Adler Xu, 17, loves outer space. The 2014 film Interstellar captivated his imagination, and working with museums and observatories has only solidified his intent on a future in aerospace engineering after graduation. With many science competitions under his belt, he’s well on his way. It should come as no surprise that his reading habits align with his passion, and he notes Andy Weir’s The Martian as one of his favorite works of science fiction.
Adler also loves his community. As secretary of The Food Lounge, both the Dallas chapter and the national organization, Adler collects donated food and necessities from restaurants and grocery stores, and packs and distributes it to those in need as well as assisting at local food banks, churches and other nonprofits. He manages 700 members from chapters across the country, keeps detailed membership records and ensures things run smoothly. The organization has served nearly 400,000 individuals so far.
During the summer, Adler spends 20 hours a week volunteering but has stepped back to 5-10 hours while he applies to colleges and goes to classes. His future may be out of this world, but his free time focus is firmly on Earth. Leaning toward colleges in Austin or Houston, both cities with chapters of The Food Lounge, he plans to continue to be involved.
What inspires you to volunteer?
I’ve always volunteered, but I think one of the turning points for me was volunteering for my school district’s back-to-school event. A lot of people came together to help out underserved people in my area. I witnessed a lot of families who were really reliant on these resources we gave them — food, clothing, school supplies — and seeing their faces and hearing their stories struck a chord within me.
I want to restore long-standing community and dignity within my community by offering a path that makes a lasting impact, not just temporary. I want to make sure that children and adults alike have the necessary resources to succeed in their lives.
Tell us about your volunteer role with The Food Lounge.
I’m secretary of The Food Lounge. I make sure we’re running properly by managing fundraisers and keeping detailed membership and partnership records. I’ve teamed up with local businesses to get donations. I’ll lead in-person events that bring our mission to life. I put on food distribution events to ensure people get healthy meals and pitch in at nearby food banks. We’ve also helped to pack food for people around the world with Feed My Starving Children. These hands-on events help our group to connect with the community and the people we serve.
Nationally, I make sure every chapter is running smoothly. I designate roles and make sure volunteer records are done correctly so I can put them all into one database. I also handle new memberships and partnerships that we have with restaurants around the country.
Members got together for the recent cookbook project, designed recipes and made a cookbook that we sold at an event to raise funds. We cooked the food ourselves and sold it alongside the cookbooks. One of my main roles on that project was assembling the cookbook, getting people to make the recipes and general oversight. I made my own recipes, too. I don’t get to cook very much, but when I do it’s like chemistry.
What are your long-term plans or goals for the organization?
Right now, we’re up to around 13 chapters in the United States. We’re working to eventually grow that to 20 to 30. We also want to grow the chapter in our own community through new partnerships and increased membership.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
It’s seeing the joy on people’s faces. Not only are you helping them, but you’re creating a community that they can rely on. One moment that was really impactful for me was while helping families get groceries and food at an event we hosted with our school district. I started to help a woman who was struggling with her things take food back to her car. She said, “You have no idea how much this means to me.” I couldn’t help but smile.
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I’ve learned how building a community works. I’ve really started valuing collaboration with my team and our members. I’ve learned that perseverance in daily life is really important as well. We’ve had a lot of challenges getting organizations on board, but it’s all been worth it.
Tell us about future partnerships, programs or events that you are excited about.
Before Thanksgiving and Christmas, we’ve been trying to reach out more and help our local children’s hospital get food and toys. That’s something we do every year, so I’m pretty excited about it. It’s one thing to see adults happy, but kids smiling is my favorite thing.
Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?
I’m in an AP U.S. Government class right now, and we’ve been learning about the importance of stepping up and popular sovereignty, taking an active role in democracy. In the context of our organization, it’s about getting involved in causes you care about. That’s kind of the goal of America, what I think America does best. If you really want to make a difference in the community, you have to care about what you want to do.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
Resolving food insecurity starts with just reaching out to restaurants and grocery stores. People think it’ll be hard, that they might have to spend a lot of money on buying food or getting a lot of people to help pack it. But once they actually start reaching out, they’ll realize that businesses want to help. There are people everywhere who want to make a difference in their communities. Finding those people is the hard part, but after you do, it just snowballs from there. Apply to create a new chapter. We’ll help you take steps from there.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
I hope my story inspires others to take leadership roles in their own communities. It’s the passion and commitment behind it that makes a difference. And fostering people. Community is driven by love and energy.
AmeriCorps Leader Builds Next Generation of Environmental Leaders in Hometown of Winston-Salem
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Christopher Perdomo. Read his story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
After working as a (VISTA) volunteer from August 2022 to August 2023, 24-year-old Christopher Perdomo returned to his hometown of Winston-Salem, N.C., to join the Piedmont Environmental Alliance (PEA), an AmeriCorps program focused on educating students around how to create a more environmentally sustainable world. Perdomo always tries to incorporate his community in every environmental program he does. So far, he has helped engage thousands of students in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County’s Title 1 Schools, including 11 high schools and nine middle schools.
After finishing college, Perdomo was working in a job that didn’t have much to do with his major, environmental science. He wanted to use his degree to do something meaningful and was looking to find a way to not only grow his education in environmental science into a career, but also contribute to his community in a meaningful way. AmeriCorps, a federal program that brings people together to tackle the country’s most pressing challenges through national service and volunteering, became the perfect opportunity for Perdomo, who was living in New York City at the time.
