Our February 2018 Volunteer Spotlight goes to our Project Leaders, Aaliyah Shaw and Aldith Perry. Their journey began with us in March 2017 when Aaliyah was looking to get her graduation requirement for school; she wanted to exceed the expectation of 40 hours and garner 250 hour to qualify for the Silver Cord for graduation. Her mom Aldith, initially started by being only her daughter’s transportation to and from the volunteer events, then she was only an observer and eventually became a fully committed volunteer team with her daughter; Team All for One.
Initially, Aaliyah was recluse at the idea of volunteering, “I had no problem with the aspect of helping out in my community, but I’m a shy person and I was hesitant about going to different places and having to talk to people all the time,” she recalls. She soon found that it wasn’t as unnerving as she thought it to be. Aldith was along for the ride. She soon found the projects interesting and encouraged her daughter to do more.
Aaliyah and Aldith have worked on many projects including: Afterschool Recreation Program at Greater Horizons Academy, Fort Lauderdale Beach Sweep with Kids Ecology Corps, Sticker & Pizza Party, Hurricane Preparedness Blowout, Electronics Recycling at ARC Broward, Back to School Community Extravaganza, Merrill Lynch Bull Run and many others. They enjoyed volunteering with us so much that they became Project Leaders.
Aldith saw it fit for both to become Project Leaders, “I wanted to be more involved and I needed to get my daughter more involved… to develop some leadership skills and be more responsible.” Since then, Aaliyah has broken out of her shell and is more open with others. They have been reliable and dependable Project Leaders; always willing to rise up and give a helping hand whenever they can.
When asked about recommending others to become Project Leaders Aaliyah and Aldith make high praise of how this role teaches great responsibility and leadership skills. They both encourage new volunteers to, “give whatever you can give and even if it is only your time; this is so enriching” Aldith mentions that, “[volunteering] helps you feel better about yourself and when you go to these events it makes you realize that there is something out there that is much bigger than yourself, there are needs out there far greater than you can imagine, and it makes me feel good to be of service to the greater community.”
They leave us with the quote:
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?” — Martin Luther King, Jr.
Written by Phillippa Paisley, Volunteer Coordinator
HandsOn Broward 