Life changing events can often shape who and what we will become. Some big. Some small. Having undergone two sports-related orthopedic surgeries before he turned 17, my son ‘needed’ to understand how his knee worked (bio-mechanics, anatomy, and orthopedics). He finagled his way into observing a surgery at Baptist Hospital & participated in a surgical research project at Mount Sinai, headed by doctors from the Cleveland Clinic, Jackson Memorial, and the Hand Place. And… he got community service hours for it.
Community service opportunities help us discover who we are, and what we’re made of, and are worth their weight in salt… opening doors, and tweaking interest. Community service and research opportunities let us piddle in what touches us, or someone close to us.
When kids are looking for community service opportunities, it’s sometimes hard to know where to start. Some opportunities are self-created… unraveling before us, as we follow a passion, or search for answers. Many schools require community service hours for graduation, and .. .younger kids have endless choices too. (We have a dog that’s a result of our 12 year old’s very first HOUR of Community Service with Friend’s Forever… a rescue program for dogs: “Mommy, I HAVE to save this dog!”)
I was prompted to write this, after a call on a previous blog article. For additional sources of community service, take a look at FUN Community Service for Kids, posted previously.
The smallest things can nudge us in one direction or another. When we moved to Miami… nineteen years ago… a realtor at EWM set the groundwork. She did her job, and was good at it. She schlepped me (and my two preschoolers) through Coral Gables to Key Biscayne, back to Pinecrest, and out to Miami Beach… looking at houses for days… making sure that the kids enjoyed house-hunting…. stopping for ice cream, pizza, romps in the park… She handed out books and crayons in her brand new car…. and yes, she found us the perfect house along the way. My then 4 year old daughter, Alexandra, is now a realtor, too…. We work together at EWM… like the lady who inspired us both. Sometimes the littlest things that make the biggest difference. When you’re ready to buy or sell, please call us. We know the neighborhoods you want to live in.