40,000 Wonderful Hours
In 1994, the School Improvement Planning Committee at Barrington High School studied volunteer service among its students. According to the BHS Web site, as a result of the study “the team came to believe even more strongly in the value of voluntary community service and the need to develop a structure within the school that would encourage and facilitate student volunteer service.”
The BHS Student Volunteer Program began as a not-for-profit department in the high school. Agencies visited the cafeteria to ask the students for volunteer work. Julie Kerr, the first director of the program, would go to not-for-profits and advertise the new group and the students’ desire to help. The volunteer program grew overtime, and there was such a large number of students involved, the District 220 decided to make it a school-funded program.
From the beginning, it was decided that the program would not be mandatory, as it is with other area high schools. Local not-for-profits noted that volunteers are usually happiest when they pursue service work on their own. With more than 40,000 collective volunteer hours provided per year, it is apparent that BHS students are happy with their community and an opportunity to develop skills that serve others in positive ways.
“It’s a real priority in our whole school district to start the students young, learning that service is a part of life,” said Jill Bauer, the Student Volunteer Program coordinator. “Kids of any age may think ‘I’m just a kid’ [about volunteering]. But, if students find a place to volunteer and feel that they’re genuinely helping someone, it builds their self-confidence. They begin to understand they can make a difference in the world.”
Jill, the program coordinator for eight years, volunteered in the community when she was a stay-at-home mom, and helped start a service learning program at Grove Avenue School called the GAVE Program (Grove Avenue Volunteers Enthusiastically). “I loved volunteering. It was really wonderful,” Jill said. “My favorite job when my kids were young was being a writing mom — helping the students write and watching them progress.”
Another favorite was working with Meals On Wheels and getting to know the senior citizens. Jill said, “You get to talk to the people that you’re trying to help, and what ends up happening is that you learn from them.”
Now, as the program coordinator, the students who volunteer are the best part of Jill’s job in the school district. “My favorite part is when the students ask me about things they might want to try with volunteering, or come in afterwards to say how much they liked it,” Jill said. “The best thing of all is when they feel empowered to change the world.”
The BHS Student Volunteer Program’s mission statement is “to connect students with the community in volunteer service,” as well as making it a voluntary connection. Allowing a student the choice to give back to their community leaves room for the personal satisfaction of doing something good, instead of feeling it is a chore or a punishment.
“A lot of parents think their high school-aged children have to volunteer,” Jill said. But, as Jill pointed out, students “can’t do it all” and need to prioritize. If someone is a three-season athlete, or has a job after school, volunteering may not fit into their schedule.
But if students do have the time, sometimes that extra “push” works to the student’s advantage, Jill said. “When students do have a balance in their lives and there is time to volunteer, sometimes they need that little push to get started.” Waking up early on a Saturday morning or not hanging out with friends every day after school could be the beginning of a teenager finding something they enjoy.
Each year the volunteered time hovers around 40,000 hours (2008-09 was 42,000), with students helping out anywhere from Barrington to overseas. Also, as a reward, students can earn extra credit if they volunteer a certain amount of time over four years (1/4 credit hour for every 30 hours volunteered, with 120 hours earning the maximum credit). “It really does enhance their profile,” Jill said.
Beyond what the volunteer program does for the high school students, it has a profound affect on the community. Jill noted that most people’s opinions change about teenagers after seeing the work they put in for their community. Groups have given up whole summers to volunteer their time for a greater good, instead of going to the beach or playing video games. Jill said it’s even better when the teenagers realize that they can have fun while volunteering — some have taught inner city children to snowboard, or helped rebuild trails in the Rocky Mountains. There are volunteer opportunities for almost every hobby and interest.
No matter where the students go to volunteer or what they do, it’s the idea that they’re doing something for the greater good. It’s easy to get caught up in one’s own schedule, but for the BHS students — 70 percent to 85 percent of each grade volunteers — it’s a choice that has made theirs and others lives better.
“We live in a community where a lot is provided, in most cases,” Jill said. “When you’re given something, the right thing to do is give back. There will always be people who need help in all kinds of different ways. Our program makes it easy for students to find those people, and become vital contributing members of our community.”
For more information about the Barrington High School Student Volunteer Program, visit www.barrington220.org/bhs.
What Barrington High School Students Have to Say About Volunteering
Ellie Kraimer, Junior
Where you volunteer: Safety Town. School. Community.