“I was looking for a way to go back to Winston Salem and do something for the community in a meaningful way,” Perdomo said. “I grew up here. I went to middle school and high school here. So, it’s like I grew up alongside kids like this, and it just feels so much more meaningful.”
Christopher Perdomo teaches environmental science courses focused on energy conservation and water quality to high school and middle schoolers as an AmeriCorps volunteer at Piedmont Environmental Alliance (PEA). /Courtesy Christopher Perdomo
Perdomo works with the director of science curriculum for the county and tries to get into as many science classes in the district as he can. He brings vital topics into underserved classrooms and creates the environmental leaders of the future. He’s also been instrumental in the growth of PEA’s Environmental Debate Tournament, which recruits and trains students from 15 high schools to participate in a debate tournament on environmental issues. Building on this success, Christopher, along with a volunteer team that he has recruited and trained, will soon be presenting their Energy Explorers curriculum to more than 3,000 students attending 7th grade.
Depending on the day, Perdomo can be found either at an office or high school or middle school classroom in the district. When he’s at school, he’s teaching hands-on lessons in classrooms filled with environmental science activities. For about six months out of the year, he’s in and out of classrooms doing the supplemental environmental education programs — especially programs focused on energy conservation and water quality education — that he supplies to the various schools, specifically to seventh graders.
One of Perdomo’s favorite activities he does with his students involves a bike, light bulbs and a board. The kids get the opportunity to see the bike pedal light the light bulbs and learn how much actual work goes into lighting bulbs, helping them learn about wattage and energy. He also hosts an annual environmental science debate tournament for high schoolers in which Perdomo helps train students in public forum debates and preliminary research.
He’d like to see more community members get involved in environmental education and believes that there are many qualified people to teach about water conservation in Forsyth County. He knows that even when kids and students don’t want to pursue a career in environmental science, the moments where he’s engaging with them with his own passion are meaningful and can help them discover their own dream job.
AmeriCorps volunteer Christopher Perdomo teaches a lesson to seventh graders about energy conservation using a bike, lightbulbs and a board. /Courtesy Christopher Perdomo
“I don’t have a background in education, so for me to go into the classroom, especially during that first AmeriCorps year, was something new for me and something I had to learn and grow in. It was so rewarding, and one of my 7th graders came up to me and told me he wished I were his teacher.”
Perdomo says that programs like PEA help with teacher turnover and burnout, and that working in environmental science education has taught him true kindness and how to spread that kindness to others around him.
Perdomo is looking forward to an upcoming partnership with the City of Winston Salem where students and the community will come together in celebration of local bodies of water in the form of a “creek crawl,” where participants can stop and learn about natural water sources in the area.
“The people that do the best work are the people that are the most passionate about their work. If you care about something, you should put yourself in a position to do it,” Perdomo said.
Texas Teen Leads Nonprofit to Support Unsheltered Individuals in His Community
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Ishaan Cheng Patel. Read his story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
After growing up volunteering with his family in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, 16-year-old Ishaan Cheng Patel co-founded his own nonprofit, Under My Umbrella, to continue serving the unhoused community and beyond. Ishaan helps coordinate weekly food distributions and deliver supplies directly to people experiencing homelessness. With support from local businesses and individual donations, his family has become the go-to distribution site for Ishaan’s neighbors and community.Under My Umbrella has a multitude of programs tailored to meet the various needs of the community, including neighbor outreach, holiday giving, a rainy-day fund, youth camps, an upcoming basketball camp and more.
What inspires you to volunteer?
Volunteering is just something that we’ve always done as a family. We volunteered around our community before Under My Umbrella was ever officially a nonprofit, so it became a habit. I volunteered for around nine years. One of the places was at a shelter, and my friend and I began wondering how the children who live in that shelter have decorations for Christmas and the holidays. They didn’t have much space, and they didn’t have a Christmas tree, so we had the idea to give them miniature trees and let them decorate them.
It took us a while to officially become a nonprofit because my mom works full time, and she was looking into outreach that fit all of our schedules and that she could take us to. Eventually she decided that we don’t really have to follow a schedule, we could just do it ourselves on our own schedule. We also tried to build Under My Umbrella in a way that students can get service hours while volunteering.
16-year-old Ishaan Cheng Patel co-founded his own nonprofit, Under My Umbrella, to continue serving the unhoused community and beyond./Courtesy Ishaan Cheng
Tell us about your volunteer role with Under My Umbrella.
We have different programs that occur during different times of the year. We do the holiday program with the Christmas trees, decorations and gifts every December. We also have a neighbor outreach program that we do every week where we give out hot meals, bottles of water and coffee. We go to downtown Dallas for this and serve around 50 to 130 people each week. We have a third outreach that’s called the rainy-day program. It kind of fills in the gap by providing families with the little things they’re lacking, like school supplies or a bus pass.
We’re working on starting a new program that will be our new youth academy where we can host different camps and activities for kids. We also hosted our first basketball camp in June of this year, and we want to start doing that every couple of months. We’re just trying to reach out to people of all ages who need a little extra help or don’t have access to opportunities.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
Going out and meeting people and seeing people’s reactions to our programs. It’s nice to know that you can always help someone.
