Volunteering

I had a bit of trouble holding to some of my volunteering obligations over the last few weeks. I have already been involved in a few organizations for some time, and drop in to give my time when I can. I'm writing about them briefly incase anyone is interested in becoming involved. This includes donating platelets to the UCLA blood and platelet donation center. Donating platelets is actually about a 1.5-2 hour process due to interviewing and then the actual donation. This is a  bit different from giving blood, as platelets donations are used within 3 days of donation. You can donate every 7 days, as the amount you donate regenerates in your body roughly after 24 hours. Unfortunately, I was not well enough this month to donate. (There's something going around CalArts..) The other opportunity I try to take advantage of is at the Gentle Barn. This is a non profit animal rescue that takes in abused animals and gives them a second chance at life. These animals are used to help at risk children in the community, and is open to visitors every week. I had the privilege of visiting over the summer when my family, who are super hard core animal lovers/vegans. I absolutely fell in love with the animals and the cause, and filled an application to become a volunteer. Volunteers are needed Sundays when the sanctuary is open to visitors. Volunteers often rely the animal's stories and show people how to properly interact with the animals. This unfortunately didn't work with my schedule during our assignment block.

So instead of working with a cause I'm usually involved in, I found an opportunity on campus. I ran into a grad student at Tatum who was in a bit of distress trying to design his recital posters. He had a really amazing idea for his posters he wasn't sure how to execute. I went ahead and met with him, and decided to put in the time to gather the supplies he needed, design the poster, and construct them, and help put them around campus.  In the end, it was a small thing in the grander big picture, but it really meant a lot to him. It relieved him of a lot of stress as he was putting together the music, trying to find work for after graduation, and other issues. It was just nice to do something for someone in the community who really needed some support.