Crafting Community
Students, teachers, and philanthropists discuss modern community service from youth engagement in it to the impacts it has on both the giving and receiving ends.
All of the sudden, the bagel she had that morning did not sit right with her. Her stomach disagreed with her almost as much as her mind did with the reality of her situation.
The jarring news reached her at the end of the school year. The only thing grounding her was the community of teachers that she had known for nine years of going to St. Gabriel Consolidated School.
“My mom passed away when I was in eighth grade, so two years ago,” East sophomore Elliana Tozzi told Spark. “My teachers were really there for me that day, and I will not forget that. I never had felt so loved by so many people. That is probably my biggest memory and my biggest feeling of support.”
When she moved to Lakota for her freshman year, she once again felt a feeling of community when she became familiar with Companions on a Journey.
“It’s a grief counseling [nonprofit]. I got put in their groups last year for my first year at Lakota, and I started going to one in-school and then one out-of-school group,” said Tozzi. “Once a month, we sit down and usually do a craft or an activity or something, and then just discuss how [our] grieving is going.”
According to Tozzi, these groups gave her a sense of belonging, and inspired her to want to help those in a similar situation to her.
Required Service
In May of 2024, the government class requirement to get 15 hours of community service was eliminated.
“Government teachers were made aware in May of 2024 that we would not be requiring the 20% of the government grade which was 15 volunteer hours,” East AP, CCP, and CP American Government teacher Dr. Tisha Grote told Spark. “Most of us, East and West, also had a complimentary reflection paper that went with the 15 hours.”
Grote said that the update came from the Lakota Curriculum Department at the Central Office. The office’s rationale was that the AP and CCP government courses did not have to take part in the 15 hours of community service, so requiring the CP students to acquire the hours would not be equitable.
According to a Spark survey of 303 East students, sophomores through seniors, 33.7% do not believe community service should be required by the school, 28.5% believe it should be, and 37.8% are neutral on the topic.
Although East students are split, experts like American Red Cross Senior Volunteer Recruitment Specialist Kelsey Mitchell see how mandatory volunteering may lead to a future interest.
“[Students] could be applying for a volunteer role because it is something that they will add to their resume and add to their professional experience,” Mitchell told Spark, “but it could become a passion for them, and it could become something that they want to continue with, long term.”
This possibility for people to become invigorated by community service is something that East chemistry teacher and National Honors Society advisor Elizabeth Gosky believes is achievable for each student’s unique interests.
“Everyone has different passions and you can find something that you would like to do, or something you are good at, and then share your talents that way,” Gosky told Spark. “Do not be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone and try something. You never know what it is going to lead to in the future.”
Whether people find an organization that is working towards their passion, or whether they start one on their own, Lindsey Wyckoff, the American Cancer Society Director of Regional Integrated Marketing, said that individuals should use their distinctive skills and interests to serve the community how they can.
“I think we are living in a time where there are a lot of people who are struggling. Whether they are struggling financially, emotionally, mentally, a lot of people are hurting right now, and it is for a variety of reasons,” Wyckoff told Spark. “So, if there is something you can do to ease that struggle in any way, and it aligns with something you really care about, then find a way to do it.”
East sophomore Avery Beisman was required to complete community service in ninth grade, but her volunteering journey started in seventh grade when her parents took her to A Child’s Hope International to serve for the first time.
This set off her passion for community service which is mostly spent with kids and animals according to Beisman.
According to the Spark student survey, 34.1% of students said they engaged in community service for college or job applications, 26.5% completed hours for a class or club requirement, and 24.8% volunteered for personal growth.
“To me, when it comes to volunteering, there should never be any shame around what motivates you to be there,” said Wyckoff. “If you are making the most of your time and helping, you could be sorting papers for an organization, you are still making the jobs [of those at the organization] easier, so they can spend more time fulfilling their mission. At the end of the day, that is really what matters.”
Even so, some college admissions officers, like Director of Strategic Recruitment in Miami University Office of Admissions Lindsay Holden, stress the importance of applicants genuinely investing themselves in the activities that they participate in.
“Certainly the most compelling applications,” Holden told Spark, “and the ones that are really exciting in that area, are the ones where students clearly have a passion or an interest in that particular organization and really want to make that impact there.”
