Making a difference

Students volunteer time to help others

Many students at Silver Lake wish to make a difference and change the world but don't know when or how to start.   Others with the same ambition are already starting to achieve this seemingly impossible task. To find these students at work, one needs to look no farther than the high school hallways.

Several students have been lending a hand in the special education classrooms this school year. Two prominent figures in this endeavor are senior Kali Arney and junior Trae Stebbins.

Arney is no stranger to assisting others. She has been helping children with special needs for almost as long as she can remember.

"My mom told me I have always helped special needs kids, ever since second grade. Mrs. Musselman had to actually tell me to help myself. I guess it has just always been a part of who I am," she said.

While she has been doing this for a while, this year is the first time that helping at school has been "official."   Now, she basically has an entire class she can devote to volunteering.

"I have been helping in the special education room by going in there and being ready to help in any way I can...I have my teacher's aide class with Mrs. Backman, and my job is to have one-on-one time with some of the students for math," she explained.

Arney also spends time outside of school helping others. In the past, she has volunteered at the Capper Foundation over the summer. Now, she gets paid to work with children at their homes.

"I work with Tanner at his home with school work, cooking, and shopping. This is what I call work. I actually get paid from a company called Life Patterns. I actually help with summer camps at Gage Park and TARC for special needs," she stated.

She loves being there for others, so much that she couldn't name any negative aspects of working with special needs kids. Her only concern is having adequate time to assist enough people.

"The biggest challenge would have to be not having enough time to help everyone I would like to.   Every night I always wish I could have done one more thing for someone, but there just isn't enough hours in the day for me," she shared.

While she loves working with special needs children, this task also holds benefits for her future. She wishes to pursue a career in nursing, and the people skills she is developing now will prove useful in this profession.                  

Arney encouraged others to volunteer in their community, an activity she feels has helped her in return.

"I would like everyone to know that it's not hard to help others, it just takes your time. Everyone can make a difference. Honestly, this is the best thing I could ever do because they actually help me," she concluded.

Stebbins, on the other hand, is relatively new to working with children with special needs. He started working with Tanner this summer, which eventually led him to helping out at school. Currently, he leaves class to work with T.J. on physical activities.  

According to Kathryn Winters, inter-related classroom instructor, and Angela Welsh, paraprofessional, Stebbins has made great strides in learning to work on his own. Winters also pointed out developing trust as an important issue.

"Trae has to build trust with T.J. and say, 'You won't fall, I promise' (because) T.J. has fallen many times and is scared," she elaborated.

Despite needing to overcome this obstacle, Stebbins identified communication as the most challenging part of what he does.

"The biggest challenge is being able to communicate thoroughly with them and having them understand you," he explained.

He shared that no one inspired him to volunteer; he has just always enjoyed working with kids. He also pointed out the best part of helping others.

"(I like) just being able to work with them, and the way they make you feel good about yourself. It just puts you in a better mood," he said.

Like Arney, he felt that working with special needs students would help him in the future by interacting with people and by developing communication skills.

Several other students can be seen helping out in the special education classrooms. These individuals include Conner Welsh, Cooper Rickel, Tim Woodyard, and Jordan Haverkamp.   Winters urged all students to consider volunteering in that department.

"We would love to have any interested students visit one of the resource teachers to see how they can assist or become a role model," she commented.

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