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I’ve learned that it’s really important to bring the community together and help, because when we’re together, we have such a bigger impact in serving our neighbors.
Under My Umbrella has different programs which provide support for the Dallas community./Courtesy Ishaan Cheng
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
Just get started — that’s the most important thing. We started small by helping people in our community as a family. We grew and built a small nonprofit where we continue to build up adults and build tailored programs to their needs. The important thing really is to just dive in and begin because once you do that, you can develop a schedule and make volunteering a habit like brushing your teeth. It’s not work to us, it’s just something that we do.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
I want them to learn that they can help. It’s important to learn that we’re not special — we’re just ordinary people. We also rely on our community to help us out because it’s a grassroots effort.
We also try to push mindful giving because we don’t have the capacity to sort through so many donations or clean and store things. We try to upcycle and be mindful about decreasing our carbon footprint with Under My Umbrella — we’re as eco-friendly as we can, such as by using compostable containers for food.
Tell us about future partnerships, programs or events that you are excited about.
We have another basketball camp coming up this fall. Right now, we have a program where we’re doing care packages, and anyone can take these packages and give them out to people who need them.
Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?
Because it’s really important to have our community together. We’re based out of our home. We’re not a big nonprofit. We can’t help everyone. But the hopeful thing is that people can help others outside of Under My Umbrella, too, and can reach people we can’t.
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Rishan Patel. Read his story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Rishan Patel has been active in school sports since elementary school. His older brother played basketball and Rishan followed in his brother’s footsteps, playing in AAU Basketball tournaments in elementary and middle school.
When Rishan’s team would play in nearby cities around his home state of California like Oakland and Palo Alto, Rishan noticed kids who were playing with worn-out equipment and uniforms. The sadness and empathy he felt for these kids led him and his brother, Shay, to form Alley-Oop Kids and Lending Lockers, which provides kids with sports equipment they may not have access to otherwise. Since launching Lending Lockers in the summer of 2022, they have provided sports gear to over 100,000 kids worldwide.
What inspires you to volunteer?
I realized that without proper equipment, many of the kids from underserved areas wouldn’t be able to continue playing their sport. Some had school support but did not have the resources to buy uniforms, shoes, and equipment. For example, not having the right shoes for a particular sport can hold an athlete back, if they don’t have the right traction or support. I believe that all kids have the right to play sports, regardless of background, gender or ability. I want to do everything I can to fight for youth sports equity.
Rishan Patel, founder of Alley-Oop Kids./Courtesy Rishan Patel
Describe your volunteer role with AlleyOop Kids
I am the founder of Lending Lockers, and co-founder of Alley-Oop Kids with my brother, Shay Patel. I started Lending Lockers during the summer of 2022 which was my sophomore year in high school. Lending Lockers provides kids with sports equipment they may not have access to otherwise. There are currently over 130 Lending Lockers globally, bringing sports gear to over 100,000 kids.
These aren’t your typical school or gym lockers. They are equipment sheds that volunteer helpers and I install at schools that need them. The lockers are purchased with donated funds and grants, and are stocked with equipment based on each school’s needs. The equipment is meant to be used at school and then returned. We have supplied equipment for soccer, basketball, baseball, football and, more recently tennis, lacrosse and other sports.
We started locally and now we’ve expanded to helping globally. These lockers are stocked with gear donated by a company called Good Sports, which donates new unsold sports equipment. We also obtain equipment by running gear drives after every sports season at schools from elementary through high school. The community also donates used sports equipment. I’ve found that people have a surprising amount of unused sports gear in their garages and basements and are happy to donate it.
I run the project. I find schools to donate lockers to, and reach out them. Many times, schools and organizations come to us through Instagram and other platforms asking for equipment. To date, local volunteers have installed lockers in Uganda, Colombia and India. Over half of these lockers, over sixty, are in India. I volunteer on average around five hours a week, sometimes more depending on the need.
Most of the work is done by myself and a few adult advisors who help manage day-to-day operations. When we install lockers, high school volunteers come help build and stock them.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
When I started the project, I would go with friends and physically install the shed and stock it. Seeing the kids’ reactions has always been incredibly fulfilling. They are so incredibly happy! While I can’t personally be there to install every locker in countries around the world, the photos I get back tell the real story of happiness that these lockers bring to the kids. I especially love hearing about kids trying out a new sport because of the Lending Locker at their school.
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I’ve learned so much! The first lesson is from seeing how this project has blossomed. Don’t be afraid to start. I started it when I was 15. I didn’t have a direction, just a basic idea. I saw a need and I thought about ways to solve that need. More recently, I have learned how to stay organized with everything from fundraising to communicating with potential partners. I’ve learned how to use connections to get more people involved in the project.
TELL US ABOUT FUTURE PARTNERSHIPS, PROGRAMS OR EVENTS THAT YOU ARE EXCITED ABOUT.
I won an ESPY, an award for individual and team athletic achievement as well as other sports-related performance, for my work through the Billie Jean King Youth Leadership Award, As a result of the platform that honor gave me, I am excited to be collaborating with Gatorade to install more lockers nationwide. We are figuring out the logistics now. This is the biggest organization we’ve worked with to date and I believe this partnership will make a huge impact.