As far as a resume goes according to Holden, it is less about the nonprofit that a student chooses to spend time with, and more about what consistently engaging in community service says about the person.
“Students who have done community service and have participated in that, clearly have a strong commitment to their communities, and that is what we are looking for: for students who are going to come here and be a strong contributor to that Miami community,” said Holden. “We are picking people to do certain things when they get here, but we want to know that they’re going to come and get involved and be one of those people who are excited to be here.”
However, this may be difficult for some students.
39.7% of students surveyed said that they did not have enough time to dedicate to volunteering, 28.1% said they did have enough time, and 32.2% were neutral on the topic.
As a three sport athlete, Mercy McAuley High School senior and Southwestern Ohio American Red Cross Youth Engagement Lead Kat Bowman struggles with this balance at times.
“It is okay if you can’t do everything; no one can do everything,” Bowman told Spark. “If you can just do a little bit, that is more than what would have been done if you did nothing at all.”
Maintaining this CP government project for many years, Grote has heard grumbles from students who were struggling to balance their sporting schedules with completing their community service, especially those in marching band.
“It always worked out,” said Grote. “There was not one marching band student that could never turn [the assignment] in.”
She also said that in this way, among others, the community service project taught time management and other life skills to students.
“It can help to build your leadership in your resume, your community skills,” said Mench, “there are so many things. It is your civic responsibility, your civic duty, to your neighbor.”
A Service Shortage
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, volunteer rates declined from 5.8% in 2012 to 4.2% in 2022. However, the volunteer rate for women did increase from 4.1% in 2021 to 5.1% in 2022.
Teachers at East like Mench and Gosky attempt to combat this by providing opportunities for students.
“It is harder to go out and contact an organization and ask. So I try to provide as many opportunities that I hear of just to give people that chance,” Gosky told Spark. “I am willing to bet if you contacted any nonprofit organization in Butler County or Hamilton County, everyone needs help. Everyone would take volunteers.”
Bowman said that it can be scary at first to start volunteering, but that too many teens stop themselves before they can really start.
“If you don’t do it today, what is going to make you want to do it tomorrow?” said Bowman.
This possible timidity does not go unrecognized by professionals in the field.
“Volunteering can be intimidating, I imagine, for high school students, but people like me will tell you all the things,” said Wyckoff. “I will encourage you like crazy to try [volunteering], because there is just so much to gain for the organization that you spend your time with and for yourself.”
Mathew 25: Ministries, a nonprofit dedicated to spreading resources to those in need around the world, experienced another obstacle to teens participating in community service.
“During COVID, Matthew 25 suspended our volunteer program to protect the health and safety of our staff and volunteers,” Director of Programs and Community Relations Joodi Archer told Spark. “It took time to build the program back up, but young people continue to seek out Matthew 25 as a resource for volunteerism.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau and Americorps, 28.3% of Americans over the age of 16 engaged in formal volunteering in 2023 as compared to 23.8% in 2022. This is closer to the 2019 pre-COVID rate of 30%.
“I always think there are chances for kids to get involved, but a lot of times we adults have done things a certain way, and there might be things where it is harder for younger people to be involved,” said Wyckoff.
Although, this should not scare young people off from making a difference, she said.
“I say that my professional goal is to be a bridge, whether that be a bridge to people, a bridge to resources, a bridge to information,” said Mitchell. “It is my life goal to make sure people are connected in the way that is most helpful to them, and I am grateful to places like the Red Cross, who have given me the opportunity to do that for my day to day.”
A Youthful Future
60-year philanthropist and founder of Magnified Giving, Roger Grein, said that caring for the community does not necessarily mean regularly volunteering with a formal organization.
“It can be simple. It could be opening a door for someone,” Grein told Spark. “There are all kinds of ways to be helpful and have concern for and be loving to other people.”
This is exactly the message that Grien shares with highschoolers across Ohio and Northern Kentucky through Magnified Giving. His philanthropy organization creates opportunities for youth to donate to a nonprofit that they are interested in.
“Youth is the best thing going for us. That is our hope, that is our truth,” Grein told Spark. “If you watch the news, everything is negative and depressing. When you work with youth, and see their energy, their smiles, their hopes and their dreams, it cheers you up and puts a smile on your face. It puts hope in your heart.”
