I retired from teaching after having taught for 37 years in elementary grades 3 and 4. After a few years, I truly missed teaching and the children. An add for Soar 55 was in the local news so I called and was interviewed. Jan set me up with a teacher in grade one at Woodrow Wilson School . It just so happened my next door neighbor was the principal!
Christine and I worked together for 7 years until she moved to Cape Cod. Luckily, Christine paired me up with a wonderful third grade teacher and we have been having fun for four years now.
I just love being back in the classroom and sharing my expertise and knowledge with the children. They are so excited to learn! They make my day each time I go into the room!
When I wanted to volunteer for "something" (no idea what) SOAR was tremendously helpful. Jan provided a list of possibilities, guidance, and contact information. Years earlier, I had done some work for a biochemist neighbor who studies human milk, so I was thrilled to discover the existence of a mothers' milk bank right here in Newton. I've been helping at Mothers' Milk Bank Northeast for about 5 years now. The Milk Bank collects and pasteurizes milk from donors; most of it goes to hospitalized preemies, for whom it can be life-saving.
A Learning Partners Experience
The Framingham Library experienced an electrical fire and the Framingham Homework Center temporarily relocated to the Framingham Boys and Girls Club. This has been an amazing experience. In addition to some of my regular Homework Center students, I met a few of my students from the Wilson Math Academy program. I also met a cousin and her older brother of one of my Homework Center Students. The other day, a second grade student asked me to help her in Math and Language Arts. BGC students, who I did not know, recognized me and said hello. I truly felt like a community educator. The Boys and Girls Club is a great community building program. I love to see kids having fun while learning. Thank you SOAR55 for setting me on this path.
Paul Rosenzweig
Role: SOAR55 Learning Partner Volunteer
My experience as a SOAR 55 consultant has been very rewarding. The classroom training has been superb and my colleagues are intelligent, professional, and dedicated. As a consultant I have not only had the satisfaction of helping nonprofits but have gained new insight into the rich variety and scope of local philanthropic organizations. I am on my second project and plan to continue for many years.
This is my 7th year as a volunteer with SOAR. It is a fabulous organization that matches volunteer interests with real needs. I served as a mentor to a woman who was enrolled in BU's College Behind Bars and just this week learned that she has been paroled. As part of a 5 woman team, we learned about our mentee and also learned a lot about the prison system. In addition, I tutor a woman from Second Step, a battered women's program. We have worked together to help her improve her literacy skills as well as her parenting skills. This has been most rewarding for me. Through volunteering you get much more than you give.
I've been volunteering for SOAR55 projects since 2009, when I was laid off and looking for ways to use my time when not job-searching. In this 6 years I've done a lot of different things, including creating a pro forma budget for a start-up nonprofit, for which I still volunteer about 30 hours a month. I've been involved in many consultant projects, and I've even helped provide tax services to veterans. But my favorite experience has been to tutor elementary school students in math. My students have ranged from 2nd grade to 5th grade, and this is my sixth year of tutoring. For me, tutoring is a joy and a lot of fun.
Like many of the other members of the SOAR 55 Management Consulting Group, I was looking for a way to apply my many years of experience in management of for-profit companies to help other organizations grow and prosper. After learning about the SOAR 55 program and attending their training program which helps the for-profit crowd better understand the operation and needs of the non-profits, I became a member (over time) of several teams assigned to a wide variety of non-profit organizations that were seeking help in a number of different ways. It was great to be of help, to see how they benefited from our work, and to see how people from a wide range of backgrounds could come together to do good in such an environment. But there was another, unexpected personal benefit - the opportunity to see how other organizations operate and survive with little funding, but with great passion and fantastic results. Thank you SOAR 55 for helping the community as well as helping us individuals grow, learn, and experience.
I decided it was time for me to devote some of my free time to others. SOAR 55 offered so many different volunteering opportunities. I am teaching ESL to two Korean women now and worked for a year with a young woman from Japan, who returned to her homeland six months ago. We are still in touch and will probably have a lifelong friendship. I am tutoring a 5th grader in math and find it not only rewarding, but fun! Additionally, SOAR 55 holds various meetings for sharing experiences and ideas with other volunteers. I would recommend SOAR 55 to anyone who wants to help others in the community while enriching their own lives in the process.
Although I had been a management consultant for many years, my experience with SOAR 55 gave me a new appreciation for the problems faced by non-profits. It has been gratifying to see the work of our teams make such a profound difference to our clients.