Rishan Patel with a fully stocked Lending Locker that includes uniforms, shoes, and various sports equipment./Courtesy Rishan Patel
Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?
Whatever you’re passionate about, there’s always a problem in that area that needs to be solved. These problems, like lack of sports equipment for kids, may go unnoticed. The kids who don’t have the proper equipment often stop playing by the time they reach high school, so you don’t really see them and the problem doesn’t get noticed.
If you notice a need, do something. Meeting a need is always fulfilling! A great place to start is to check out the School Sports Equity Toolkit that I helped the Aspen Institute create.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
Go for it! There’s a big perception that you need to be older, connected, smart, and so on but just going for it and following your passions can go a long way. People get excited to help when your passion shows. There will be obstacles but if you stay committed and persist, things will work themselves out.
Volunteer Works to Bring Inspiration and Hope to Young Patients Dealing with Psychiatric and Behavioral Issues
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Kyu Sun Byun. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Kyu Sun Byun found for passion for working with children while in Haiti. While helping at an afterschool program on a mission trip, she knew she had found purposeful work she wanted to pursue. Kyu is already a physics professor in New York City who helps run a medical clinic and operates her own professional organizing business. If that weren’t enough, she has also entered divinity school as a graduate student in an effort to expand her capacity as a youth pastor at her church. During downtime, she loves biking around the Big Apple with her husband and bouldering. Her focus, however, remains on kids.
Upon her return from the Caribbean, searching for a similar volunteer opportunity, she became interested in mental health. Her students were suffering during the isolation of the pandemic. And that’s when the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit at Mount Sinai Morningside came on her radar. She joined the team in April of 2022 and has spent nearly 300 hours organizing and facilitating creative activities for kids to express themselves and build confidence. She is particularly fond of teaching origami, a skill she learned growing up in South Korea.
Kyu’s optimism and compassion help her connect with kids as young as three and as old as 18 who might be affected by things like autism, the aftereffects of trauma, obsessive compulsive disorder, eating disorders or psychosis. They also inspire hope.
What inspires you to volunteer?
At my previous church, I worked as a Sunday school teacher for a while. I also worked with kids at an after-school program in Haiti as part of a few mission trips. When I came back to New York City, I wanted to find something similar. During the pandemic, I noticed my physics students were having all kinds of different difficulties. We were all quarantining, and it had an effect on mental health, so I became interested. When opportunities started to open up again, including in the [Mount Sinai Morningside] pediatric psychiatric unit, I applied.
Tokens of patients’ gratitude from drawings to origami hearts remind Kyu of the connections she’s formed./Courtesy Kyu Byun
Tell us about your volunteer role with Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit at Mount Sinai Morningside.
I dedicate at least three hours each week to supporting patients. Every day, they have free time during which volunteers spend time with them. As a senior volunteer, I also support new volunteers as they adjust to the dynamics of the unit.
The first time I went in, we played cards for three hours, so I decided to start organizing a variety of activities. My specialty is origami; I grew up doing it. But I also bring arts and crafts, Play Dough or games. It’s really challenging for them in the hospital, and sometimes they lose hope. I just want to inspire them,help them discover the possibilities that lie ahead and nurture their unique talents.
Some patients stay for several months. When there is a long period of inpatient treatment, they get really bored. I go every week, and even the patients who didn’t open up their hearts in the beginning see that you’re coming back again and again. If they know you’re going to be there for them, they start to open up and talk about their life. It’s really meaningful to learn about them and give them hope.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
The best part is whenever I hear kids say, “When I grow up, I want to be a volunteer like you.” At first, they don’t even know what volunteer means. But after they learn what I do, they want to come back to the psychiatric unit and volunteer.
One of the most memorable moments was with a patient. They were upset, because they were in the hospital while their peers were preparing for college. They thought they were wasting their time. We started to do some activities together, and I noticed their talent for origami, so I started to develop that. As their discharge date came around, I told them that when they left, they should start a creative portfolio and recommended some origami artists to look for, etc.
I hoped not to see them again in the unit, but they came back. When I saw them again, I was touched that they’d actually taken my advice. We had a competition for who could make the smallest crane. They brought this incredibly tiny crane for me and had even investigated which material would work best.
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
Each child is made perfect. Sometimes they think they have flaws, but I see amazing potential in them. And I’ve learned empathy, how to understand and have compassion for what other people are going through. Some things are hard to imagine. Also, we do this as a team. I’m good at origami, but another person is great at painting or creative storytelling. We all work together.
Kyu Byun in front of Mount Sinai Morningside, the hospital where she volunteers in the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit./Courtesy Kyu Byun
Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?
We all have something to give. When you share what you love to do, the impact is even greater. For me, working with the patients here has helped me grow as a person and has made it clear the purpose of my life.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
If there is anyone out there who is interested in volunteer work with Morningside, they’re always welcome to apply. Background checks are necessary because you’re working with minors. You just have to love children and have a genuine heart. Pediatric patients are very good at discerning who really cares for them or not. Also, all patients are a little different. Some patients might like activities but others might prefer to just talk. You have to tailor it to the individual.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
This experience really gave me a stronger why – why am I here? – and it grew my passion for helping the next generation. Everyone has passion for something, but you have to be proactive to find out what it is. Don’t just think about it. Go out and find an opportunity to help others. You can make an impact.
Young Woman Leads Myriad Initiatives in Community Close to Her Heart
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Emelie Nguyen. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Emelie Nguyen has been dedicated to helping support and uplift the predominantly Chinese immigrant community of Flushing, New York, through her volunteer work with the Flushing Central Leo Club. After volunteering as a member for three years, she eventually became the chapter president, a role she’s filled for two years.
Emelie has successfully planned and executed a variety of outdoor service projects, including walkathons, beach cleanups and flower planting, as well as many other types of volunteer projects specific to the Flushing community’s needs. Emelie also shows clear commitment to equitable healthcare access for this predominantly immigrant Chinese community, evident in her collaboration with EmblemHealth, where she organized free cancer screening centers with translation services.
Emelie is now a freshman at Brown University. She has her eyes set on expanding her volunteerism to establish a local Leo Club chapter in her Rhode Island community. Read on to find out more about Emelie’s passion for civic engagement and community service, and how this passion drives her to keep volunteering.
What inspires you to volunteer?
It’s the innate human satisfaction you get from helping another person. I come from Long Island, New York, and both my parents are immigrants and worked very hard to get me the education I have now. I come from a place of privilege. Having this privilege of not having to worry about paying for schooling or having something to eat, I have the ability and the leisure to do things I want. And since I have the time to not worry about those things, I have time to help others who do have to worry about those things.
Leo Clubs lend support to specific communities in a variety of ways, including food distribution, donation drives, community clean-ups and more./Courtesy Emelie Nguyen
Most of our volunteering in the Leo Club is centered around the Asian American community in Flushing, who are also predominantly immigrant, like my parents. So, it’s a cycle, in a way. My parents are both Asian American immigrants. They helped me get here. I’m trying to pay it back, in a way, by supporting and uplifting the Flushing community that they work in and that supported our family to get to where we are today.
How did you get started with The Leo Club?
I had joined the Leo Club in 8th grade – in 2019. This is a youth organization of Lions Club International, the largest volunteer organization in the world at 1.5 million members. They have tons of different regional clubs around the world, from the United States to Europe and Asia. The club that I joined was the Flushing Central Leo Club in Flushing, New York – the biggest Chinatown in the United States.
My parents both work in Flushing, and so every weekend, we would go there to get a haircut or go to the grocery store. Both of my parents were part of the Flushing Central Lions Club – the adult organization for the Leo Club. Through word of mouth, my mother heard about the Leo Club, and to give my sister and I something to do on the weekends, she put us into the club. From there, I’ve been participating in it for five years. I’ve learned a lot about what community service is. I came into it knowing nothing about community service – I was just some kid who was on my iPad all day. But after going to the community every weekend for five years, I’ve learned so much about volunteerism, service and community.
Describe your volunteer role.
When I first joined in 8th grade, I was a member for three years before I became president for two years. We do a huge range of different humanitarian service work, but all of it centers around the region of Flushing. We do all types of service work that ranges from anything to walkathons to beach clean ups to park clean ups and bulb planting, volunteering in soup kitchens. The way we run projects, and this is something I really like about the Leo Club, is that it’s not dedicated to one issue in particular. It’s dedicated to a wide array of community needs in a specific region. It’s a very community-based organization. Any issue that we personally see in the community, we vote on an initiative to tackle it that week or month.
I’m a healthcare-oriented student, so I’m the only one interested in health. But I have other friends interested in finance and other things. So, we do all different types of projects. One of my favorite projects was a community health screening, and we even offered translation services. But for my friends interested in finance, the project where we offered free labor to businesses in the community was most interesting and allowed them to make connections with businesses in the community. It’s a very multidisciplinary club. Everyone has their interests satisfied.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your volunteer work?
The most rewarding part of volunteering for the last five years is all the different types of people I’ve met. Every person knows something you don’t. Everyone has something to offer you that you don’t already know. That’s especially been exemplified by all the different stories of immigrants I’ve heard from.
It makes me reflect on myself and the world around me. I think we tend to get caught up in our own lives and issues. Hearing the stories of other people helps you realize you’re not the only person in the world.
Why is it important for people to get involved with the causes they care about?
I heard this quote the other day: “If you don’t do it, who will?” It’s simple but powerful. It speaks for itself. If you’re not going to do something, if all you do is think about the issue, who’s going to take action on it?
Tell us about future partnerships, programs or events that you are excited about.
Since I’m now based in Rhode Island, I’m trying to start a Leo Club here, through the local Lions Club. There’s a significant Hispanic immigrant population here, and I was thinking of shifting our focus to supporting the Hispanic immigrant population locally, instead of the predominantly Chinese immigrant population in Flushing.
I want to carry that same mission that I did in Flushing. I speak decent Spanish and want to do be able to do some of the same things here that we did there, including health screenings, beautifying the community and more.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
I was pretty lucky in that my family heard about the Leo Club and then we were able to have the resources of the Lions Club chapter behind us so we could pursue our projects. I’d say always be on the lookout for opportunities around you. And if you truly think there are no opportunities to get involved with your community, make your own opportunities. Especially with technology, you can learn to do anything. There are infinite resources out there to help you get involved in a variety of ways, depending on your interests.