Through the American Red Cross, other teens like Bowman are able to start Red Cross Clubs at their schools.
“Your generation [only] is not our future, you all are now, and we need to start finding ways to engage you and invest in you now,” said Mitchell. “It is important to invest in the people who are the next generation and who are already incredible leaders in so many spaces and have a passion for doing good.”
Encouraging volunteering from a young age is a key component to many organizations like Matthew 25 which has many family-friendly volunteering opportunities from sorting clothing to creating care-packages.
“Children watch their caregivers when growing up and emulate them as they begin to sculpt their own adult personas,” said Archer. “If they see that service and helping others is a key component of their parents or caregivers’ lives, they are more likely to emulate that behavior.”
Once teens are involved in an organization or two, Gosky said, it is the relationships they build that will get them to stay.
“You can see the direct impact in the smiles on people’s faces, or their appreciation if they say thank you, and you can get immediate, positive feedback,” said Gosky. “I also think there is good in doing community service where you don’t necessarily get that, because donating your time and your talent should also make you feel good intrinsically.”
The ability to see the direct impact of service to others may have more to it than just a warm fuzzy feeling according to school psychologist Lora Lemay.
“Face-to-face interaction fosters relationships and connection which contribute to a sense of belonging that benefits mental health,” Lemay told Spark, “but also allows for practice of important social skills such as problem solving and conflict resolution.”
The need to belong is one among food, shelter, water and love, she said. Engaging in volunteering, at any age, can build self esteem and a sense of purpose according to Lemay.
Those in a community, driving on the same roads, shopping at the same stores, and breathing the same air, are fastened to each other through schools, workplaces, and neighborhoods, making service a civic duty in Grote’s mind.
“When it comes to volunteering, it is a huge grassroots movement that will affect those on your street, those in your community,” said Grote. “[Volunteering] connects students to an understanding much bigger than themselves: that there are people out there that are not like us, or there are people out there that are not like you.”
Getting out into the local area to volunteer, “deepens your learning experience about other people who are not just in this world, but are around you,” said Grote.
As volunteering can provide benefits to both the volunteer and those being served, some such as Mitchell see this symbiotic relationship as ingrained in the very nature of serving one’s own community.
“We all belong to each other, and we are all here to take care of one another,” said Mitchell. “I don’t know if there is anything more powerful, in my opinion at least, than someone giving their time to someone they have never met or someone they may never see again.”
In her time of need, Tozzi was able to recognize the importance of strong community, and she will continue to build on it.
“Community is having people in your corner that will be there for you no matter what,” said Tozzi. “No matter what you are going through, they will always support you and help you to the best of their ability.”
Hamilton Urban Gardening Systems grow fresh food to donate to food pantries and other people in need.
Wtthen collecting vegetables harvested for a local food bank in his community, East junior Owen Knapp is reminded why he began volunteering at Hamilton Urban Gardening Systems (HUGS).
“Being able to help those in need is the best feeling ever,” Knapp told Spark.
Knapp had always had an affinity for gardening.
“I’ve been gardening ever since I was a little kid with my grandma and my mom: flowers, tomatoes, things like that,” said Knapp. “Growing a lot of food for a lot of people was something new to me, but it was gardening so I enjoyed it.”
HUGS allowed him a philanthropic outlet for his favorite pastime. Instead of growing a few vegetables for his immediate family, he is able to give back to his community while still partaking in a hobby he is passionate about.
“When I went for the first time, the organization was very welcoming. I had a great time,” said Knapp. “It really felt like I was making a direct impact on the community.”
As a nonprofit, HUGS has a main goal of uplifting the community and giving back in the form of growing and distributing locally sourced food. HUGS focuses on growing and donating.
“Anyone who wants to come and volunteer, they can share in what we are harvesting at that time,” retired parole officer and board member of HUGS Miranda Merit told Spark.
At harvest time, HUGS volunteers collect produce in crates, place them in vans, and deliver them to local food pantries or families in need.
“People that come from the community,” Merit told Spark, “are able to get what they want, and we put it in bags for them. They take it home and prepare it.”
