Members of Key Club, a well known organization known for their dedication to the community, volunteer at Miller's Merry Manor. Photo Contributed by: Ms. Wezeman
By Michaela Moreno
Plymouth High School students do not only think about themselves. They have expanded their generosity to those in need.
Volunteering takes time, patience, and love. It is amazing that students are able to be so generous being as young as they are and busy with their education. These selfless students volunteer for many reasons. Senior Maggie Morrow enjoys working with younger kids, so for her, volunteering is fun. Senior Danielle Becktel volunteers because she can. “I am privileged enough to be able to live my life with luxuries and privileges that not everyone receives. I enjoy helping people in times of need and seeing their faces when I help them. Plus, colleges and scholarship committees look for a strong volunteering background, which is very important to me,” says Becktel.
Volunteering can bring up many feelings. The sense of accomplishment is one of them according to junior Alejandra Renteria. “[Volunteering] makes me feel good about myself. It feels good to know that you have done something to make someone’s life a little better and easier,” Renteria says. Junior Nicole Splix agrees with Renteria about volunteering making her feel good inside. “I know I am helping people and also bringing a smile to their face,” Splix says. Sophomore Shelby Haisley said the good feelings she receives from volunteering make her “heart long for more.”
Some of these students have been volunteering for a long time. Like junior Kurt Corsbie for example, who says he has been volunteering for as long as he could remember. Renteria has been volunteering for the past two years in St. Michael’s Catholic School and Heart and Hands. Becktel, on the other hand, has been volunteering all four years of her high school career.
Where students volunteer varies as well. Some students volunteer in an area that will benefit their future careers. Splix, for example, volunteers at the hospital because she “wants to pursue something in the medical field [and] I like math and science and wanted to gain more knowledge about specific careers.” Morrow, however is unsure. “I am considering going into elementary education, but I can not decide. So the experience might benefit my career later on,” Morrow says.