Nana’s Story: Making a Difference at 80

Foster Grandmother Maxine Romm

Image source: Columbiamissourian.com

A few weeks ago, my nana turned 84. She is incredible: bright, chipper, happy, and sharp as a tack. She may be a little more hunched over than she used to be. Her eyes aren’t as good and her hearing is starting to go, but in every way that matters my nana is still the very same person who held me when I was a baby. I really think one of the reasons she has managed to age so gracefully is her lifelong dedication to volunteering. She is Catholic and is very devout. Her whole life she has been volunteering at her church, giving back to the community in every way that she can. She has run food drives, collected clothing for shelters, raised money for shelter animals, and helped care for the community’s children. She has always been an integral part of life in her corner of New Jersey.

Transforming Teens into World Citizens with Global Leadership Adventures

GLA Volunteer

Image source: Experiencegla.com

High school is a trying time for many people. It’s full of social challenges—fitting in, finding yourself, handling bullies, and exploring young love. On top of navigating a complex social life (even more complex and non-stop now that kids have cell phones!) many kids play sports or are active in clubs. They participate in student government or act in school plays. Of course, through all of this they are constantly challenged academically. After a long day at school, they have homework. They have dinner with their families, continuing to develop social skills and coping mechanisms on all fronts. High school kids have very full lives. It’s an easy time to put on blinders—to get so immersed in the jam-packed day-to-day that you forget about the larger world. And yet, teenagehood is perhaps the most perfect time to break out of your routine, to be exposed to bright new places, new people, and new cultures. It’s a time of such rapid interpersonal growth that every experience becomes formative.

Honeymoon Volunteering: One Couple’s Story

A Volunteer Couple (this is not Jane and Travis)

Image source: Worldendeavors.com

My friends, Jane and Travis, just got married. Initially, they were planning on a cruise in the Caribbean for their honeymoon. They’ve never been on one and Jane thought it would be the best of both worlds: legitimately fun and kitschily ironic. Travis was on board (so to speak) but he had reservations. He is a community activist in our city and he kept worrying that a cruise was just too wasteful, predictable, and commercial. I agreed with Travis but since it wasn’t my honeymoon I stayed out of it. Then I remembered: they’d never been on a cruise before! I, on the other hand, have been on several. Each one was a family vacation, paid for by my grandparents, and each one seemed more quintessentially American than the last. The ships were like giant malls complete with expensive cocktail bars, clothing shops, and fake plants. Sure, the accommodations were comfortable but it all felt so generic, so spring break, if you know what I mean. My experiences have left me rather jaded about the whole cruise thing and I didn’t want my friends to be disappointed. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I had to say something.

Go Abroad: Helping Students Volunteer

Students Studying Abroad

Image source: Studyabroad.uark.edu

Every year, thousands (maybe even millions) of students decide to volunteer abroad. They do it for many reasons—they’re not ready for college, their families needs time to save money, they’re interested in studying abroad, or they simply want to give back. Whatever the reasons, all of these young people need help finding the right opportunities. Some of them want to study while others simply want to live in a new place and to experience a foreign culture. There is nothing more important during this time in a person’s life than finding a good match. I firmly believe that traveling is a critical part of anyone’s education and traveling alone as a young person is transformative. For many, it’s the first time they will be independent, learning how to navigate a new place with a foreign language. Young people have different needs than adults. They may need guidance—program personnel they can rely on for advice or a homestay family they can go to for emotional support. Each young person has unique needs and if these needs are met in an international volunteer context, each young person can thrive.

NOAA: Research, Conservation, and Education

Breaching Humpback

Image source: Bigsurcalifornia.org

When I was a little girl (like many dreamy-eyed little girls) I wanted to be a marine biologist. I was fascinated by whales: their enormous bodies, buoyed by undulating ocean currents; their ultrasonic songs, traveling hundreds of miles through the water like whispers with wings; and their mysterious lives, hidden from the prying eyes of researchers, lived deep beneath the shimmering surface. To me, nothing was more beautiful, more magical, or more exciting. Then I learned about whaling and the bloody history of commerce on the open water. I learned about strandings, the result of sonic pollution, and saw pictures in the newspaper of hundreds of glorious humpbacks drying to dust in the noon sun.