Merit explained that students who volunteer at HUGS are often amazed by the taste difference between HUGS fresh produce and store-bought items. HUGS emphasizes the importance of fresh produce, providing hands-on experience for students to learn about gardening and food health.
The impact HUGS has is county wide, but Knapp localized it by bringing everything that HUGS provided him with to East. It started with Merit putting the idea in his head.
“[Merit] saying, ‘Hey, this is something that’s possible, you can do it’ really inspired me,” said Knapp.
This led him to found Garden Club at East, a program dedicated to teaching students about the importance of agriculture and its impact on the community.
HUGS has helped Knapp build his club “tremendously.” With grant funding and providing two hydroponic growing towers, he could not have done it without them.
This club, as described by adviser and East AP Language and Composition teacher Kathleen Foldy, is taking Knapp’s love for gardening and applying it to service projects which benefit the community.
“I hope it raises awareness about the importance of the natural environment, about our need to protect it, our need to take care of it, our need to cultivate it.”
Knapp has similar aspirations.
“I hope that Garden Club inspires every member to create an impact of their own in their community,” said Knapp. “From growing fresh fruits and vegetables, to making new friends, the benefits are fruitful.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters provides an opportunity for youth mentorship between younger and older students.
As East junior Cate Bruggerman enters the library at Woodland Elementary school, the familiar sound of “Bigs and Littles” swirl around her.
She excitedly looks around to find her “Little,” who runs to her with a big day planned. They spend the rest of their time together doing homework, making pipe cleaner pumpkins, playing chess, and learning how to do magic tricks. T
his is just a normal Tuesday for Bruggerman as a volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS). “We focus on youth mentoring,” BBBS Advisor Jessica Huentelman told Spark. “As part of the program, we work with a couple of different elementary schools in Butler County. Volunteers go and meet with their “Little” for an hour and a half, once a week, and we make time to help them out with homework, play board games, and go outside.”
In order for a “Big” to have a “Little,” and vice versa, both parties must complete a personality test that allows Huentelman and other staff members to match people that would work well together.
Once they are matched, the Big and Little meet up outside of school to become comfortable with and get to know each other. After that, the Big meets up with the Little at the designated school to create goals, work on homework, play games, and bond.
Bruggerman is currently one of five teens who volunteer at the BBBS at Woodland Elementary. She heard about this opportunity from her chemistry teacher Liz Gosky, and immediately wanted to join. After she helps her Little with his homework, they always play their favorite game: chess.
“He’s very competitive,” Bruggerman told Spark. “When we play chess, we have a record going. During an activity where we had to build a bridge, he would say ‘we’re going to beat all of you.’ I like to see him doing that because it means he’s engaging with the other kids.”
East sophomore Shae Srishti is another volunteer for BBBS. Srishti’s main goal is to help her Little solve problems, and she makes that one of their biggest focuses every week. Every Big helps their Little set a goal; Srishti’s Little made a goal to understand more about history, so they often spend time working on improving his reading skills so that he can read more about it. One of Srishti’s favorite memories was the bridge building competition.
“My Little and I worked hard to create a sturdy bridge that held over ten books and we took the title of the best bridge builders at the Woodland BBBS program,” Srishti told Spark. “We do many engineering projects, which we both enjoy. One day my Little told me that his class was having a competition to build the best catapult, so we learned how to build one and spent the next hour making one that could shoot a pom pom to the other side of the library.”
Both Srishti and Bruggerman want their Littles to remember these experiences with BBBS. Srishti hopes that her Little learns to face challenges head on.
“English is both of our second languages and we both have had our struggles with it. Still, every week we pick out a new book and read through it,” said Srishti. “Sometimes there are tricky words that neither of us know, but we always find the meanings. No matter what, I always encourage him to keep trying.”
Bruggerman, on the other hand, hopes that her Little learns to be comfortable around others and have fun.
“I hope he remembers that not everything is going to go the way you want it to go, but it’s still fun, and you can find a friend in anyone.”
Hope’s Closet provides support and resources such as clothes and toys to families with foster kids.
After being inspired by another foster mother, Reba Steiniger began her journey of foster parenting.
