Motivated by Passion to Care for Others, Texas Teen Volunteers for Healthier World
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Shruthi Aravindan. Read her story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
When her grandparent became sick, Shruthi Aravindan’s family moved to India to help care for her family member. The experience impressed upon the 17-year-old Austin, Texas teen both the importance of taking action to care for others in need and also opened her eyes to the plight of the underserved.
“My mom did a lot of work in rural villages (in India),” says Shruthi. “I’d accompany her and it was pretty evident the facilities weren’t what we are used to. For example, the people would have to walk so many miles through these villages on dirt roads to get to a pharmacy for basic first aid.”
Deciding to become an advocate to support global health and wellness, Shruthi launched Vitality Volunteers in March 2020, the high school senior bringing together more than 700 adult and youth volunteers from a staggering 45 countries to work with organizations that increase awareness of diseases and improve the well-being of global communities. Working with thousands of individuals around the world, Shruthi is connecting volunteers with different backgrounds and skills to best support the underserved and underprivileged.
The teen’s advocacy reflects her desire to help the masses as well as at home, as she supports causes her own family members have been directly impacted by. One early driving factor for Shruthi’s volunteerism has been her personal experience with wellness for friends and family.
Austin, Texas teen Shruthi Aravindan is building a healthier world by promoting health and wellness for the underserved. /courtesy Shruthi Aravindan
“It is important for me to give back to people who have suffered from illnesses because people close to me have as well. For example, I have family members that have been diagnosed with cancer. Luckily they have recovered and I’m eternally grateful, but I know that’s not the case for everyone. I know how taxing the emotional and physical toll can be. Resources and having access to help can be instrumental. These experiences and general compassion and drive to help people in difficult situations definitely contributed to my passion in growing and using my platform to advocate for more change.”
That passion has sparked an international movement. Perhaps most tellingly, Shruthi’s effort to focus on health and wellness began as the COVID-19 pandemic was raging out of control, underscoring the importance of her mission. Supporting 30 organizations including the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society,Be The Match and It’s Time Texas, Shruthi is using her leadership to introduce life-saving health resources and information to underserved communities, says Brenda Garza, community engagement representative for Be The Match, which manages the largest and most diverse marrow registry in the world.
“Her goal is to educate the community on the need for volunteers and donors about the registry,” says Brenda. “Specially, she understands health and diversity disparities. We have a huge gap of ethnically diverse donors, and as (both Shruthi and I) are both ethnically diverse, we both understand and want our community to have access to health. (Through her volunteerism, Shruthi) is erasing disparity on the registry.”
By bringing in fresh faces and new voices, Shruthi’s inclusive volunteerism means more volunteers are being recruited from all over to contribute to a healthier world. The teen says she’s shocked by the power of her platform, strengthened by its virtual reach, which has given students and adults the opportunity to stay connected throughout the pandemic and build a new digital community united in its efforts to support non-profit organizations during a time of isolation where many other volunteer efforts have been put on pause.
“When I started I honestly never even expected in my wildest dreams for my organization to grow (like it has). Even when we were small, we were making a huge impact, and now we’re making an even greater impact. People align with our mission and they believe in our cause and they want to contribute to something that’s going to create meaningful change.”
Hoping to work in the medical field one day, Shruthi says the pandemic has further aggravated the problem of health care inaccessibility, something she fights against each day with her service. Inspired by the change Vitality Volunteers is making, Shruthi encourages other volunteers to lean in and find opportunities to give back.
“If there’s no opportunity for you to do something, then create (that opportunity). A lot of times I wanted to do something and it didn’t exist, so I’d just start the (initiative) on my own. Countless innocent lives have been lost because health care isn’t equally provided to everyone. Equal access to healthcare is a fundamental human right and I want to be able to give back to people who deserve the same amount of health care support as anyone else does.”
Teen’s Musical Service Soothes Isolated Seniors During COVID-19 Pandemic
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Aylin Tanriverdi. Read her story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Sensing her grandfather’s growing gloom about the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing isolation in his home in far away Turkey, Aylin Tanriverdi decided to cheer him up with some music.
Serenading her grandfather by guitar via Zoom, “it instantly lit up his eyes,” the 17-year-old Austin, Texas teen says, as she played “Canarios” by Gaspar Sanz, lifting her grandfather’s mood. “The song is inspired by an ancient dance from the Canary Islands, and (my grandfather) told me he imagined dancing on an island with me as I played.”
Deciding that moment was one that could be replicated with other lonely seniors, Aylin launched Musical Postcards for Seniors, an initiative that has involved about 100 of Aylin’s student peers at the Orpheus Academy of Music, some recruiting siblings or family, to record hundreds of video greetings and concerts that have been viewed by seniors in more than 760 nursing homes across 26 states in the United States and elsewhere internationally. Through her volunteerism, Aylin is offering seniors hope and giving youth an opportunity to make a positive change in their communities during a time of social isolation.
