By Gabby Sahm
Staff Writer
@gabbysahm
The end of the school year is fast approaching. Everyone is making plans for the summer, and instead of students traveling to the beach or going camping, some are looking to spend their time giving back to the community.
The Teen Volunteer Fair was just the place the go for those students on Tuesday. The fair housed 14 different organizations centered in Coppell. The organizations can be broken into categories from care giving in Bea’s Kids, River Oaks Assisted Living and Memory Care and even caring for animals at the Coppell Humane Society. You can also try your hand at giving back to the outdoors by volunteering for the Coppell Nature Park or the Coppell Community Garden.
If none of these options suited you, they also had representatives from the Assistance League of Coppell, Brent Woodall Foundation for Exceptional Children, Christian Community Action, Coppell Development Academy, Coppell Teen Court, Elmcroft of Vista Ridge, Metrocrest Services, Theatre Coppell and X2VOL powered by intelliVOL.
Bob Fleck, representative from the Coppell Community Garden, loves encouraging students to come and work in the garden, and the fair is the best place to do it.
“This fair is great because it exposes the kids to what [volunteer] opportunities there are,” Fleck said. “They might not be aware of [the opportunities] and it gives the various organizations a chance to get out there and tell the kids what they do and what they will do if they volunteer.”
Debbie Trask, representative from the Coppell Humane Society, also loves encouraging kids to come and volunteer and has been at the fair for three years.
“We are an all volunteer group so this is a wonderful opportunity for us to find new people who are interested in helping out,” Trask said. “We have gotten some great volunteers and it has been great exposure for us as well.”
Coppell High School sophomore Marisa Mahalik is no stranger to volunteering. She volunteered for Bea’s Kids last year and is now thinking about volunteering for Assistance League of Coppell.
“I wanted to find great volunteer opportunities for the summer so I would be able to get involved with community,” Mahalik said. “It is good to be involved in the community and to learn how you can be involved and volunteer.”
Though the fair is now over, you still have plenty of time to sign up for any of the organizations. To see a list of the organizations in Coppell, and ways you can contact them, click here.