“Our goal was to fill their cup with so much love that even if they went back [to their original home], hopefully, it would carry them,” Steiniger told Spark. “Even more, we prayed it would give them a sense of normalcy, and safety. We knew that as long as they were in our home, they were cared for and loved.”
However, becoming a foster parent is not the only way to support those in foster care.
Off of Princeton Glendale Road in West Chester Township, volunteers sort through clothes, line the racks, and help kids shop, to provide for foster teens and children.
This nonprofit is Hope’s Closet. Ever since it was founded in 2014, the organization has provided not only clothes and toys, but also support to foster families in their journey, every step of the way.
According to Hope’s Closet Community Relations Manager, Bridgett Risk, the founders of Hope’s Closet kept many needs in mind when starting the organization.
“Hope’s Closet was started by foster parents,” Risk told Spark. “So they understood that [when joining a foster family] those kids need just the simplest things, but done with love and shown to them through small kindnesses.”
Guided by a volunteer, foster children and teens are able to “shop” for new clothing and toys in the “boutique.” They are welcomed at different times while in foster care including each season, before going back to school, and during the holidays.
Those in the foster system usually come to the organization when they are first put into a new foster family and may come other times while they are still in that home.
The nonprofit also offers services for foster parents such as nights out and support groups, where parents can enjoy themselves for a little while.
Risk said that Hope’s Closet takes many different types of donations including new and gently used clothing and shoes for newborns to young adults.
On top of this, they also exclusively take new baby formula, diapers, socks, toiletries, and underwear.
Hope’s Closet runs off of volunteers who are “really trying to make sure that everybody who comes in [to Hope’s Closet] feels loved and appreciated and welcomed,” according to Risk.
One of these volunteers is Amy Lamermayer, who is not able to become a foster parent herself, but strongly believes in the mission at Hope’s Closet.
“The statistics for foster care children are pretty bleak. They are just statistically at odds for a lot of bad things happening to them,” Lamermayer told Spark. “If they are getting love and support and kindness through Hope’s Closet and through what we do, then maybe we can give them a better shot at beating the odds.”
Steininger is glad to know that she and her family are not alone when it comes to the foster care process.
“Hope’s Closet has been very supportive during the hard times of fostering. When children leave your home, it can be emotional for the whole family,” said Steininger. “Hope’s Closet provided resources and a listening ear. They make it possible to stay connected to foster care.”
Whether it is donating clothes or sorting them, Risk said that anyone, from students in high school to senior citizens, is able to support Hope’s Closet’s mission.
“Not everybody can be a foster parent but everybody can do something to help foster kids.”
The Civic Garden Center raises environmental awareness
through community and conserves local parks.
Bright and early on a chilly November morning, volunteers get to work in the Haucke Botanical Garden.
With spades, rakes, and buckets in hand, the eight-person volunteer group devotes three hours of their Friday to helping prepare Haucke for winter through the Civic Garden Center (CGC). With the park spanning around 10 acres, upkeep is far from a one-person task.
“I do not think we could do anything we do without the volunteers,” CGC Horticulturist Julie Dennowitz told Spark. “What a couple of volunteers can accomplish in one morning would take me all week.”
If the floral tattoos adorning her hands did not make it evident, Dennowitz has had a passion for gardening since childhood.
“I have always been interested in plants and nature,” said Dennowitz. “It is very important to me that there is a civic component. I wanted to educate people on native plants and conservation and inspire them to grow their own gardens.”
The historic gardens of the CGC date back over 80 years, but their main goal has remained the same.
“Our mission is to build community through education, gardening, and conservation,” said Dennowitz, “but I would say that really, the building community part is the main focus.”
The volunteers at CGC range from students to retirees and from hobby gardeners to aspiring horticulturalists. All spouting plant knowledge and sharing gardening advice, the group has one thing in common: a fascination with nature.
“I found out about [the CGC] through my church. I like gardening so I thought it was a good fit,” CGC volunteer Anne, who chose not to provide a last name, told Spark.
Beyond Haucke, the CGC goes to places like Alms Park and Walnut Hills to remove invasive plants. They help the native agriculture while also offering educational opportunities to the volunteers, according to CGC Community Outreach and Engagement Coordinator Brandon Reynolds.
