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Does Volunteerism Really
Benefit Anyone?
By Lynda Wheeler, KARSP Community Service
Do
kids and schools really benefit from a senior
volunteer program?
If you talk to the students, teachers, and seniors
involved in the Seniors Serving Schools
program in Olathe, Kansas, you would get a
definitive answer to that question. “Kids love when
the senior volunteers come in.” “Seniors love
working in the program.” “There are a lot of
lasting relationships that develop from these
interactions.” “Seniors often become grandparent
figures.” One could deduce from these quotes that
in this program EVERYONE benefits in some way.
The Olathe School District was very interested in
getting a senior volunteer partnership going in
their schools through the Youth Friends initiative.
The district has been supportive and appreciative
from the very beginning of the Olathe REA Unit’s
Seniors Serving Schools program. Word was spread
through various civic organizations, the district
website, local media, and through school
publications. How did this partnership get
started?
Fifteen years ago three women in Olathe, Kansas,
checked out a volunteer program in Shawnee Mission
Schools, liked what they saw, and decided to channel
some of their enthusiasm for volunteering into a
similar program which is now sponsored by Olathe’s
REA unit. These committed women are Darlene Small,
Jenny Schwartzbeck, and Marie Wicke. These ladies
organized and worked the program until 2005 when
Marie retired and Dian Steele came on board.
Olathe’s program is called Seniors Serving Schools.
The logistics of the program are easy to maneuver.
A school, classroom teacher, or student can apply
for a senior, or a senior can initiate a request.
These interested parties are then paired up and make
decisions concerning tasks to be done and the
amount of time the volunteer is needed, or the
amount of time a volunteer is willing to serve.
Seniors Serving Schools volunteers average about 2-3
hours a week in their school with their teachers,
classes, or students. You will find them working
with a teacher’s clerical work, helping with small
groups of students on projects, reading to kids, or
helping kids with their assignments. In several
Title I elementary schools they have a Script Pal
program. Here a senior is paired with a student and
they communicate with each other in writing. This
occurs in 3rd and 4th grade
where letter writing and written communication is
part of the curriculum. At the end of the year the
seniors and their “pen pals” have a party.
Secondary school volunteers help in career class
projects conducting mock interviews giving the
students valuable interview experience before they
attempt to enter the work force. Many of the
seniors have special talents or skills that they
share with students. For example several seniors
have specialty living history presentation
programs. A number of the men are military veterans
and go to history classes and share their
experiences and knowledge. Seniors also provide
their services to Papa John’s Pizza by doing three
readings of the essays that are submitted for the
Papa John’s regional scholarships.
When a volunteer signs on in the fall there is an
orientation – then at the end of the year there is a
Senior Bash to recognize their efforts. Volunteers
receive 4, 7, 10, and 15 year pins for continuing
service. In 2005 the volunteers involved in this
program logged 8,658 youth hours! Albert Einstein
stated, “Only a life lived for others is a life
worthwhile.” I’d say Olathe’s Association of
Retired School Personnel unit sponsored Seniors
Serving Schools is an example of worthwhile lives at
work.
This interviewer agrees with a statement Dian
Steele made, “Any Unit that has a desire to make a
difference in their area schools, touch the lives of
students and teachers, and find a deep sense of
satisfaction for its members could organize a
program like Seniors Serving Schools.” So who
benefits? Only the schools, teachers, kids, and
volunteers in the Olathe Association of Retired
School Personnel’s, Seniors Serving Schools
Program.
Kansas Association of Retired School Personnel
515 Kansas Ave., Ste 201.
Topeka, KS 66603-3415
Phone: 785-232-8788
K.A.R.S.P@hotmail.com
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