December 13, 2021, by Grace Dixon
Volunteer of the Month- Stephanie Judd
It is that time of the month again, where we celebrate one of our amazing volunteers and their contribution to sport. Without our volunteers, the Leadership Academy would not be able to make a positive impact on the community or even within the University itself.
Volunteer of the Month
This month’s volunteer is Stephanie Judd. Stephanie volunteers within the Laureus Sport for Good program. This program consists of students working with young people in local schools to develop their life skills. They also aim to help with the transition from primary to secondary school.
Stephanie has been a consistent and reliable volunteer who has really helped out with #iWill week in her own time. She has shown leadership in leading a small team of girls who also helped out with #iWill week and she is always very prompt to answer emails/messages, which is invaluable! She has also been very flexible in her approach to volunteering
What volunteering have you taken part in?
I have been involved in the Laureus Sport for Good Scheme. Each of the six weeks we were there had a different theme, for example teamwork or resilience. The children got involved with I Will Week, a national campaign celebrating rouge people making a difference in their communities. Each child wrote an I Will pledge and for each pledge, the university donated an item of food to a local food bank. My friend and I then volunteered to buy all the food and distribute it to various locations around Nottingham.
What has been your favourite thing about volunteering?
The most enjoyable part was seeing the children progress and learn. It was great to see them attempting, failing, reassessing and then trying all the different tasks again. I loved the fact that they all enjoyed themselves, despite many of them admitting that PE was not their favourite subject.
What has been the hardest thing about volunteering?
As we were working with children of year 6 age, it was often difficult to get them all to listen to instructions. We learnt how to deal with this however, so it got easier over the weeks!
What is the most important thing to remember when volunteering?
I think the most important thing to remember is that you’re there to make a positive difference to other people’s lives. This means that no matter what’s going on in your life, when you are there, you need to be putting in 100% effort and commitment.
How has volunteering helped you/will help you in the future?
Volunteering has shown me that I really enjoy it. I look forward to taking on more volunteering opportunities in the future. As a sport science student, this volunteering opportunity has also given me an insight into coaching and teaching sport. These are potential career paths for me in the future.
Get Involved
Stephanie’s’ experience of volunteering within sport is especially important as she demonstrates that you do not need to be a part of a sports club. You can volunteer with no sports knowledge at all. As long as you have enthusiasm and a want to get involved, then we would love to have you get involved.
Check out the Laureus Sport for Good program website to find out more!
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