When I was looking for something worth while to do after my forced retirement, Soar55 opened up many new opportunities for me. It is a wonderful organization for those who want to remain active and give back to the community. After volunteering at other organizations, I have settled on something that I love and enjoy immensely. I volunteer as an ESL tutor at Newton Library. I have been doing it for the last 3 years and would probably continue to do for the rest of my life because it is truly a rewarding experience. I tutor adult learners from many different countries. It is wonderful to get to know them and make a positive difference (however little it may be) in their lives. I appreciate the work Soar55 is doing.
This is my third year volunteering with SOAR 55/Learning Partners and working with elementary school students on reading skills. I love every minute of it. Both children and teachers work hard. As a retired elementary school teacher, I am able to continue to work with children part time and to enjoy the best things about being a teacher.
I have been volunteering through SOAR55 for six years. It's a fabulous organization, with a wide range of volunteer opportunities, something for everyone! Following my particular interests, I have been tutoring math and preparing tax returns for military personel. It's clear that many organizations needing volunteer support connect with SOAR55, recognizing that they can regularly provide the required resources.
This is an excellent organization providing wonderful, pro-bono services for other nonprofits. I've been part of the consulting team practice and have worked on four different projects, ranging from a community orchestra to a social service organization. One of the best parts of these projects is that in each one I've worked with a different team of two other Soar55 volunteer consultants. Every individual has been an expert in his or her field and we've had a wonderful time working together on behalf of clients who really needed our assistance. The nonprofits have been grateful for our work, as they should. Modestly speaking, we've done excellent work -- way beyond the expectation of each client.
I have had a marvelous experience as a docent here. The training has opened up a new world to me educationally and personally. It has allowed me to build on prior skills and experience while constantly learning about new (for me areas) and meeting some interesting folks. It is entering an interesting new phase now and there is room for having some input if one desires that.
This is my second year co-facilitating a class of "caregiver support volunteers" using a nation-wide curriculum, "Powerful Tools for Caregivers." Not only has the experience harnessed my teaching skills, utilized in my pre-retirement careers, but has tapped into my consulting skills, since SOAR 55 plans to grow the program, marketing the concept to community agencies and recruiting both caregivers and support volunteers. SOAR 55's management team is very adept at sizing up a volunteer's strengths and directing the volunteer to meaningful opportunities.....an individualized approach that "beats looking through endless lists of volunteer jobs on-line, leaving an applicant overwhelmed."
Through Soar55 I have tutored ESL, a program of the Newton Library for over 5 years. It is a very rewarding experience to help adults from S. Korea, China, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam and Russia learn the English language and our way of life. Also, I have become friends with many of my students and have learnt much about their cultures and life-styles.
Since our retirement, SOARS has allowed my wife and I to be a part of a team that mentors (academically and socially) a women in MCI Framingham who is interested in obtaining a college degree from Boston University. It is a privilege, beyond word, to be a part of this exciting program at SOARS!
SOAR 55 connected me with Newton School Volunteers. This is my second year tutoring the same little girl, now a fifth grader. We work on math skills and conceptualization. I love her positive attitude and hard work ethic. She is a joy!
SOAR connected me to the Sages and Seekers program. It was a perfect match for me since I spent several years as a social worker facilitating groups. I have already facilitated several S&S programs at both the high school and college level. In the process, I have become passionate about the mission of this amazing non-profit. I find working with young adolescents and college under grads as they truly "listen" to the life stories and lessons learned by our participating elders tremendously rewarding.During the course of each 8-week session the two generations forge beautiful and meaningful relationships. My role and rewards as the program's facilitator has truly enhanced my own life as well.
Tutoring primary graders is a response to a wide-spread need for a little extra help for stragglers and is fun for me to boot.
SOAR55 has given me such a wonderful feeling of purpose since my 'forced retirement' two years ago. I am involved with Learning Partners and this is my third year tutoring a first grader in reading. The training received and ongoing support is amazing, and they are always there to guide you.
As a management consultant volunteer for SOAR as well as the current advisor to SOAR I have been overwhelmingly impressed with the caliber of professional volunteers. These top executives in their field in business having infused a level of professional strategy into a variety of nonprofits. By giving these nonprofits the sage advice, strategic planning and counsel of seasoned professionals SOAR 55 is improving the communities by enhancing the lives of thousands of people. Teams have begun with one person aspiring to start a nonprofit to working with existing nonprofits who need to go to the next level. They have helped organizations working with vulnerable infants, cultural institutions, community support institutions and a variety of other nonprofits. SOAR 55 has a substantial training program that each volunteer attends for a period of nine months. The teams go out with very specific training and skills and work in a collaborative manner with their assignments.