San Juan Teen Supports His Neighbors Through Good Times and Bad
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Omar Rosario-Lebrón. Read his story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
As one of nine siblings, 15-year-old Omar Rosario-Lebrón has always been part of a big team or, in this case, family unit. His love of soccer and volleyball led him to join multiple sports teams. Regardless of who is by his side, Omar works with the people around him to reach a common goal whether it’s convincing his parents of something or winning a game. As a resident of the Luis Llorens Torres Residential, a government-supported housing complex in San Juan, Puerto Rico, his other team includes his friends and neighbors in the building. Omar made looking out for their needs official when he joined the Children and Youth Advisory Council of their Youth Center just five years ago and has been supporting the educational, cultural, recreational and material needs of his community ever since, spending over 732 hours of his time.
He helped the committee in handing out non-perishable food, hygiene products and other basic necessities during the 2019 earthquakes and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Elderly, mobility-impaired and single mothers were especially grateful for the support, and Omar continues to deliver hot food to residents who need help, as well as snacks and school supplies to kids. He acts as a spokesperson for the needs and concerns of his young neighbors and pitches in on office work, activity planning and workshop organization. In his spare time, Omar has also gone through training for drug and alcohol abuse prevention, suicide prevention and disaster preparedness.
Amidst keeping up with school work, acting as president of his student council and placing third at a recent science competition, he makes caring a priority. Omar’s strong dedication to helping others and preparation for potential challenges make him a valued member of his community. He even has his sights set on becoming the future Governor of Puerto Rico.
What inspires you to volunteer?
I have a deep love for the community and the residents, especially the elderly, children and youth. I’m very passionate about the work I have done at Residencial Luis Llorens Torres. My family and teachers have taught me to help people since I was a child. I have also learned to help people through the Luis Llorens Torres Residents Council.
Omar Rosario-Lebron, member of the committee of children and youth of the Consejo de Residentes Res. Luis Llorens Torres Youth Center since 2019./Courtesy Omar J. Rosario-Lebrón
Tell us about your volunteer role with the Consejo de Residentes Res. Luis Llorens Torres Sector Youth Center.
I have represented children between the ages of 6 and 12 years since 2018. I propose educational and recreational activities, cultural, sports and fine arts for the benefit of children and young people. When I turned 13, I became a representative of young people between the ages of 13 and 17 doing the same work in addition to helping the Council as a volunteer in all the activities and workshops that were planned by the Council, the Department of Housing, the Public Housing Administration and the Managing Agent. Knowing the tastes, needs and problems of children and young people gives me the opportunity not only to suggest activities but also to be able to provide resources to face their daily challenges.
What inspired you to get started with this initiative?
What inspired me to volunteer was the direct voluntary work they do for the community and the residents. They are spokespersons for the needs of the residents and channel aid through government agencies and nonprofit organizations.
What are your long-term plans or goals for the organization?
The Youth Center will continue its programs, projects and services to benefit the community. By the time I am 18 years old, the minimum age requirement, I want to be part of the board. Personally, my plans are to complete my high school studies and continue with university studies to be able to get a job. Another of my goals is to play in the National Senior Volleyball Team and be the Governor of Puerto Rico.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
I have been recognized for my work for the welfare of my community. In addition, I have had the opportunity to develop skills and abilities that I’ve been able to put into practice in my personal and educational life.
Omar cleans windows for a bedridden senior resident at Res. Luis Llorens Torres./Courtesy Omar J. Rosario-Lebrón
What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?
I’ve learned how to relate to the community; how to identify the problems, situations and needs of the residents and how we can find solutions to them.
Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?
It’s important for people to get involved, because they can learn skills and abilities that can serve them in their personal, professional and educational lives. It will also help them relate to others, contribute to the improvement of society with the purpose of being better people and improve the quality of life of others, especially those with the most urgent needs.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
Contact a nonprofit or community-based organization to give a little of your time. No matter the number of hours or days that you can offer, that time contributes to the improvement of society and the quality of life of the people who are impacted. It can also help you learn and develop skills.
What do you want people to learn from your story?
I’ve overcome many obstacles as a young person and community leader. The only impediment to achieving our goals is our own mind, the limits we can put on ourselves. We must look beyond ourselves and overcome them. We must be persistent with our goals if we want to achieve them.
One Woman’s Quest to Repair the World by Inspiring American Jewish Volunteerism
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Lisa Eisen. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Lisa Eisen of Washington, D.C., is no stranger to service. Raised Jewish, she had the Jewish values of responsibility and justice instilled from a young age.
“I’ve been volunteering since I was a little girl,” Lisa shared. “My parents took me to volunteer all the time. They instilled in me an ethic of service to others – part of the Jewish values that inspired our family – especially the value of tikkun olam, which is ‘repairing the world.’”
Today, Lisa is co-president at Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, where she oversees the organization’s U.S. Jewish Grantmaking and Gender and Reproductive Equity Grantmaking portfolios. It was through Schusterman’s work in the Jewish community that Lisa saw the vision for thousands of young Jewish adults to volunteer in their communities to address homelessness, food insecurity, education inequity and other challenges. Lisa followed suit, gathering a dynamic board and staff to launch Repair the World, a nonprofit that mobilizes Jewish people and their communities to engage in service. Lisa served as the organization’s founding board chair.
