Volunteering Provides Valuable Opportunties

Every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon I venture down Broad Street to the Boys and Girls Club. Sporting my bright yellow volunteer shirt, I receive the expected hoots from passer-bys before reaching the club. The building is bright and new, conveying a sense of hope and offering a happy and safe haven for the kids of Hartford.

Most of the kids arrive after three and stay well into the night. Although they spend hours there every week, the many programs and activities offered to the kids keeps them busy and entertained.

I volunteer during the "power hour" from three to four-thirty, which entails answering questions and homework help. Kids ages six to fifteen read, color, and complete their work during this designated quiet time.

Anywhere from fifty to one hundred kids can be in the club at one time, but surprisingly the atmosphere is calm most times. The kids need and benefit from the structure they receive in the after school programs; after they finish their homework, there are age-specific activities in which they participate.

The older kids are given responsibilities such as helping at the front desk, helping the younger kids with work, and generally being an example for the younger members. The older kids proudly take on the opportunity to feel important and needed, which seems to be a great boost for their self- esteem.

Students and post-graduates maintain a balance of learning, recreation, and responsibility and give the kids a sense of belonging.

The kids are well behaved due to the expectations the club holds them to. They feel they are cared for, but they know they can't get away with unruliness. Trinity students also have the advantage of the experience gained by helping run the club, which is the only of its kind affiliated with a college.

Not only are the kids adorable, but helping these kids achieve is very satisfying. Its worth your while to interact with the people who live outside of the Trinity walls.

Dispel your stereotype of the average Hartford kid. The kids that I see are positive determined kids, despite their surroundings.

Granted as volunteers we aren't saving their lives, but maybe were making a little difference. And knowing the kids ask when I am coming back is pretty cool.

There are tremendous volunteer opportunities available through Trinity, venture outside the walls!