One piece of advice I was told growing up that I will always
remember is: “Influence is driven less by influentials and more by the
interaction among those who are easily influenced.”
Last fall, I
was invited to Lou Henry Elementary School to read to the Kindergarten and 1st
Grade classes. I didn’t hesitate to say yes because when I was their age, to
have a college athlete read to me, would have made my day. I didn’t have any
college athletes visit my class, talk to me, or read books to me. It is amazing
to see how much of an impact can be made on a child’s day, life, and future
academic success just by spending some time with them. You never know how much
of a difference can be made from sharing some of your time or talents with
other people. Most people will follow in similar footsteps or make changes to
their lives when someone, who has been very influential in their life or who
has been a role model and someone they look up to, takes time out of their day
to volunteer or show they care. As mentioned before, I never had that
opportunity growing up in elementary school, so for me to have it now, I was
more than grateful to take time and become that influential person or role model
for a child.
Once I arrived
and started walking through the halls on my way to the classroom, I started to
reminisce to my elementary years. I could tell how amazed the kids were with
how tall I was and many had a lot of questions, but were too nervous or shy to
ask them. Also, the kids were just full of energy and always had a story to
tell about what was going on in school. I remember having many of these same
feelings as a child. I was assigned a classroom and the teacher split the class
into groups of four children. They were all very attentive and each child was
special in his or her own way. While I was reading to them, the kids expressed
great attention to detail and laughed and smiled a lot. Once I got done reading
to them, they told me how many siblings they had, showed me where they were
from and where their ancestors were from, and showed me their plants they were
growing at the time. I had a lot of fun and it helped me realize three things:
To always keep a smile on my face, be happy that I am alive for another day,
and that by doing this small act, I got to make a difference in a young child’s
life. This will be something the child will remember for the rest of his or her
life. I was proud of myself because I helped them realize that dreams aren’t
unachievable and they can do anything they set their minds to. I am the perfect
example of this because I have achieved the dream I have had since I was a
child.
I strive to
make a difference and you should too, because any time you can give or
volunteer you can change a life or make someone’s day. If given the
opportunity, I will do it again, as I’d rather see someone smile and be happy
instead of sad and feeling like they are alone.
Here is how you can become involved:
Contact your local elementary school today to learn how to
become a mentor or reading partner. Help make a change in your community and
its future generation through being that role model or positive influence. It
doesn’t take a lot of time and you will be surprised at the difference it can
make on a child’s academic success in your local community. It is better to start today rather than tomorrow!
Click here to learn why volunteering and being active in the community is so important to me.
Click here to learn why volunteering and being active in the community is so important to me.
