When I first heard of volunteering I thought, okay why would I work for free? Why would I want to do that hard work and get no money out of it?  

When I signed up for the class in my physical high school, I looked around and it was all juniors and seniors. I was a freshman--in fact, the only freshman to sign up for this class.

Once we signed up and filled out all of the paperwork and went through the first day of class, we were on our own. It was our job to keep track of our hours and find our own place to volunteer. There was no teacher watching us every day.

The question was now where do I volunteer? I went to my coach every morning and did work for him in his classroom. I went to my old Elementary school where I worked at the afterschool program, Monday thru Friday from 2 pm-6 pm, working with kids and helping them with their homework. The kids looked up to me which was pretty cool. I volunteered more than one hundred hours. All we needed was seventy-five.

Doing all of this free work gave me a sense of pride. I can do something with a greater reward than a green piece of paper that has a monetary value. I felt the satisfaction of giving back to the community.

I finished the class and had to write an essay on volunteering. I chose to do it on Hurricane Katrina volunteers in my local area and how Osceola County students were giving back. I even got it in ahead of time.

Did my volunteering stop after I was done with the class? No, I went on volunteering there for another two semesters and got hired by the school district as a Student Employee. Doing the free work led me to employment that I love. It’s not really a typical job--I go hang out with kids, go to the playground, and enjoy a childhood again.

So next time you have someone ask you if you want to volunteer, do it!  It will bring you great pride, and it could land you a job in the near future.