The Pause Ripple Effect
We can share about Pause all day long… it’s probably one of our favorite things! When you wholeheartedly believe in the mission of an organization, it becomes second nature. BUT when a volunteer shares about their Pause experience to spread the word about Pause - JACKPOT!
Meet Zachary Williams! He’s a University of Cincinnati student pursuing a Masters in Business Administration and also a substitute teacher in Hamilton County schools this past school year. He joined our volunteer team back in December and since then has attended 17 events giving Pause over 45 hours of service.
“I consider myself extremely lucky to be a Pause volunteer. I moved to Cincinnati last fall and immediately started looking for local organizations to volunteer with. Upon learning about Pause, I felt an immediate connection with their mission of supporting special needs kids and their families. The first event I attended was their Holiday Shoppe last December and had a blast meeting all the kids. I spent most of that night helping them go down the indoor zip-line in the “Backyard” play area and made sure everyone was safe and had a blast!
After the Holiday Shoppe I continued to support subsequent events such as Parent’s Night Out and Unlimited on Sunday mornings because of the amazing kids Pause serves. These kids typically do not get much social interaction at school or might be referred to as “troublemakers.” This is a shame because when they have the right tools and supports in place, they thrive. You can tell they look forward to the Pause events, where they can make friends and express themselves. These kids are always appreciative of the volunteers, and it is a great feeling seeing some of the kids you have worked with before at different events. I have served as a small group leader a couple of times, and creating environments where the kids can have fun, be themselves, and make crucial connections with others has been the most rewarding part of being a volunteer. I hope that being a role model in this capacity can help them improve their self-esteem and make friends.
For anyone who is considering serving as a Pause volunteer, I cannot recommend it enough. Being a volunteer isn’t always necessarily easy, as you are working with kids, but Pause offers all the guidance and support needed to succeed through every situation. The team has fantastic staff and resilience coordinators who help the kids when they have “big feelings,” in addition to well-thought-out, fun, and easy activities for you to complete with the kids.
Every time I leave Pause events I smile and wish it hadn’t ended. I cannot say enough good things about the kids, as they are fantastic and hilarious, and we always have a blast playing games, especially when we make them up ourselves.”
Zach - we are SO lucky to have you on our volunteer team. You are making a difference in the lives of our kiddos. You are shifting the culture and the perspective of everyone around you… what a beautiful ripple effect!
This is CAN DO. This is COMMUNITY. This is YOUR SUPPORT.
