St. Louis holds Volunteer Fair
On Sept. 23, 2012, Community Against Poverty or [CAP] held their 5th annual volunteer fair. It featured a wide variety of volunteer opportunities.
“I’m open for anything. I’ve volunteered with almost anything,” said senior Aubrey Schwarz.
The volunteer fair was valuable for the volunteers and the organizations that need them. The event was useful for those wishing to volunteer because sometimes it can be difficult to find a place that is actually looking for help.
“We get really dedicated people to help the children we serve, and it helps to get our name out there,” said Billie J Thurmond, Youth Development Director of Neighborhood Houses.
The volunteer fair was useful for the organizations because it helped them to find additional people willing to help out. Approximately 150 possible volunteers attended the free event. The organizations that were in the volunteer fair had access to a room full of willing volunteers, which made the process of finding people that are interested a lot easier for them.
“The value of a volunteer fair is high. Sometimes it’s hard to find a place to volunteer and when you go to a place where everyone is looking for volunteers, it makes it easier,” said Schwarz.
Some organizations that needed volunteers were Neighborhood Houses and Effort for Aids. Neighborhood Houses provides early childhood care for children six weeks to five years and provides afterschool programs for children in city schools. Effort for Aids treats and tests people for HIV/AIDS and provides them with the support that they need.
by Aurora Wrancher