LESSON
3
Identify cause and effect
READING
GET READY
Ben volunteers to help Amaya at Family Day. Do you volunteer?
Why do you think people volunteer?
READ
Listen and read the article. How did the person start volunteering?
I had the opportunity to talk with Nadine
Schmidt, winner of this year’s Volunteer of the
Year award in Venice Town. I asked Nadine
about her service and her motivations.
EG:
Congratulations! Were you surprised you
won?
NS:
Oh, yes. I had no idea the award existed.
EG:
Why do you volunteer then?
NS:
There are some specific reasons.
I started volunteering when I was 16
because, at that time, it was required by
my school. We earned academic credit.
EG:
What was your first service?
NS:
My memory is a little foggy, but I’m sure
it was when I volunteered at the hospital.
I ran errands for nurses, held babies, and
delivered mail to patients. After I finished
my credit, I kept going since I realized I
loved being there for the patients. Some
of them didn’t have many visitors and
they were lonely. I think it made them feel
good and I felt good, too, even though I
was dead some nights!
EG:
What did you do next?
NS:
The next job I did was tutoring children
at the elementary school. I wanted to
be a teacher. Therefore, volunteering
was a chance to see if I would really like
that career.
EG:
Did you like it?
NS:
I loved it. Kids were the apple of my eye;
I adored them. After I got my degree in
education, I moved to Venice Town.
At the beginning, I didn’t know anyone.
I felt so isolated. My home was a prison!
I needed to do something. I did a little
research and discovered Venice Town’s
Food Bank needed volunteers to help
Why I Volunteer:
An Interview with Venice Town’s Volunteer of the Year Winner
by Eliana Gomez
distribute food to the homeless. I started
working there once a week, and
consequently I made friends with a lot of
the other volunteers. We’re still friends
today! They are my rocks in hard times.
EG:
Do you do any other volunteering?
NS:
I also volunteer at Dress Up! This
organization collects clothing for women
who are unemployed and trying to get
back on their feet. We clean and repair
donated business suits for the women
to wear to job interviews, thus helping
them succeed. It’s fun helping women
pick out clothes and watching them get
a better life.
EG:
Wow. Do you have any time for yourself?
NS:
I could if I wanted to. But this keeps me
busy, and I don’t like to be bored.
EG:
Well, congratulations on the award. I can
see why you were the winner.
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UNIT 7
