Futures Team @ Pymble

Some benefits of volunteering include ‘becoming more outwardly focused, which may strengthen social interactions or even reduce anxiety’ (AIHW 2019; Head to Health 2019). Other benefits also include gaining new skills to improve employability. Adding reflections of experiences from volunteering can also improve your likelihood of getting access to scholarships and job opportunities.

 

Mercedes Ansuh-Yeboah from Year 11 recently volunteered at St Lucy’s School, a special education school, during the Term 3 school holidays.

 

I hope you enjoy reading Mercedes’ reflection of her recent experience below. Students, please consider signing up to volunteer, big or small, to further your own personal growth and open up doors to new and exciting opportunities.

I had an amazing time volunteering at St Lucy’s, better than I expected! I was a bit scared at first because I thought it was going to be really confronting but the staff were comforting and reassuring, and it was fun hanging out and playing with the kids.

I volunteered over four days and each day ran by a schedule, There was a performing arts program for the holidays and we did four different subjects related to performing arts, (Dance, Music, Drama and Art). For each day we had a theme, for example, The Jungle, Three Little Pigs and The Safari. It was a great experience watching the kids tap into their creative side and I could see that they really enjoyed it too, I saw heaps of smiles on their faces.

For the days I volunteered, it wasn’t always the perfect day. There were students having hard days (having a tantrums or crying) but within those experiences I learnt how to stay calm or act appropriately when it comes to these situations. The days were tiring, I had to wake early everyday to be there by 8:45am. It also had to be highly attentive as when it comes to taking care of kids, it gets tiring but at the end of the day it’s all part of the experience. No one said it was going to be easy!

In conclusion, I absolutely loved volunteering at St Lucy’s as it gave me an opportunity to learn and understand different experiences and I would continue to volunteer.

Written by Mercedes Ansuh-Yeboah (Year 11)

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