Using a favorite quotation from an essay or book you have read in the last three years as a jumping off point, tell us about an event or experience that helped you define one of your values or changed how you approach the world. Please write the quotation at the beginning of your essay. 500 words max.
"Volunteer, not so you can build your resume, but so you can build yourself." Unknown
This quote isn't from a movie, book, or essay, but one that has stuck with me for a very long time. I am very active in my community, not so I can put it down on college apps, but so I can become a better person. When I was 10, I wanted to join Girl Scouts; even though at that point it was because my best friend was doing it, today I want to be a Girl Scout because of the service we do for others. I have taken part in various service opportunities, including singing for the elderly, directing toy drives, hosting events for younger Girl Scouts, and partnering with local organizations to hold community events like an Earth Day fair. But the most rewarding experience has been working with Habitat for Humanity The organization's mission is to build homes for people who live in sub-standard housing and cannot afford to improve their living standards by conventional means. My Girl Scout troop assisted the Habitat for Humanity in Riverside build their 33rd house. As we helped over the long and hot summer, the house, which previously stored drugs, was transformed into a beautiful 'Go Green' home to house a needy family of five. Many in the community came to help this family create a better home for the future, companies donated money and tools, and stores donated material. At the house dedication ceremony, which occurred on October 31st, 2009, my troop performed the flag ceremony. As I stood and listened to the speakers from the different companies, Habitat for Humanity, and the family, I was touched. Everyone was so grateful that the project had been completed and the family could finally live in a comfortable house. When the family was presented with the set of house keys, an overwhelming expression of tears and joy were on each member's face including the 3-year old daughter. Lending a hand and recognizing that I had helped change a family's life felt remarkable. That feeling is now why I volunteer. As the family came up to me and individually thanked me for my part in the project, I was proud and more importantly, inspired to continue helping throughout my life. I am a volunteer to make friends, help the community, and for personal growth, but most of all, to participate in making the world a better place.
Any help, please!!
I am very active in my community, not so I can put it down on college apps, but so I can become a better person.
Yeah, likely story! At the start of the essay, making this assertion does not do any good, because it has no credibility. It is better not to make it yet. I'll do some surgery here:
This quote isn't from a movie, book, or essay, but one that has stuck with me for a very long time.
I am very active in my community, not so I can put it down on college apps, but so I can become a better person. When I was 10, I wanted to join...
Okay, and your explanation about HFH and the girl scouts is very nice. However, one big problem is that your theme is that you did community work in order to build yourself rather than in order to enhance college apps, but here you are using it on a college app! Ha ha, so that is sort of funny, but the reader probably will not judge you for it. However, I think it might be nice, either near the beginning or the end of the essay, to ACKNOWLEDGE this self-contradiction in a light-hearted way, perhaps with self-depreciating humor.
