This week is Volunteer Appreciation Week and we’re highlighting some of our fabulous volunteers! You all play a vital role in our mission of protecting children, strengthening families, and preventing child abuse. We have so much gratitude for you and can not wait for things to resume normalcy so we can continue to watch the impact you have on the families we serve.

Jenni

What are 3 "fun facts" we might not know about you?

I graduated high school at 15 with a 4.0
I have two great step-siblings, two dogs and six chickens that are egg shy (at my dad’s house)
I've lived in 6 different states due to being military

Why is volunteering important to you?

Volunteering is important to me because I remember being a kid and looking up to the older students in class or in my after school programs and thinking they had all the answers just like adults did and feeling safe/comfortable around them. I didn’t have the best childhood so those were really important moments for me and I want to repay that by providing the same safe/comfortable or even just an amusing outlet for someone else to be able to remember later on in life.

Do you have a favorite moment/experience from volunteering with the Family Support Center that you'd be willing to share with us?

My favorite moment was probably the first time I volunteered at the Lifestart Village and I held Isaac for the first time. I'd never held a baby before (besides my step sister but I feel like that's different) so I had NO IDEA what to do and started to internally panic some and tried to put him down, but he kept crawling back over or threatening to cry if I stopped. I always have this fear that I don’t know how to relate to kids or they won’t like me, but he and Easton both seemed to at least tolerate me enough to want me to hold them for hours and those were both nice moments of feeling like I was doing something right.

Michelle

3 fun facts about me:

I love the outdoors all year long
I have a golden retriever named Rosie
I’m going to be a grandma this Summer - yay!!
Why is volunteering important to you?

Volunteering is important to me because it provides an opportunity for me to help others find value and importance in their lives. Volunteering also lets me learn and grow from the strengths I observe in the community in which I serve. I appreciate not only the diversity of the LSV community members but also the hope and self-determination I see in them as they work together.

Do you have a favorite moment/experience from volunteering with the Family Support Center that you'd be willing to share with us?

A favorite moment I have had at the LSV is the night we created the gratitude tree last November. I enjoyed participating as the children wrote things they were grateful for. I especially appreciated being there when they showed their gratitude leaves to their parents and family members.

Nathan

I enjoy spending time with my family and I included a picture of my wife and I, and my nephews at the aquarium.

What are 3 "fun facts" we might not know about you?

I am scuba certified
I speak Spanish
I enjoy Archery

Why is volunteering important to you?

I think that the phrase it takes a village to raise a child is so true and no one knows that better than those involved with the Family Support Center. I am just glad to be able to play a small role in that Village.

Do you have a favorite moment/experience from volunteering with the Family Support Center that you'd be willing to share with us?

I don’t have a specific moment that stands out to me. Since the novel coronavirus has limited my ability to volunteer with the Family Support Center, I have realized how much I looked forward to the time I spend volunteering.