Lisa Eisen is the founding board chair of Repair the World, a nonprofit that mobilizes Jewish people and their communities to engage in service./Courtesy Lisa Eisen
“I saw the need to engage Jews, especially young people, in getting involved with their communities and living out their Jewish values,” said Lisa. “So, we worked with several other foundations to launch Repair the World. I chaired the board for many years, I still serve on the board and I have volunteered in several of the communities in which Repair works.”
To date, Repair the World – a Schusterman grantee – has mobilized tens of thousands of people to volunteer in cities across the country through both in-person and virtual opportunities. In 2020, Lisa encouraged and supported Repair the World to create Serve the Moment, a volunteer response to COVID-19, providing thousands of volunteers to organizations in 18 cities that had been impacted by the pandemic.
“This year, Repair the World is celebrating 13 years and doing a Service Matters Summit, bringing together hundreds of organizations that are mobilizing volunteers working to fix the brokenness in so much of our society,” Lisa said. One of the organization’s primary goals is to inspire 1 million acts of service by 2030.
Lisa reflected on her involvement with Repair the World.
“The thought that I could bring this value I was raised with – to make the world a better place, to repair the world – and turn it into an organization that is mobilizing people to do just that is the most rewarding part. I think the purpose of the Jewish people is to help repair the brokenness in our world and work in partnership with others to do just that,” she said.
In regard to a specific moment that encapsulates the reward of her work, Lisa recalled a time at the beginning of the pandemic. She had called the Repair the World CEO Cindy Greenberg and said, “This is the moment that we built Repair the World for. We need to do this.” There were young people with little to do, enormous needs in communities, and a host of people who had stopped volunteering because they thought it wasn’t safe.
“Repair the World had this incredible network to mobilize thousands of people, safely,” Lisa shared. “They met urgent needs at food banks and vaccination sites. They mobilized tens of thousands of young adults who did 100,000 acts of service to address the needs of that time – the global pandemic, economic fallout and racial justice reckoning. I’m very proud of that and the impact we had.” In addition to the Serve the Moment initiative, out of this time was also born the Jewish Service Alliance, a collaboration of 40 Jewish service organizations working together to mobilize young people to serve their communities.
Lisa has had the opportunity to meet government leaders, including Vice President of the United States Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff./courtesy Lisa Eisen
Lisa quoted Lynn Schusterman, co-founder and chair emerita of Schusterman Family Philanthropies, who said, “Life truly begins when we begin to serve.”
She firmly believes that our purpose as humankind is to leave the world a little better than we found it, which is impactful both for those volunteering and those communities receiving the benefits of volunteer work.
“We all have an obligation to do our part,” Lisa said. “To anyone considering volunteering, just take the first step. Just do it. Find an organization and a cause you care about – something that speaks to you. Get involved. Every act of service and relationship-building makes a difference. Your contribution matters. Don’t question that, just get involved.”
Creating Intergenerational Change Through Financial Mobility for Women and Girls
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Darby Voisin Smith. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Darby Voisin Smith of Greenville, S.C., has been volunteering with Foundation For Girls (FFG) since summer of 2019 as a coach for unhoused and marginally housed teen moms. She is a gifted leader who is now also on the board of FFG.
Foundation For Girls is a Charlotte-based organization committed to economically empowering marginalized young women and their children. In her volunteer role, Darby provides guidance and support to women in the program in order to help them build essential life skills and financial literacy. Through mentoring and coaching, she helps them gain the confidence and knowledge necessary to achieve economic independence and stability for themselves and their children – something that many of them have never experienced before.
Read on for more of Darby’s story and what inspires her to keep volunteering with FFG.
Describe your volunteer role.
I volunteer as a coach with FFG. As a coach, I mentor young women. Many are single mothers. Some are unhoused or what we call marginally housed – as in, they may be staying on someone’s couch, or they may have shelter over their heads but are not necessarily in stable situations.
Darby Voisin Smith (left) been volunteering with Foundation For Girls (FFG) since summer of 2019 as a coach for unhoused and marginally housed teen moms./Courtesy Darby Voisin
I work with these women to build the types of skills they need to independently to provide for themselves and their children. We want every woman and girl to be financially savvy, digitally capable, career confident so that they can effect multi-generational change and experience true economic mobility.
We don’t just want to send one person on a path of financial independence – it’s about doing the same for their children. Then, their children are growing up in a stable housing situation and an environment that values education. Then, theoretically, they will be better off as well… and on and on down the chain.
How did you get started with FFG?
Four or five years ago, I teamed up with some coworkers for a “Shark Tank”-like competition at work. We got to choose, at the end, a nonprofit to donate our funds to. That was the prize at the end of the competition. Our project was all about how to advocate for women in the financial space – this was a financial services company. So, we specifically looked for a nonprofit that focused on giving women the financial know-how and momentum to become financially independent and experience economic mobility. That’s how we found Foundation For Girls, and I’ve been involved ever since.
I’d say from the very beginning of my involvement, the leadership at FFG was always very clear that on the one hand, short-term volunteers are helpful – that’s never a bad thing – but in order to make real change, we need lasting commitments from long-term volunteers. That’s really when the magic happens with a lot of the participants.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?