“You learn a lot about yourself being out there [volunteering]. I didn’t know who I was in fifth-grade, so it helped mature me, shape me, and mold me into the person that I am today. I like who I am today, so I know that volunteering really helped.”
Leslie Martin, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: Station Middle School – Youth coach. Code Red. Church.
“Volunteering through mission trips, it’s really opened my eyes on things people go through that we’re not used to because we live in such a loving community. It’s really uplifting and rewarding to see people’s faces on how you can impact their lives. Every little thing counts. I think it’s important to give back to your community because they do so much for you, so you need to do something for them. People help you and you have to keep it going. It’s like a ripple affect.”
Lindsay Watkins, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: St. Anne School- volleyball coach. Annie’s Attic. Vacation Bible School. Star tutoring.
“I think it’s important for everybody to have a bit of volunteering in their life, otherwise everything just revolves around them. When everything is just centralized around yourself, nothing gets done and no one can be helped. It goes against being a community.”
Grant Van der Voort, Senior
Where you volunteer: Good Shepherd Hospital. Adopt-a-grandparent.
“Initially, volunteering seemed like a chore. Going without pay seemed like another part of the schedule. But when you keep going at it and you start to appreciate working around other people, you feel good about it. It’s another way to have fun.”
Kaitlin Koenig, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: Barrington Youth and Family Services. Elementary schools. Walk on Farms. Grove Tutors. Fur Keeps Animal Shelter. Snowflake. Annie’s Attic. Safety Town. Church.
“Volunteering has made me more caring, respectful, and responsible. It really made me realize how fortunate I am, and it gave me a sense of accomplishment. I feel good after I volunteer. I think it’s important to volunteer because it helps the community and others, and it helps you improve your character.”
Julia McSorley, Senior
Where you volunteer: Grove Avenue Elementary School. House of Hope. Hospice of Northeastern Illinois. Church.
“I knew I always wanted to help others, but to be honest I was originally following the requirements [to volunteer] for confirmation at church. But I learned it’s a lot more than just hours. I started to see the impact I was making. I learned the little things do count, and I can make a difference. If everyone in the community could just give up two hours a week — how amazing the results would be.”
Conor Libit, Senior
Where you volunteer: Barrington Police Explorers. Barrington Broncos youth coach. Tutor.
“I’ve learned [from volunteering] to respect people more because we’re not all given the same things. Some of us are given a lot, and some of us aren’t given very much. It’s tough circumstances.”
Gina Governale, Senior
Where you volunteer: Community. Tutor. Schools. Park districts. Camps.
“I feel like volunteering is a window into what I hope to be my future and what I know was my past, even though I didn’t understand it at the time. I do a lot of these events with little kids and I get to see the inner workings of it all. Those are my dreams. I want to be a PTO mom. I want to be a teacher. I want to be a girl scout leader. I feel like this is a wonderful window into what I want to do with my life.”
Shannon O’Neill, Senior
Where you volunteer: Sparrow’s Nest Thrift Store. Peer tutor.
“Volunteering is really rewarding. It’s not just taking up your time. You benefit from it as much as the people you help. The people I help are in different situations than I am, so it has been good for me to talk to them and see where they’re coming from.”
David Machuca, Junior
Where you volunteer: Sunny Hill Elementary. Snowflake. Barrington Giving Day.
“Volunteering made me become a better person and probably even more responsible. I also met a lot of new people, which is great. I learned that volunteering can be fun because every day you’re learning something new.”
Ani Danelz, Junior
Where you volunteer: Cuba Township Food Pantry. BJWC. Boy Scouts of America. Snowflake.
“I started volunteering because I knew it would look good on college resumes, but I now volunteer because I love to help people. I love the feeling you get from helping others out. Not only does volunteering help the community, but it helps individual people better themselves and stay out of risky situations.”
Abby Pajakowski, Senior
Where you volunteer: Snowflake. Free Hugs Club. Church. NHS. Civic Week. Relay for Life.
“From an early age, my parents and teachers emphasized how much I have and how much I’m given through the resources of my school and community, and how little other people have. From that moment it just didn’t seem right to not volunteer and to not try to bring some of what I have to people who aren’t as fortunate.”
Jon Catlin, Junior
Where you volunteer: Tutoring. Barrington Youth and Family Services. Fantastic Ride Program. Scouting with Barrington Troop 10. Leave No Child Inside Consortium.
“Volunteering has made me more selfless. Everything I do now is for younger students and I’m able to gear my attention toward them and make sacrifices just to make them happy. That’s the only reason I’m there, to make them happy.”
