling in the LBJ School, he said.
“Really the main reason why I participate in Supper Club and other volunteer activities” said Sim, “is that I want to positively impact the lives of real people with real needs.”
Other Supper Club volunteers include Soumya Bhat, Natalie Cuccia, John Delgado, Meredith Goode, Regina Goodnow, and Sonya Saunders.
Veteran volunteer enriches
social life through service
When Jack Waite moved to Austin to begin his undergraduate
studies at UT in 1990, he discovered that volunteering was an excellent way
to meet new people from different backgrounds. His first experience in Austin
with Meals on Wheels sparked a 15-year-long series of volunteer activities.
“It’s interesting getting into Austin’s various volunteer circles, and seeing how they overlap,” said Waite.
This year, he served as the committee chair for beverages for the Austin Fine Arts Alliance, which sponsors the annual two-day Austin Fine Arts Festival in downtown’s Republic Square Park.
“It takes about 1,000 volunteers to put on the festival and only 1.5 paid employees,” said Waite, who was in charge of ensuring that the thousand volunteers, hundreds of artists and estimated 20,000 festival goers had ample access to refreshments.
“Jack is a fantastic volunteer,” said Meredith Powell, executive director of the Fine Arts Alliance. “He is the epitome of what we look for.”
Waite is also an officer and cofounder of the American Institute for Roman Culture and is an active volunteer for The Surfrider Foundation, an environmental and conservation group for the world's beaches. In addition, he annually volunteers for the public radio station KUT 90.5 FM and KRLU TV's Austin City Limits Festival.
Silent auction benefits tsunami relief
A group of LBJ students from the UT Austin South Asian
Graduate Association, the International Students Association and various Graduate
Public Affairs Council committees put together a silent auction to benefit
tsunami victims in Asia this month. The group raised a total of $1,214, which
was donated to the American Red Cross International Response Fund.
“LBJ students volunteered a great deal of time and effort to the plan and execute the auction,” said Soumya Bhat, who spearheaded the initiative. “The generous donations made it well worth it!”
The 35 items up for bid included homemade meals, jewelry, baked goods, salsa dancing and cricket lessons as well as services such as a tax preparation, carwashing, and tech support. LBJ School students, local restaurants and other individuals and organizations donated the items.
“Overall, it was a fun and relatively simple way to generate much needed funds for a worthy cause,” said Bhat.
The LBJ School’s
Community Service Committee
As cochairs of the LBJ School’s GPAC Community Service Committee, Rhonda
Pointer and Ellen Grantham say their mission is to get LBJ School students
involved in volunteer activities. During their year-long term, they opted
to go above and beyond the committee bylaws, which require one day of service
per semester.
This month alone, Grantham and Pointer have organized a series of volunteer activities scheduled for each Saturday. Some of activities offer one-on-one personal contact, while others provide exposure to nonprofit organizations.
“We wanted to offer different kinds of opportunities to catch everyone’s interest with lots of different scheduling options,” said Pointer.
On April 2, students volunteered for the City of Austin by helping to clean the yards of two elderly residents in the Blackshear neighborhood. On April 9, students volunteered at the Any Baby Can Rockin Round-up Fundraiser. On April 16, a group will volunteer at the annual East Austin Awareness Rally. And on April 23, students will make a trip to the Texas-Mexico border to volunteer in a colonia, which Pointer said would give students a chance to reach beyond the Austin community.
“Each activity has a different dynamic and emphasizes a different policy area,” said Pointer. “The volunteer experience helps students take a different perspective on policy – not from the top down, but from the bottom up.”
Related Links
RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service
© Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs
P.O. Box Y
Austin, TX 78713-8925
512-471-3200
13 April 2005
Comments to: lbjweb@uts.cc.utexas.edu
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