"I
recently graduated from USC, majoring in Political
Science and International Relations. I currently
work at a children’s talent agency and on the
event committee for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. I will
start law school in the fall at UCLA, after which I
hope to work in public service.
Why I chose to volunteer is a consequence of my
upbringing -- I
learned early on how fortunate I am as
a person, and
that most people lack such fortunes by sheer consequence
and bad luck. Recognizing this, I felt an obligation
to give back to those less fortunate and to devote
my life in some way to establishing an equilibrium
amongst all people. Over the years,
volunteering has helped keep me grounded and humble,
and has also allowed me to meet some of the most
inspirational people. Each
project is surrounded by goodness: good people
taking their time to achieve something good for the
betterment of the world and society. There is
nothing else I would rather do than witness and participate
in such splendor.
The actual act of community service
kindles and fans sparks of goodness into flames of
justice everywhere. I have witnessed change in
people I believed were immune to it, I have seen hope
rekindled in children who assumed that no one cared
for them, and I have been able to restore some faith
in those who lacked it. I have seen volunteers
rise to any and every predicament and take charge to
ensure a good time for those whom they were there to
help. I have also met children who were befriended
by other L.A. Works volunteers, and whom later grew
up to become project leaders themselves in order to
give back to others and to thank us for our contributions. These
have been the most rewarding experiences of my life.
I think volunteering should just be an opportunity
for people to have fun and do something rewarding with
their time. I think they should use it as an opportunity
to learn more about themselves, to meet other fascinating
people, and to maintain a realistic and worldly vision
of life.
My advice to projects leaders is to hope for the
best and be prepared for the worst. Sometimes things
go wrong, and you should always be ready for a backup
plan. Make sure to have fun and keep in mind
the purpose of being there: just being there. Whatever
you do is extraordinary and they will love it. So,
just have fun with it and you will inspire all others
to enjoy as well.
It's pretty obvious that Mandana possesses wonderful
spirit and joy, and brings a great deal of positive
energy to our community of volunteers and the people
they support. Please join us in thanking her for her
many hours of service and leadership! Thanks Mandana.
Past
Project Leaders Recognition Pages
Mar, 2004 - Cindy Finocchi
Feb, 2004 - Viet
Hoang
Jan, 2004 - Teresa
Castelli
Dec. 2003 - Mary Lawler
Nov. 2003 - Jose
Valencia
Oct, 2003 - Dustin
Manhart
Sept, 2003 - Marc Weinberg
Aug, 2003 - Mark
Kimura
July, 2003 - Jay
Ross
June, 2003 - Meghan
Lee
May, 2003 - Ray
Ng
April, 2003 - David
Trilling
March, 2003 -
Tom Hoctor
February, 2003 -
Kayo Shiraishi-Adachi
January, 2003 -
Henry Meyer
December, 2002 -
Suzanne Studer
November, 2002 - Ed Simon
October, 2002 - Bobbi Marin |