Sarah Simonds, Senior
Where you volunteer: Good Shepherd Hospital. Catchpenny. Grove School. Habitat for Humanity. Service trip.
“I did a lot of volunteering in Barrington and thought it would be good to go somewhere outside, so I went on a three-week service trip to the Virgin Islands. When I came back my mom said, ‘You’re so different, you’re so much more open to new ideas.’ I think volunteering makes you more open and it’s important to get involved. I was so happy when I came back.”
Austin Walsh, Junior
Where you volunteer: Barrington Middle School-Prairie. Safety Town. Soccer training. Feed the hungry. Videotaping girls soccer. Habitat for Humanity. Annies Attic. Feed the Starving Children. Barbara B. Rose Elementary School.
“I feel more open minded since I began volunteering. I feel more fulfilled with what I’m doing and giving 100 percent every day because I realize that most people don’t have that much. When I started to volunteer it was just for the hours, but I’m doing it for a reason now.”
Jocelyn Linares, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: St. Joseph Home. Little Sisters of the Poor baker.
“I’ve learned a lot from volunteering. I leaned how to get along with the elderly, and to bake. I’m not as quiet as I used to be. When I go there, everyone knows me and says hi, and it’s nice.”
Connor Maytnier, Freshman
Where you volunteer: Cuba Township Food Pantry. Les Turner ALS Foundation. St. Martin de Pores Shelter.
“In grade school, family friends opened my eyes to their volunteering efforts and it stuck with me to high school. Volunteering has changed me through the way it opened up my eyes to its direct effect on our community and other communities. I think that’s a truly great thing, how the positive affects and outcomes emerge from volunteering.”
Carl Ewing, Junior
Where you volunteer: Graphic productions club. Good Shepherd Hospital Junior Auxiliary board.
“If I could talk to people who don’t volunteer, I would ask them to look at it from a different perspective, and how much good you could do just by taking maybe two hours out of your day just to do something to help your own community. Volunteering definitely makes you a better person.”
Justin Barnowski, Senior
Where you volunteer: Broncos Care. Barrington Football’s Community Service Organization. Snowflake. Relay for Life.
“I am just giving back to the community that helps me. Volunteering has given me a deeper sense of how much work is needed to positively change your community, and it’s necessary to improve your community. Progress is always important.”
Jasmine Zahid, Senior
Where you volunteer: Generation Crossroads. South Barrington Foundation. Barrington Area Council on Aging. Tutor at Grove School.
“It was good to interact with people. Volunteering showed me that I wanted to do something where I could have a more personal relationship, which is why I started to tutor at Grove. I feel like I’ve met a lot of new people and learned what kind of people are in my community. There’s so many people here we don’t know about and their great stories. There’s so many great experiences.”
Daniel Durband, Junior
Where you volunteer: Service trips. Fellowship Housing. Traffic team at church.
“If everyone gives just a little time and talent to a cause, then everyone benefits. Volunteering makes it possible for things to get done and community to be a better place. Whether you serve internationally or locally, you are making the world a better place. I think if everyone gave just a small amount of time on a regular basis, they would experience the benefit of a sense of something bigger than themselves.”
Julia Hrobon, Senior
Where you volunteer: Montessori preschool. Grove Avenue School. Woodland School. Thailand. Habitat for Humanity. Career Center.
“Initially my volunteer efforts were all focused on learning about myself, on where I wanted to be a teacher, learning about how I liked to work with different age groups of children. But there came a point when it became less about me and more about the kids themselves. I have met so many unique and wonderful children. They’re a joy to be around.”
Laura Anderson, Junior
Where you volunteer: Lake Zurich Elementary, Habitat for Humanity. Generations Crossroad.
“My grandpa, who I was really close to, died my freshman year. I found out about Generations Crossroad, where you visit elderly people at homes, and thought that would be a comfort. That volunteering helped me grow and let me reminisce about my grandpa, too. I also wanted to be a comfort for the elderly who might not have a lot of people in their lives.”
Molly Jostock, Junior
Where you volunteer: Barrington Area Library. BHS. Barrington Park District. Recylcing.
“I’ve learned to appreciate what I have [through volunteering]. Even if there’s certain aspects of my life that I wish things were different — I wish I had more or different of something — I just need to be thankful for what I have even if I don’t like it. It could be something that others aren’t even close to having.”
Hannah Gross, Junior
Where you volunteer: Family School. BACOA youth board. Youth Advisory Council.