What inspires you to volunteer?
Alleviating social conditions and building connections, especially through music, is deeply meaningful to me. When I saw how my music school peers were becoming isolated and struggling to practice music during the pandemic, and then heard about isolated seniors in nursing homes, I wanted to do something about it. Humans are social beings that inherently create social connections. This initiative brings our community together, and gives us courage to overcome life’s challenges.
Aylin’s Musical Postcards have involved about 100 of Aylin’s student peers, some recruiting siblings or family to join in on performances, recording hundreds of video greetings and concerts that have been viewed by seniors in more than 760 nursing homes across 26 states in the United States and elsewhere internationally./Courtesy Aylin Tanriverdi
Describe your volunteerism with Musical Postcards for Seniors.
As founder and leader, I coordinate students to record concerts, and then help to manage editing and distribution of these performance postcards. I also work with nursing homes to distribute our performances and reach more seniors. Music is a very powerful vehicle that can connect people globally.
Share one personal story with me from your volunteerism.
One senior told us they loved the concert we taped for them so much that they watched it each morning. The senior said the postcard gave them hope and brought “sunshine to this dark time.” Bringing joy to even one person is really meaningful and rewarding for me, especially during a time of isolation and economic, social and justice crises.
Why do you think it’s important for others to give back?
Everyone has their own talents and capabilities that they can use to unite and work together to redeem social conditions.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your service?
At the start of the pandemic, Orpheus students were isolated, and they were really eager to record music and greetings for seniors. They went out of their way to record these concerts and even compose new pieces. It was really rewarding to work together to make this happen and brought out the best in everyone to stay connected.
In one word, what does volunteering mean to you?
Caring.
When you’re not busy in school or volunteering, what do you do for fun?
I love figure skating, reading, playing classical guitar and making hand crafts and digital art for my friends.
What is your favorite song to play on the guitar?
Oh that’s hard (laughs). I used to play in a classical guitar trio and we played “Kalimba” by Jürg Kindle. A kalimba is an African “thumb piano.” To imitate the sound of a kalimba, we each put a handkerchief underneath the strings of our guitar. I had never done this technique before, so it was very exciting to try. The piece is based on African and Afro-Cuban rhythms. I loved exploring different cultures while also learning and playing new rhythms with the trio.
How can readers help?
Please visit the Orpheus Academy website or email us for more information about how you can help.
Family of Volunteers Bring Fun and Games to Cleaning Up Detroit
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honorees Tom, Lisa, Michael, Margot, and Mark Nardone. Read their story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Point of Light.
The Nardone family philosophy comes down to “something is better than nothing” — as in, any helpful act, no matter how small, is better than the alternative of having not helped out at all. The Birmingham, Mich.-based family — including dad Tom, mom Lisa, and kids Michael, Margot, and Mark — use this mantra to make their volunteer work as fun as possible, all while helping to clean up their community.
A little over ten years ago, Tom started the Mower Gang — a group of volunteer landscapers who mow and clean up abandoned parks and playgrounds in Detroit. Mark, who enjoyed helping the Gang out but felt there wasn’t much for him to do without a mower of his own, was then inspired to create trash fishing. While trash fishing, the family and a group of fellow volunteers go out on the Detroit River in search of garbage to collect and dispose of. The family decided last year to combine the two activities and form the nonprofit Enemies of Debris. The Nardone kids carried on the volunteer spirit by all using their Eagle Scout projects to benefit their community.
Through all their volunteering, the Nardones bring fun to the act of cleaning up. The Mower Gang incorporates contests and games into their lawn mowing, culminating in the Motown Modown, a 12-hour volunteer event to crown a Grand Champion mower, complete with a championship belt as a prize. Contests also abound in trash fishing, with the winner of the most contests each year receiving the title of Trash Fishing World Champion. The Nardones even bring the spirit of trash fishing with them while on vacation, having collected trash in Rome, Houston, and St. Augustine, Fl.
Lisa Nardone enjoys a day of trash fishing, an activity created by her son Mark to clean up the Detroit River./Courtesy Nardone Family
Can you describe what the Mower Gang is and what your inspiration was to start it?
Tom:The Mower Gang is a group of volunteer landscapers who clean up and mow abandoned parks and playgrounds in the city of Detroit. The city of Detroit was going to declare bankruptcy and they had just announced they couldn’t afford to take care of some of the parks anymore. I thought that sounded like a pretty easy thing to do on a summer’s evening, so I started mowing a park myself, and then I quickly realized it would be more fun if there were other people involved. I formed a gang — not a group, it’s a gang, because we’re cool — and instead of motorcycles, we use lawn tractors.
Can you tell me about trash fishing?
Mark:Trash fishing is me, my dad, my sister, and whoever wants to come in the family. We have a little Boston Whaler, and we go out on the Detroit River and we just pick up whatever trash we can find. … We have a contest every couple weeks and there’s three categories — the most unusual trash, the biggest piece of trash, and the most trash. We normally have ten people, with only like four boats.
Tom: It’s kind of like a fast fishing contest, but we have a trash fishing contest. Everyone goes out on their boats and tries to outdo each other. A lot of the people are from the Mower Gang. These guys are like super volunteers. We go out on these Huck Finn adventures looking for trash.
Lisa: It’s a fun thing to do as a family. We’ve even done it while we were on vacation. We did it in Rome, Italy. We did it in Florida. It sounds like a chore but it is actually really fun. We also feel like we did something to make the world a little bit better when we’re done. It’s very fulfilling.
Can you describe your Eagle Scout Projects?
Michael: I had other people in my Boy Scouts group walk the [Palmer Park] and use the app MapMyRun. Then I took the data from their app and I used it to create a trail map of the park. The park has gone almost 150 years without a map, so they were very grateful to get one.
Margot: For my Eagle project, I did a food drive for the Judson Center. Because of COVID, I couldn’t conduct a normal food drive because there was a lot of contact with people, so I decided to do a food drive where we dropped bags off at people’s houses. I had the Scouts and my troop drop bags at their friends’ and families’ houses. They would fill them up with food and leave them at their doorstep so we could then pick them up and bring them over to our house. Then we drove all of the food to the Judson Center and we dropped it off there. The Judson Center helps foster families and it helps kids in need. … It’s important to me because they needed a lot of help, especially because of COVID. They didn’t have a lot of support throughout the pandemic. When we brought it in, they were super happy because they had a food pantry and it was pretty much completely empty. It made me really happy when we filled up their entire food pantry and then the lady immediately started calling families to come get food because they finally had it.
Mark:Me and my dad go fishing also, not just trash fishing, and there’s all this fishing line — this clear stuff that’s very hard to see and it doesn’t decompose. It’s meant to be very tough. I’m building these fishing line deposits [monofilament recycling bins]. You put your fishing line in it and it’s properly disposed of, because it’s really dangerous to fish. … Fish have a tough time seeing it, and they’ll get wrapped up in it and die, so I feel like it’s important to reduce leaving that in the waterways as much as possible.
Tom and Mark Nardone pick up garbage on the Detroit River while out trash fishing./Courtesy Nardone Family
Can you tell me about Enemies of Debris?
Tom:After the Mower Gang and trash fishing stuff, we finally formed a nonprofit called Enemies of Debris. Now that we’re a nonprofit we can do other things, so this year we started something called the Great American Pick Up Pick Up. It challenges people who drive pickup trucks to one day a year go pick up trash off the city streets. We did it for the first time this year. We got the city of Detroit to allow us to dump the trash for free, and we picked up over 7,000 pounds of trash in one day. That was fun.
What has it meant for you all to be able to volunteer together as a family?
Tom:What’s really important to me as a dad was when I first started doing this, one of the volunteers said “when you do nice things, you meet really nice people,” so then I get to introduce my kids to all sorts of really nice people. That’s who shows up to volunteer. Think about what type of person is going to take their lawn tractor that’s worth thousands of dollars, drag it down to Detroit somehow, and mow a park, right? They’re ambitious, they’re outgoing, they’re kind hearted, hard working. That’s who I want my kids to meet and to see. And I want those people to meet and see my kids, because someday they might need help with a job or some project or something, and these are people they can turn to. Michael, when he wanted to do the mapping of the park, the Mower Gang turned out for that. There were fallen trees blocking the trail, and they brought chainsaws out and cut them up and moved them out of the way, and all sorts of stuff like that.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
Lisa:For me, it’s seeing that my kids are taking it and extending it into their lives. All their Eagle projects are really centered around things they feel passionate about, wanting to help others, so I see the seeds growing in them and them wanting to be service oriented.
Margot: I like when you directly help people and you can see how happy they are after you do it. Or like trash fishing, when you clean out a place and then you go back and you see how clean it stayed, and how you really did make a difference. It’s really satisfying.
Michael: I like when you mow parks, kids will always come out right away to come play.
Mark: I like the feeling, after we trash fish, of looking at how much trash we picked up.
Tom: I like all the friends I’ve made along the way. Most of them are people I never would have met otherwise, and they’re just the greatest people.
Margot Nardone delivers food to the Judson Center as part of her Eagle Scout Project./Courtesy Nardone Family
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
Lisa: I learned that what Tom said is very true — that when you do good things, you’ll meet good people. They’re all the types of people you want to surround yourself with, because they’re really in it with you and they’re cheering for you.
Tom:I learned you can make these things fun. You get a better response by making it fun than you would any other way. Not everybody needs financial awards or anything like that. In fact, most people who do volunteer work don’t. They’re not there for that. But if you make it fun, they’ll come back.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
Lisa: My husband has a saying that I think is very powerful, and it’s something is better than nothing. The idea is that just by doing something, you’re making an impact. You may not think it’s big, you may not think it has widespread impact — but when you do something, it’s certainly better than doing nothing at all. That’s how we view trash fishing and the Mower Gang and everything else. We’re out there doing something, and that’s enough.
Alyssa Mays’ passion for volunteering began at just three years old, when her mother would take her along to run arts and crafts at a local camp for children with special needs. Since then, Alyssa has dedicated her life to serving those in her Seaman, Ohio community and beyond. Now seventeen, Alyssa works as a classroom volunteer for first graders, and has been tutoring fellow students virtually since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Also during the pandemic, Alyssa and her sister started sewing masks to deliver to a local hospital, veterans’ homes, and nursing homes. They also stared sending care packages and letters to the nursing homes as well.
Alyssa is an active volunteer at her church, working as a youth minister leader and helping to organize fundraisers for people in need in Haiti. She visited the country in 2018 to deliver toys and care goods, as well as to help build a roof for a trade school. She volunteers for and donates to multiple food distribution centers and drives. Alyssa volunteers yearly with V.I.P. Camp, a summer camp for children with special needs, which in turn led her to also volunteer for Night to Shine, which organizes proms for teenagers with autism. She recently became a director of the Adams County Youth Led Coalition, which works to prevent drug and alcohol abuse, and is working on finding new members and expanding the organization. Alyssa estimates she spends at least ten hours each week working on various volunteer projects, all while completing her senior year of high school.
Describe how you started making masks with your sister during the pandemic.
We had a lot of free time since school was out, and I love crafting and making things. I wanted to start sewing again, but there wasn’t anything to really sew — I couldn’t go see family and I used to sew curtains or pillow cases or things to share with my family. Then finding out there was a short supply of masks made me realize that they were super easy to make and I had the ability. I figured I could ask my community to collect materials and donate them toward this cause. … I feel like this helped everybody who has been involved through their donations. It’s not me alone, or me and my sister alone. We’ve had donations from our community so they feel they’ve helped too, even though they haven’t had the ability to actually make the mask.
We have made over 2,000 masks. I love to volunteer obviously, and life has been [using] my spare time volunteering. During the pandemic, it’s been really hard. [My sister is] our counter and everything. She organizes all that kind of stuff and gets everything together and picks all the pretty patterns. I’m the one who knows how to sew so I do all the sewing, all the arranging. We always put it together in a cute little package with their name on it and a way to take care of their masks through a letter. It’s a really neat way to show everyone that we care and we still want to provide for our community, even though a lot of our opportunities are limited now.
Alyssa Mays is an active volunteer in her Ohio community, donating about ten hours each week to various volunteer projects./Courtesy Alyssa Mays
Can you describe what you’ve done for people in Haiti?
I went to Haiti my freshman summer so that was 2018. … We went for 11 days. That trip was amazing. Very eye-opening. It was something crazy. I realized a lot and how blessed we are here. In Haiti, it’s very different, for sure. The kids aren’t given the same opportunities, so the schools and the orphanages are very grateful. One of my most memorable moments would have to be sharing my collection. I collected toys and care items and sports equipment to give to the kids in the communities and to the orphanages and to the schools, and they just lit up. Their eyes and their smiles were completely unforgettable. They were so grateful for everything we gave them. The sadness that they should be feeling was completely nonexistent. Their situations didn’t effect them at all. They were grateful and their gratitude was amazing. … We provided them with a roof for a trade school, and they now train members of the community for trade so they can have a successful life and begin to make their own money and support their family.
With the pandemic making traveling difficult, I’m not able to visit, so I’ve raised money and worked hard to complete tasks that benefit them. We have a rice-packing event at my church that I’m always involved in. We’ve had camps that always do rice-packing events that have sent rice over to them for meals. The big one would be our VBS [Vacation Bible School] camps. All the students are encouraged to bring in [rice], so we have created lunch benches and rooms and donated toys and things like that through church. Being our youth coordinator for missions, I can encourage the students around me to bring in, and then provide monetary donations to send for them to use in ways that we are unaware of that benefit them.
Can you describe how you volunteer for children with special needs?
I have always loved working with children with special needs. I began volunteering with my mom at one of our local special needs camps when I was three and we did arts and crafts. Then [in 2016] I started working with [V.I.P. Camp] in the summer. We gathered and taught them that their differences don’t mean anything, that they’re still as important as everyone else, and share God’s love for them and their special needs community.
