WHEN HELP IS NEEDED, TEEN VOLUNTEER IS READY TO LEND A HAND

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Maelyn Garcia. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

Maelyn Garcia may only be 16 years old, but her passion for service started even earlier.

As a young child, Maelyn learned how much need for assistance there was in her community. By the time she entered high school, she was ready to devote her free time to helping others. She got involved with SaLT (Service and Learning Together), a student-driven, adult-supported organization that addresses food insecurity and migrant needs. On Saturday mornings, Maelyn helped with SaLT’s Shop N’ Drop program, which provides groceries and personal items to over 100 families dealing with food insecurity. From the beginning, she loved her involvement. Just a couple of years later, Maelyn is leading the charge. Fluent in Spanish, her ability to communicate seamlessly with migrant families is an example of leading with compassion.

Maelyn has taken on a leadership role with SaLT’s Take Care Initiative, which began as a mission to help migrants in the Chicago area. Since then, the program has expanded tremendously and is currently working to assist firefighters battling the Los Angeles-area wildfires. Each package that’s distributed is filled with self-care items and notes of compassion, sharing a message of support and solidarity to the recipient. With each note Maelyn writes, her passion for being of service touches the life of someone new.

Tell us about your volunteer role with SaLT.

Our main project is Shop N’ Drop, which we’ve been doing since the start of COVID-19 in 2020. Every two or three weeks, we’ll get together on a Saturday morning and prepare grocery, toiletry and snack bags full of things that families who fight food insecurity need and aren’t able to provide for their children. The mission started with families who couldn’t get the food they would usually receive that was provided by the schools before COVID-19 began. Since kids wouldn’t be going to school, families reached out. The Shop N’ Drop program began so we would be able to give food to those families.

What inspires you to volunteer?

Building the connection with families and seeing that they keep coming back. We have such a personal connection with our families. We have their phone numbers. They text us daily with things that they need. They know they can come to us for support and they know they can tell us what they need if they’re having a tough situation. They are always so grateful. They send blessings to us every week because they’re just so grateful for everything we do, and that just makes me happy to keep coming back and giving my time.

What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?

It’s moments where people show their gratitude. When I was in New Orleans for a SaLT trip, there was this man whose house was affected by hurricanes and natural disasters. He was so grateful. The look on his face when he told us how our work restoring his house made such a difference was so touching. He was just really grateful, and it’s people like that who show their gratitude who make my day.

What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?

I think I’ve learned that it takes time to see a big change, but little by little, you will eventually see that change – even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. If you take a step back and look at what you’ve done, there is a change there.

Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?

I know it’s scary to begin, even if you go to volunteer one day and you don’t know anyone there. But you will always make a connection with someone there. It doesn’t matter whether you know someone with whom you’re volunteering, because you know that you’re helping the people around you. After a day of service, I usually get the feeling I just want to come back, and that feeling is really great.

As a busy high school student, how do you manage to balance your studies with your volunteer work?

It’s definitely time-consuming, but there’s a point where you understand that you have to prioritize your homework and your service work. You find a balance, because it’s more stressful to overload yourself with everything. When you prioritize different things, you understand how much you can take on. Even if you’re doing service once a week, you’re still putting in service. And even if you have to minimize the time you put into service and prioritize other things, your service is still there.

Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?

Jump at the chance. Even if it’s the most simple task, there are always organizations that need it. By doing one thing, you’ll most likely find out other opportunities and events that you can go to. Jumping at anything you can do will always open more doors.

What do you want people to learn from your story?

It doesn’t matter what age you are. People of any age can learn that service is important and there are ways that they can help. We’re always involved in the local elementary schools. For instance, they’ll make drawings for the families we have to help. At any age, there’s always something you can do to help.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Maelyn? Find local volunteer opportunities.