This week, we are featuring some of the winners from the 2023 Awards! Today, you can read more from Sarah, who was honored with the award, Outstanding Contribution to the LSE Community.
During the last academic year, I took on several volunteering roles. I had spent the prior summer working with my local council in providing support for the local food pantry in my area. I was a peer supporter in which I provided pastoral care to students on campus. Moreover, I did some external volunteering as a sociology tutor at the charity ‘Tutor the Nation’. I had come across this charity through 1st Lse volunteering Fair in several years. When I won the most outstanding contribution award, I felt an immense sense of gratitude. This was gratitude for my nomination and win. It was an honour to be recognised for the work that I have done and to hear the positive impact that it had towards different student groups. Additionally, it was heart-warming to celebrate this moment with many people that I had worked with from the student volunteering team to the peer support team. My biggest achievements are the work I contributed towards organising volunteering week. I did a day focused on mental health. I had organised yoga, arts & crafts, and a study with me session on zoom. I enjoyed talking to students about issues concerning wellbeing and volunteering. Moreover, I did this work in collaboration with multiple societies which I am proud of. Additionally, in my role as peer supporter I was able to lobby to get funding for externally provided catered wellbeing support for black students.
I have extremely benefited from volunteering. Growing up I was taught that being able to help others is a privilege. Volunteering always reminded me of this. It has enabled me to reflect on the many things I have had others did not. It has made me more appreciative of my parents and small things I could take for granted. One example of this I found in my volunteering tutoring role. I was fortunate enough for my mother to paid for private volunteering. Also, to be in a well-funded school in which I had extra academic support from staff. However, in my role it makes me recognise that many other children do not have the same support and therefore miss out on various opportunities to grow and develop. Furthermore, volunteering has given me numerous transferable skills from having to brainstorm solutions to barriers to access food aid related services to communicating with other in my community. A key thing about volunteering in the immense networking opportunities available. It enables you to find others to aim to live by an altruistic mindset and can provide insight to different sectors and roles. I believe that volunteering has enabled me to become closer to the best version of myself. Also, it has given me a priceless sense of community. I have met so many different people from different backgrounds and in different industries yet we are united by altruistic principles.
I would tell students that volunteering not only provides a way for us to give back but also to bring a sense of fulfilment in finding ourselves in the service of other people or to a cause.
If Sarah has inspired you to volunteer, check out one of our other ongoing opportunities or book a one-to-one with David Coles, the Volunteer Centre Manager if you have more questions. And why not follow us on Twitter, and Instagram to stay up-to-date with our events and opportunities and read our blog for more volunteering tips and stories.