“Volunteering has taught me more about different people as well as myself. I have learned through many different experiences through student teaching and with the elderly. So, through these different people I learn how I become myself. Volunteering, the act itself, is something you can become very self-less in and you can learn a great deal about society, which can help you later on in life.”
Katie Veatch, Junior
Where you volunteer: Church. Mission trips. Feed My Starving Children. Compassion Cottages.
“I was given the opportunity to go to the Dominican Republic through a mission trip, where my views were really altered by how little the people had and how happy they were. At first I thought I was going to help these people so much, but I have gained so much more. It’s all about the relationships that you build.”
Kathleen Cohen, Senior
Where you volunteer: Create a Change Foundation. South Barrington Community Enhancement Board Foundation. Grove Avenue School – student teach. Adopt-a-Grandparent.
“Through volunteering, I realized that a large percentage of the money made by many nonprofits went to overhead costs rather than the actual cause. I took matters into my own hands and founded Create a Change Foundation, where we try to identify issues where we can create opportunities to get resources necessary to create solutions and improvements for medical issues. Volunteering has opened my eyes to the amount of power one person has, and how it takes just one to make an impact.”
Madison Keller, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: Animal House Shelter, Walk on Farms, Safety Town, Snowflake
“Before I started volunteering, I thought it would be hard work and not a lot of fun. But afterwards I realized that it was fun and rewarding. It still is a lot of work at times, but in the end it’s worth it. It feels great to know you are helping someone or something.”
Henry Wilson, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: Peer Jury, Student Council. The American Legion Award Veterans Dinner. BHS Pride. Amnesty International. Mayor Daley’s Global Urban Forum of Mayors.
“Volunteering has changed me by allowing me to reach out to others, and in turn to look inside myself to find my own place in the world. The profound difference that I have experienced within myself has been the construction of a firm foundation of confidence and hope in humanity, due to my own education on the fact that we all share a common bond.”
Bethany Adams, Senior
Where you volunteer: Camp counselor. Sunday school. Assistant direct children’s choir. Various events through high school and community.
“I was raised with the idea that everyone has unique gifts and talents, and because of that, everyone’s contribution to the community can better it in a different way. Volunteering has the potential to change the world. I may not be directly combating world hunger, but by teaching compassion I might plant seeds in people who may.”
Leigh Hedrick, Sophomore
Where you volunteer: WINGS, Good Shepherd Hospital Junior Auxiliary Board. Snowflake.
“At first I thought volunteering was traditional, like just going to the soup kitchen, but there’s so much more to do. I find it amazing how the littlest things can help people and make a difference.”
Josie Dee Seagren, Senior
Where you volunteer: Citizens for Conservation. Smart Farm. Snowflake. Community events.
“I volunteered in China last year and taught English to Chinese kids in the countryside. It was nice to step outside of your own life and routine and see somebody else’s life. After I came back to Barrington, whenever I’m in my own little world and miss China, I’ll volunteer somewhere and it makes me think about other people and events outside myself.”
Aga and Magda Mikolajczyk, Juniors
Where you volunteer: Tutoring. Art in the Barn. Barrington Giving Day. Translators.
“We came here to the U.S. with no English, none whatsoever. It’s sink or swim. We have two girls who we tutor bilingually, and it’s gratifying because they’re getting good grades. We’re happy for them because they’re finally getting there, and we know it’s hard because we went through the same struggle. There wasn’t anyone to help us [learn English] so we want to help others. We went through this and we want to give back. Volunteering is a chain reaction: help out that one person, and they might help another.”
Scott Kimes, Senior
Where you volunteer: Church. Service trips. Snowflake. Barrington Cross Country Community Corps. Various projects.
“I believe that volunteering has taught me it’s more important to build relationships with the people that you’re helping. It’s just as important in making their lives better. Volunteering is a unifying factor among people. I went on a mission trip with our sister church, which has a different socio-economical background, so it took the whole week for us to come together as a group. I think in the end what brought us together was our desire to serve others.”
Megan Garcia, Junior
Where you volunteer: Safety Town. BJWC Fashion Show. Barrington Giving Day. Hands of Hope.
“The reason why I love volunteering is seeing people’s reactions when you help. With teaching the kids in Safety Town, just seeing their reaction as you hold their hand and teach them how to cross a road is such a great feeling. The love and respect they give you is so nice. With Barrington Giving Day, it’s an instant gratification when the people waiting in the long lines see you holding that huge blue Ikea bag, their faces just light up. It’s such a great feeling, knowing you affected someone in a positive way.”