Autumn ’18 Volunteering

During the Autumn semester, I spent time volunteering at both the Columbus Marathon and the Allstate Hot Chocolate 15k/5k. The Columbus Marathon is an annual half marathon and marathon and it has been linked to Nationwide Children’s Hospital for seven years. By participating in the race, you are given the opportunity to raise money for the Children’s Hospital and over $7 million has been raised so far. I learned about this service opportunity through the Dunn Sports and Wellness Scholars program and joined the group of scholars so we could all volunteer together. Our volunteering took place on October 21 and I spent a total of 5 hours helping out beginning at 7 am. For that time, I helped set up the water stop that the Dunn Sports and Wellness Scholars group was stationed at, which included setting up tables with water cups as well as filling them with water or gatorade. Once the race actually began, we spent the time handing out cups to runners and cheering them on as they completed the race.

On November 18, I volunteered at the Allstate Hot Chocolate 15k/5k for 6 and a half hours, waking up at 4:30 am in order to arrive at McFerson Commons Park at 5:30. The Hot Chocolate Run first began in 2008 and it is the fastest growing race in the country. The official charity of this particular race is Make-A-Wish, and if a runner chooses to raise money, that is who it would be going to. My job was in the Chocolate Tent at the Post Race Party, where I assisted in assembling the finisher’s mugs, which consisted of hot chocolate, chocolate fondue, and various sweets.

By giving my time to volunteering for these organizations I have discovered my passion for helping people, even if it isn’t what one would first think of when they think of service. By watching runners working so hard to accomplish what they had set their sights on months, in some cases years, ago and knowing that I was even a small part of them achieving their end goal. By volunteering for these  that being a leader doesn’t always mean being the first to cross the finish line, or even crossing it at all  – it means helping those around you, no matter how small your role may be. Because of service learning I am more aware of what being a leader actually means and I plan to use my new view on it to help me become a better leader in the future.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *