High school juniors learn value of volunteering
Students in leadership program visit area nonprofit organizations
By Mark McGregor
Dayton Daily News
DAYTON | What do 57 local high school juniors have in common with famous figures such as Andrew Carnegie, Madam C.J. Walker and Jane Addams?
They know what it means to be a philanthropist.
From high schools across the Miami Valley, the students participated March 17 in Making a Difference in Your Community as part of Junior Leadership Dayton, a leadership training program for high school juniors.
"The goal of the day (was) to help students understand how individuals and groups can contribute to a positive quality of life in the Miami Valley," Jennifer Mueller said. Mueller is the youth and teen development director of the YMCA of Greater Dayton.
Students visited numerous nonprofit organizations, learning why it's important to be a volunteer or philanthropist.
"It showed me that there is a need for philanthropy," said Shannon Oakes, a student at Centerville High School. "It's a duty that we, as Americans, need to help out the less fortunate."
"I learned that any dream can make a difference in the community if you follow through with it," said Allison Ferrara of Springboro High School. She donates her time doing secretarial work for the United Way.
The students learned how the organizations are funded, what the organizations' problems, opportunities and rewards are, and why volunteers and philanthropists are vital for their success.
"We were informed about different nonprofit organizations in the Dayton area and it's our responsibility as citizens to help support these groups and what they're doing in our community," said Baxter Stapleton, a participant from Centerville High School.
"I think it's important for students today to use our time, talents and treasures to make a difference in our communities," he said.
"That way, we're active in our community in making Dayton a better place."
Among the nonprofit organizations the students visited were: the K12 Gallery for Young People, National Aviation Heritage Area featuring the Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center and the Wright Cycle Shop, the Willis "Bing" Davis Art Studio, EbonNia Gallery and The Center for the Studies of African-American Art and Culture and the Improved Solutions for Urban Systems Institute of Construction.
"I thought it (ISUS) was cool how (students) learn career skills and they get paid, so that's a good incentive for them to go to school," Ferrara said.
Katie Buechler, a classmate of Ferrara's at Springboro, said the program reminded her of how much more people can help though donations of time and money.
Already, Buechler and her mother have donated money to Young Life, an organization for impacting kid's lives and preparing them for the future.
She said she plans to donate more money to the organization in the future.
Local volunteers and philanthropists Edythe Lewis and Dr. Richard Wyderski gave the students first-hand testimony of philanthropy, telling stories of their own volunteer work and of their monetary donations to make a difference in their communities.
Lewis is the founder of The Lloyd and Edythe Lewis Fund for Black Children's Health Care of The Dayton Foundation.
Wyderski is the founder of the Domestic Abuse and Violence Institute of Dayton Fund of The Dayton Foundation.
Junior Leadership Dayton is sponsored in part by the YMCA of Greater Dayton, the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce, Wright State University, the Dayton Foundation and the Frank M. Tait Foundation.
Making a Difference in Your Community was The Dayton Foundation's sixth annual sponsored event for Junior Leadership Dayton.