Then I found Night to Shine. Night to Shine is a prom night for special needs children. You have to be at least 14. They have a prom night that celebrates them and their experiences, and shares God’s love for them and how they’re important and not overlooked, and how we all support them. I work as a one-on-one buddy and I’m assigned a new child every year. I get to experience this prom night that’s memorable and made for them. We do limo rides and we have a special crowning ceremony and we have our pictures taken in a photo booth. There’s a red carpet with all kinds of photographers. It’s a really neat experience and I’ve gotten to see it for several years and several kids get impacted by this experience, which is truly amazing. I started working with Night to Shine in 2018. It’s through the Tim Tebow Foundation. He speaks and it is really inspiring.
What inspires you to volunteer in so many different ways?
I’m inspired by the strong desire to change things around me and make a difference in the world. I started volunteering with special needs children at a young age and that’s when I fell in love with seeing the difference I could make in the lives of others. This led me to my good works, and I quickly started leading and organizing outreach events and opportunities within my community. I volunteer in various capacities and my service has exceeded hundreds of hours. I continue to be inspired by the lives that are changed through my service work.
Are there any future partnerships, programs, or events that you are excited about?
I am super excited about Adams County Youth Led Coalition. I am the director of the coalition. In Adams County, we struggle with drug usage and unemployment. I feel that a lot of that goes hand in hand and a lot of our teenagers are struggling with drug usage and alcohol abuse. We don’t encourage this kind of behavior and would like to implement drug-free awareness, and we are starting to campaign against drugs. I am heading this up and working with our local drug-free coalition, our adult group. We are expanding and trying to get members. We’ve gotten a few grants to start us off, but we are super excited to start planning events, especially post-pandemic. I feel like this could have a very big impact on my community since we struggle with drug usage, and I think it can really make a big difference. We are getting ready to donate care items to our local children’s home. We are donating backpacks and stuffed animals and plush blankets and towels, so they feel welcome in their new experience. I know that’s a really hard thing to go through, going to the children’s home, so we felt that this forever friend could provide them with somebody to comfort them, and then the backpacks will be a necessity for school to keep your items in. I think this will provide a lot of love and thought for these kids who are struggling.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
The most rewarding part of my work has been changing lives, of course, but I’ve been blessed with opportunities to serve in many areas. From protecting my commuting by providing masks that are handmade during a pandemic, to donating care items to children of a third-world country, and then my other various service projects, I feel that I’m rewarded with a sense of purpose and fulfillment. I feel honored when I realize the difference I’ve made in my community, in my school, in my church, and I guess even my world, at this point.
Alyssa Mays poses with some of the children she met during her 2018 mission trip to Haiti, where she delivered toys and care items to schools and orphanages./Courtesy Alyssa Mays
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I think I have learned a lot about myself, but I’ve learned a lot about my community as well. I’ve gotten to see a change in my community and my world, and that’s become very important to me. I’ve also realized how fulfilling it can be to be a leader, and to be a worker, and a member of a group that’s making change. I’m compassionate about helping others and I’m inspired by the lives I’ve changed, so I feel it’s very important to give back in even the smallest of ways. I know not everyone has materialistic things to give, but I’ve learned a lot about love and compassion and how important they can be to everyone. I think that’s made a big difference in my volunteer work.
Why do you think it’s important for others to give back?
I think it is important for everyone to volunteer because it’s giving back to the community. Sometimes it’s only a small way. I give back because I know that I’m more privileged than most and I feel I would like to provide better opportunities and blessings for those who are unable. I do not give to gain. I only give to share compassion with everyone. I understand that everyone may not have materialistic possessions, but kindness and compassion go a long way. The smallest act for a few minutes at a time can contribute to the biggest change. I think I include my community in a lot of my giving so they feel included and everyone’s felt like they have contributed to the difference I have made, too.
Isabella Dail has always had a deep love of reading, which she describes as having enriched her life. When the Saddle River, N.J.-native discovered her local libraries were throwing out high-quality books due to lack of space and nowhere to send them, she knew she wanted to find a second life for the books with underserved students who could use them. In 2018, Isabella started the nonprofit Adventures in Ink, which promotes global literacy through book donation drives as well as writing workshops and literary readings for elderly and pediatric patients.
In the past two years, Adventures in Ink has donated over 2,500 books and reached over 4,000 people across the globe. The nonprofit’s biggest project was partnering with the African Library Project to establish a library in Ghana, with 1,100 books provided by Adventures in Ink. While the COVID-19 pandemic has put a pause on the workshops and public readings, Adventures in Ink is now working to prerecord literary readings to be sent to schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. Isabella said the organization is looking to expand to help even more areas and would love to hear from anyone interested in volunteering.
Describe your volunteer role with Adventures in Ink.
Adventures in Ink is an organization that promotes youth literacy through book donation drives, literary readings, and writing workshops. I founded the program in 2018 and I’m currently the president. I manage all the volunteers and I’m in charge of book drives and other events we hold, so I dialogue with a lot of our partners and coordinate at a higher level.
What inspired you to start this?
I have always loved reading. I’ve always had fantastic access to libraries and resources and books, and I learned a lot of local libraries were throwing out a lot of high quality books because they didn’t have anywhere to send them. I knew that there were a lot of students who could probably use the books, and that there was just a disconnect between the two. So the program really started with the books. I wanted to create a bridge between these libraries and these underserved communities. All of my books come from local libraries and then I ship them globally. As the program grew, I began to add other experiences that involve literary enrichment, so that would include the writing workshops and the public readings for the elderly and the sick.
Who do you donate the books to?
We’ve had a few big projects. I think our biggest so far is we established a library in Africa. We partnered with the African Library Project and we sent about 1,100 books to a school in Ghana, which served about 510 students who had no other access to books. A library was built but unfortunately the funds ran out and they were unable to purchase the books, so we supplied the books for that library. We’ve done a few other projects as well. We partnered with Libraries Without Borders for their Wash and Learn Initiative. We sent books down to the Texas area in Spanish and English, so students and children whose parents are in laundromats can read during that time and have enrichment in a place that might be a little bit more unexpected. We’ve been targeting underserved youth and we’re now starting to partner with local schools. Just recently for the holidays, we sent about a car full of books to a local school in holiday bags as a gift.
Isabella Dial serves as the founder of Adventures in Ink, a nonprofit that promotes global literacy through book donation drives, writing workshops, and literary readings./Courtesy Isabella Dail
Why is promoting literacy so important to you?
I think reading has been such a prominent part of my life and a very deep passion of mine. Reading has opened up so many doors to me. It sparked an interest in writing. It’s created such a wonderful and enriching life. I’ve loved reading books. I wanted other people to have that opportunity the same as I had, because I know how much enjoyment I took out of reading books and I still do. I thought it would be really beneficial and wonderful for people to have that opportunity who might not otherwise have.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
I think a lot of the letters and the photos that I have received have really shown me how appreciative people are of books. I wasn’t really sure what the impact would look like. I think those letters have been so touching and heartwarming for me to see because I’m shipping things globally and usually in far locations, so I’m not able to see where they’re going or what their reaction to them are. I’ve loved receiving information from different people about the books, where they’ve gone, and who they’ve gone to.
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I don’t think I realized how much of a disconnect there truly is between resources and areas that need them. There are local libraries near me that throw out thousands of books every year and there are so many people who need them. I think learning about this disconnect, learning that all these wonderful books that end up going to waste and harming the environment and not really having a second life, was deeply upsetting to me and shocking to me. I’m glad I learned about that because that really was the basis of this program. Throughout my work I’ve seen the extent of the disparity, and I’m really, really happy that I’ve been able to make a small difference in this issue.
Why do you think it’s important for others to give back?
I think if you have the resources that it is important to give back. I think there are separations in equity in our world because some people don’t have access to proper educational materials and necessities. If you have them and you see resources around you that can be allocated to different organizations that can really make fantastic use of them, then it’s important to help those around you in your local community and the larger world.
Do you want to make a difference in your community like Isabella? Find local volunteer opportunities.
Teen Volunteers Help Small Businesses Survive the Pandemic by Providing Them with Free Websites
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honorees Arjun Gupta and Rayan Garg. Read their story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
While the Covid-19 pandemic has been difficult for us all, there’s no doubt that it has been especially hard on small businesses.
Lockdowns earlier in the pandemic forced 180,000 restaurants and businesses to temporarily shutter their doors, according to Yelp’s Economic Impact Report. By September, 60% of those closures became permanent. And while our eyes may glaze over those stats, that means 97,966 people, people who are mothers and fathers, our neighbors and friends, lost their main source of revenue.
Enter Arjun Gupta and Rayan Garg. These two high school seniors from San Jose, California, are the cofounders of Elevate the Future, a nonprofit organization that teaches coding and web design to young students, who then in turn have been using their newfound skills to create free websites for small businesses.
Arjun and Rayan created Elevate the Future in 2019, first starting off by teaching web design, computer science and business to middle schoolers in their area. But they have quickly expanded the organization with chapters spanning across 18 states and 16 countries such as Ukraine and Ghana, allowing thousands of young students around the world to have access to Elevate the Future’s engaging computer science and business curriculum they can use to succeed. On top of setting up 43 total chapters worldwide, these two teens have helped organize free virtual conferences, business pitch competitions and other educational events.
“Sometimes middle schoolers might not have long attention spans, so we’ve made [the curriculum] really hands on. We intersperse everything with an activity,” Rayan said.
Young students in California learning how to build websites through Elevate the Future’s curriculum./ Courtesy Elevate the Future
“It’s just so amazing that every time you speak with the students you teach, they’re always so grateful, they’re always so eager to learn,” he added. “They’re even asking questions that we didn’t think they would be able to so we definitely think it’s mind-boggling what these middle schoolers can do.”
These young students were able to put their skills to the test during the Covid-19 pandemic through Arjun and Rayan’s latest idea — Project Falcon. With the help of Elevate the Future’s web design curriculum, students have been able to create more than 30 websites for struggling small businesses for free.
One of the first business owners they helped was Bernard Hutcherson, owner of Cooking N’ Style, a custom burrito delivery business. Project Falcon was able to create a website for Bernard where customers could browse the menu, view pictures, order burritos and schedule pickup locations.
“He’s already told us that he’s seen dramatic increases in his orders as well as a huge increase in efficiency,” Arjun said.
On top of designing the website, Elevate the Future has been able to help the businesses utilize Google Ads to give the businesses even more exposure. And they’ve also partnered with Novaris Consulting to provide free crisis consulting to some of the businesses.
“We’re just getting started,” Arjun said. “On one hand with our chapters, I really hope that one day we could see this grow to every country on the planet. And with Project Falcon so far, we’ve only had the opportunity to impact just a few dozen businesses. But I really want to see this impacting hundreds of businesses across the country eventually.”
Student’s Volunteerism for Developmentally Disabled Students Means “EveryoneCanSTEM”
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Andrew Hsu. Read his story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
17-year-old Andrew Hsu attends a STEM magnet school which offers technology-focused education, preparing the Fullerton, California high school senior for the jobs of the future. Realizing the impact adjusted STEM education could have on students with developmental disabilities, Andrew has dedicated his volunteerism to offering specialized STEM learning.
Launching EveryoneCanSTEM in 2018, Andrew is helping to teach kids he says have incredible potential, but don’t always benefit from traditional education. Working to curb unemployment amongst adults with developmental disabilities, Andrew has reached nearly 200 special needs students K-8 across Southern California through free targeted education and activities, setting students up for success and increasing STEM accessibility in his community.
What inspires you to volunteer?
I personally find volunteerism is a break at times from stress in the world or school. Through volunteering, you are put into a totally different mindset of giving back to others. I find it to be very gratifying.
Why is this service so personal for you?
As someone who has a relative with autism, I’m very aware of the high unemployment rate people with developmental disabilities face. More than 80% of adults living with autism around the world are unemployed or underemployed due to a shortage of vocational training, inadequate support with job placement and pervasive discrimination. I am working to change that.
Describe your volunteerism with EveryoneCanSTEM.
As founder and president, I’m in charge of reaching out to community organizations to promote our programs. I host our Zoom education classes and also create the curriculum. When we receive new students, I identify their learning style and coding ability to match them with a trained volunteer who can best teach them. I train our high school student volunteers so they know how to work with special needs kids.
You also support education through other volunteerism. Explain.
Before the pandemic, I helped to lead weekly classes at several Boys & Girls Club locations, working with kids to build confidence in STEM learning. Additionally, I am the president of STEMup4Youth. After schools shut down in March because of the pandemic, I worked with local organizations to distribute nearly 1,000 free experiment kits to underprivileged communities.
Andrew pictured directing an experiment kit assembly session. Through his other volunteerism with STEMup4Youth, Andrew worked with local organizations to distribute nearly 1,000 free experiment kits to underprivileged communities once the COVID-19 pandemic started in March./Courtesy Andrew HSu
Share one personal story with me from your volunteerism.
A parent told me she was really happy because her child looked forward to our classes every single week. Especially during the pandemic, I was really grateful to hear that our class was one of the few things this child enjoyed. I’ve been very privileged to have this type of curriculum open to me, and it’s benefitted me in many ways. I want this group of students to be able to benefit as well. Now some of our students are excited about coding in the future, which is just amazing.
Why do you think it’s important for others to give back?
It’s important to volunteer because you really learn a lot about very different types of people that you otherwise would have never met.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your service?
It’s rewarding to watch kids when they write a piece of code and see it work perfectly. That sense of accomplishment is most rewarding to me.
How have you continued to volunteer throughout the pandemic?
We used to offer fun scientific experiments and coding through our in-person classes, but now we’re just offering weekly free coding classes on Zoom.
In one word, what does volunteering mean to you?
Passion.
When you’re not busy with school or volunteering, what do you do for fun?
I like to go on hikes with my dog, Simba. I also bike. Lastly, I’m always looking for the best chocolate.
How can readers help?
Please visit our website for more information about how you can help.
After growing up witnessing many people volunteering in her New York hometown, Pranavi Reddi always dreamed of one day starting a kindness club so she could help others as well. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, Pranavi decided to finally turn this dream into a reality by starting Kindness4All, a nonprofit whose goal is to spread kindness and positivity through weekly volunteer projects for people of all ages. At just sixteen-years-old, Pranavi has been able to reach approximately 15,000 people through Kindness4All, with help from about 500 volunteers.
