Photograph by Doug Rider
Visiting Hours: Tammy Markee says goodbye to Carlotte Crabtree after visiting with her at the Saratoga Adult Day Care Center. This was the third visit to the center by the students in Jennifer Austin's class at Rolling Hills School.
The helped become the helpers at Rolling Hills
Youth volunteerism sees a dramatic rise in the Silicon Valley
Volunteers come often to help out in Jennifer Austin's class at Rolling Hills Middle School, where she teaches physically and mentally challenged students. But Austin decided if volunteer activities were good for the students who were coming to lend a hand, the students in the class would likewise benefit from reaching out.
So, for Valentine's day, the youngsters baked cookies and decorated magnets, practiced songs and learned to play kazoos. Then they trekked over to nearby Saratoga Adult Day Care Center where they sang and played their kazoos for the center's clients.
Photograph by Doug Rider
Good Company: Ronni Sanfilippo (left) and Anne Connor enjoy a laugh with Tammy Markee at the Saratoga Adult Day Care Center. In the back is program director Debi Snyder.
One of Austin's students hugged every one of the seniors and said, "I want to do this when I grow up." Austin's class returned to the center last week, this time with butterflies made from coffee filters, sprouting wheat berry seeds and more cookies.
With so much volunteer activity going in and out of her classroom, Austin has learned a truth about voluntarism--that it often leads to activism and advocacy. Most of the students who work in her classroom are Rolling Hills students. "Those kids who volunteer in my class actually become advocates for my students," says Austin.
Willow Glen, California Since 1992