Anytime they achieve a goal that they’re working toward, I feel like I’ve achieved a goal. That is the most rewarding thing.
Secondly, something that’s been really eye opening and helped me to reflect as a human being is that a lot of times, especially at the beginning of a new relationship with a new participant, it’s really easy to look at them sideways and be somewhat skeptical. You might think, are you going to take advantage of me or what we’re doing here? And then, every time I’ve gone out on a limb, I’ve felt bolstered by how good people are at their core.
It’s easy to get super overwhelmed with all the bad in the world — everything you’re seeing on the news. It’s nice to personally see and experience the good in humanity.
Darby enjoys using her finance background to educate young women and empower them toward financial mobility./Courtesy Darby Voisin
Why is it important for people to get involved with the causes they care about?
Along the same lines, we hear so much about the bad stuff that happens around us and around the world. It feels really overwhelming. But by focusing on one or two real things that you can do to make the world – or your world – a better place, then we do make it better. And we find joy in the small things while we do this.
What’s one thing you want people to learn from your story?
You can make a difference. And that difference has a domino effect. It’s not just the good action that you’re doing, but the ripple that carries forward from it.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
I would say just try it. Whenever you try something new, the questions overwhelm the answers until you get in there and experience it. Just try it. If it doesn’t work out, you can try something else.
Founding a Literary Journal to Give Voice to Young Artists
Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Vivian Huang. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.
Vivian Huang is a young leader and artist dedicated to amplifying young artists’ voices. As the founder of The Cloudscent Journal, she shares artwork and creative writing by young artists, providing opportunities and spreading access to art. She leads an editorial team of 20+ members. Since its founding in July 2022, the journal has published over 50 writers and provided free and detailed feedback for hundreds of submissions. It’s amassed 2.5K followers on social media and its website has reached people across 67 countries.
Vivian is also committed to empowering Asian Americans and creating a safe community. As co-president of the Dear Asian Youth Irvine Chapter, she leads a team of 15+ members and oversees projects spreading awareness of Asian-American culture and events. As a former researcher of the chapter, she has participated in researching and bringing awareness to relevant Asian events.
Additionally, she has served as a staff writer at Detester Magazine since 2021, bridging social justice and art by sharing Asian-American experiences and identity through articles, stories and poetry.
Read on to find out what inspires Vivian to provide opportunities for young creatives.
How did you get started with The Cloudscent Journal?
I’ve always loved creative writing, ever since elementary or middle school. When I was a sophomore, I started submitting to literary magazines and I realized there was a lack of space for younger artists, as well as a lack of opportunity for feedback and improvement. In the summer after my sophomore year, I got the idea to start my own journal because I wanted to fill that gap.
Vivian is also committed to empowering Asian Americans as co-president of the Dear Asian Youth Irvine Chapter.
Describe your volunteer role.
I work as the editor-in-chief of The Cloudscent Journal. We read over submissions from people of poetry, prose or art in general. We give free, detailed feedback if they want. Our main purpose is to publish young writers. Our age range of submitters is 12 to 25. So we’re focused on publishing young artists and giving them the opportunity to improve their work. We give free feedback – I know a lot of literary journals have submitters pay for feedback or they have a limited number. We’re dedicated to giving free, complete feedback.
I also work with Dear Asian Youth Irvine. Dear Asian Youth is a social media organization focused on bringing awareness to Asian-American issues or global issues around Asians. I thought that was an incredible mission so I joined that in my sophomore year. I contribute to their social media and now I’m their chapter lead. We hold events spreading Asian culture.
There’s also another magazine I work with, Detester Magazine, which blends my two interests together. It publishes writing that’s partially focused around racial issues. I really enjoy mixing these two interests together with that work.
What’s been the most rewarding part of your volunteer work?
After the release of The Cloudscent Journal’s first issue, a lot of people messaged me saying that this was the first time their work was published. Hearing that was super rewarding. It wasn’t just one person – I’ve heard this from multiple people now and I think that’s what keeps driving me. I love hearing how we’re helping young artists publish for the first time.
Why is it important for people to get involved with the causes they care about?
There are many things we can do in this world. It doesn’t have to be volunteering in something you’re not passionate about – you can use your passion for anything! It’s important for people to take initiative. There are a lot of people with passions in the world. If you’re one of them, you can use your resources to get started. You can also support others to get their headstart as well. Getting involved in what you care about can really benefit other people.
Vivian Huang is the founder of The Cloudscent Journal, a literary journal dedicated to publishing young artists’ work and providing free feedback.
Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?
My advice is just to be unafraid. Be fearless. Be courageous. Do whatever you want – all it takes is one step. Things will align, even if it’s a messy start. Most people are really afraid of taking that first step. For me, my first step was just writing in general. It was miniscule. Don’t be afraid of anything – no one will judge you. Just put yourself out there.
What’s one thing you want people to learn from your story?
You can do anything. What drove me was first my own passion for writing. Anyone can do anything with what they enjoy. There are a million possibilities out there. People say they can’t do this or that in regard to volunteering, but I want to dispute that. You can do whatever you want, from any passion. The possibilities are endless.
