Undergraduate / 'I volunteered at nursing homes' - personal essay for UW-Milwaukee [2]

The University values an educational environment that provides all members of the campus community with opportunities to grow and develop intellectually, personally, culturally and socially. In order to give us a more complete picture of you as an individual, please tell us about the particular life experiences, perspectives, talents, commitments and/or interests you will bring to our campus. In other words, how will your presence enrich our community?

Although I have faced many challenges, I still find the need to help others. I have volunteered through many organizations and the feeling of making someone's day easier can not be put into words.

During the summer of the end of my sophomore year, I volunteered at nursing homes to help the elderly whenever they went on field trips to the zoo or to the wildlife sanctuary. Putting smiles on their faces and listening to them gave me a strong interest in volunteering for other organizations. Therefore, I volunteered for the Greater Green Bay Habitat for Humanity and they gave me all sorts of things to do, such as painting houses and being a parking attendant for Green Bay Packer's home games. These jobs allowed me to make the best use of my skills and I continue to learn more and more about the Green Bay community.

Volunteering for the Green Bay Habitat for Humanity led me to volunteering for Literacy Green Bay organization. Presently, I'm a Child Care Aid for two hours per week. Most of the children speak Spanish. At first I thought it was going to be really hard to communicate with them but the small amount of Spanish I know is actually really helpful when I need to talk to them. I thought I'd never use Spanish in my life but it turns out that there was a purpose for me to learn the language. I learn so much about these kids and they give me a strong interest in the development of the human body and mind.

I feel if I am placed in a place where there is so much diversity, I have a better opportunity in learning about all the cultures around the world. There are so many advantages to living in a community like Milwaukee. Not only will I learn about other people, people will learn about me. I respect all of my surroundings because that is how I've been raised and I've always been told to do the right thing. My respect for others gives me a genuine personality and I would like my personality to reflect off of others.

There's no doubt that I will continue to volunteer if I went to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee because I know that there are so many ways to volunteer in such a large and diverse city. There is no other community that interest's me more than Milwaukee.