All projects can be done at home and either dropped off or mailed to Kindness4All, which sends them out to partner organizations each week — so while the nonprofit is based in Pranavi’s current home of Frisco, Texas, volunteers are able to participate from anywhere in the country. Projects range from writing encouragement letters to breast cancer patients through the National Breast Cancer Foundation, to writing notes and assembling goodie bags for kids in children’s hospitals. In January, Kindness4All will be writing encouragement stickers to be put in the over 7,000 books the nonprofit collected for Title I elementary schools in the Dallas-Forth Worth area.
Pranavi Reddi is the founder and CEO of Kindness4All, a nonprofit that spreads positivity through weekly volunteer projects for people of all ages and locations to complete./Courtesy Pravani Reddi
Describe your volunteer role with Kindness4All.
I am the founder of Kindness4All. It’s a nonprofit organization that looks to spread kindness and positivity around the world with the help of volunteers of all ages, and specifically youth volunteers. Every week we have different projects that people of all ages can participate in. Then we work with partner organizations to use these projects to spread kindness. Some examples of previous projects would be writing encouragement letters to women facing breast cancer, or thank you cards to volunteers at local food pantries, or making gingerbread man notes for children in the children’s hospitals. We usually partner with organizations related to our project. For the gingerbread man project, we partnered with the children’s hospital. We take the items that our volunteers create and give it to the partner organization, and then the partner organization is in charge of giving it out to the people we want it to help spread kindness to.
What inspired you to start this?
This was started in early March. Honestly, starting a kindness club has been a life dream for a really long time. When the pandemic started, I felt like this was really the time to put it into action because there was so much negativity and fear everywhere. I felt kindness and positivity could do so much for everybody, and it could really help everyone feel better and help us get through the pandemic.
How did starting a kindness club become a dream of yours?
I actually grew up in New York. When I used to live there, I would see all these people go out and volunteer all the time, just to help with the community and make the world a better place. I found that really inspiring, and from a young age I used to always do random acts of kindness and volunteer whenever I could. With the pandemic, I realized a lot of people didn’t have that opportunity in the same way, so I really wanted to put forward my dream and help the world at the same time.
Do you have a favorite project that you’ve done?
Honestly, my favorite as of right now would probably be the Halloween project we did with [Children’s Medical Center Dallas]. We created little goodie bags with candy and a Halloween craft and a Halloween sticker and eraser, and we packaged them up with notes of encouragement. We gave them to the children in the hospital at Dallas around Halloween time. I thought that one was really fun because it was amazing to see the impact it had on the children. Besides that, I would say almost all of our projects stick out to me, to see how much people are helping to make the world a kinder place.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
The most rewarding part has definitely been seeing the impact that our projects have on people and hearing about how much positivity and kindness our projects have spread. One time at Frisco Family Services, the local food pantry, we did a project where we wrote notes of kindness, so that all the clients who would come to the food pantry would also leave with a small note of encouragement. It was amazing to see the clients’ faces light up after seeing the notes, and it was so rewarding. I think it’s also equally rewarding to see all the youth getting involved with our projects and a nonprofit, and seeing the difference we’ve been able to make in countless lives. Moreover, I think this project inspired so many other high school students in my area to start projects of their own so they can help the world. I think it’s just so magical to see the effect that kindness can have.
Pranavi Reddi, left, brings Halloween goodie bags assembled by her nonprofit Kindess4All to Children’s Medical Center Dallas./Courtesy Pravani Reddi
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I have learned so many lessons from starting Kindness4All, it’s actually amazing. The biggest thing I learned is that even though it doesn’t seem like you can help because you’re just one person, any act of kindness or positivity you do, it can immensely impact the world around you. I used to think, I’m just one person, does my volunteering really matter? But after starting this, I see how much an impact I can have on the world, and it’s amazing. I also learned that if you have a mission and you work hard at it, it will happen, regardless of any obstacles you face. Especially if you’re trying to do something good for the world, I feel like there will always be people around you to support you, to help make that dream come true.
Why do you think it’s important for others to give back?
I think it’s really important because with the way our world is now, I think people are so caught up in making money, getting grades, and going about their daily lives, that they often forget that there’s more you can contribute to the world besides your job. Volunteering and helping other people can not only help you find the internal self satisfaction, but it can also help you change the world in remarkable ways. I think it’s really important because once you do an act of kindness, it’s not going to stop there — it’s going to have a ripple effect. That ripple effect, you never know, could end up effecting the entire world. I think it’s really important that we volunteer because we never know what kind of impact you can make if we don’t try to help the world.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
It would definitely be that you have the power to change the world around you. It’s not just, ‘Oh, I’m one person.’ You can make such a big difference on someone else’s life. I would really want whoever is reading this to just go out and do an act of kindness for somebody, whether it’s holding the door open or writing a thank you card for a coworker. Any little act of kindness you can do can really greatly impact someone’s life.