“We went out behind Walnut High School in Walnut Woods with students and community members and planted 130 trees,” Reynolds told Spark. “People crave that human connection and connection to nature.”
Another CGC volunteer Nathan, a University of Cincinnati horticulture student who also chose not to provide a last name, shares this passion for sustainability.
“I grew up on the cusp of suburbs and farmland,” Nathan told Spark. “I am really against suburban sprawl destroying so much farmland.”
The through line of community and togetherness is evident in all that the CGC does, from the mission statement posted on their website to the end-of-year parties they throw to celebrate those who help them.
The cumulative dedication from both the workers and the volunteers is what defines the success of the CGC.
“Volunteering isn’t just trading your labor,” said Reynolds.”You might be trading your time for a check mark on a checklist, but if you are not committed, it is not genuine. You volunteer with your heart.”
The Dragonfly Foundation provides support for pediatric cancer patients and their families.
The ball skids across the court. Peggy Coggins, in her 70’s, after tearing her rotator cuff and getting a hip replacement, is back on the pickleball court with her teammate Dusty Colombia.
Not only are these friends enjoying a game of pickleball, they are also raising money to fight childhood cancer through the Dragonfly Foundation.
Coggins began playing pickleball during Covid, and wanted to support the Dragonfly Foundation by playing in the Dinks and Drives for the Dragonfly tournament.
After her nephew was diagnosed with leukemia at age 13, and passed away two years later, Peggy Coggins’ sister founded an organization in Illinois that is similar to the Dragonfly Foundation.
“What she did is she turned tragedy into victory,” Coggins told Spark.
But living in Ohio, she was not close enough to her sister’s organization, and needed to find somewhere closer to home.
For Dragonfly Foundation Founder Christine Neitzke, the journey of starting her organization began in a similar way. Her younger son, Matt, began having breathing problems when he was 10, and Neitzke had to take him to many different specialists before the cause of his problems was discovered.
“It was Friday, probably at 10 at night,” Neitzke told Spark. “We walked onto the fifth floor, and we were taken aback by beds of little babies, teenagers, and young adults: all of them bald, all of them being sick, and us realizing that we were on the fifth floor of Children’s Hospital in the Oncology Ward. Matt had cancer, and we were at that point in it for the fight of our life.”
In their journey of fighting Matt’s Hodgkin Lymphoma, the Neitzke family was met with lots of support from their neighborhood, church, and school system. Matt was about halfway through chemotherapy when his cancer was shown to be getting better, and Neitzke knew that Matt would survive.
Neitzke then began looking for ways to help the other families that did not receive as much support as her family had and decided on starting her own organization.
The Dragonfly Foundation implements nine different programs, including: The Big Blue Bag, Beads of Courage, and Urgent Needs.
Administrative Assistant Maureen Scahill has been volunteering at Dragonfly for 12 years, and said she first learned about the organization from her friend about two years after they started.
“Once you are a Dragonfly,” Scahill told Spark, “you are always a Dragonfly.”
Scahill said that she enjoys volunteering at Dragonfly because she gets to help at a lot of the events, connect with the families, and really make a difference.
“And I think that is something that’s fascinating and just empowering to be a part of an organization where you can feel the passion of everybody that is involved,” said Scahill. “We are all there to support our families and each other through the cancer journey and beyond.”
Neitzke emphasized that Dragonfly helps families in small ways that make big differences, and that everyone can do the same.
“I want [people] to know that you can make a difference by just a small change, and by offering a small piece of gratitude, I do not need millions and millions of dollars for research,” said Neitzke. “We make it very, very easy to make a huge impact by just a small gesture by a volunteer or donor.”
Whether it is making a blanket, giving $1, buying a toy at Kroger, or playing pickleball at their fundraiser, according to Neitzke, anyone can help Dragonfly make a difference in the lives of cancer patients and their families.
PAWS Adoption Center is a no-kill shelter that matches pets with loving owners.
Sitting in a cage in the back of the facility was Beau. Beau had been at PAWS Adoption Center for around six years.
“He was an older grumpy dog,” PAWS Volunteer Coordinator Jeanna Dorow told Spark. “He loved people but had certain aggression towards other animals.”
According to Dorow, at a different shelter Beau may not have been a dog they would keep around due to his aggression. PAWS is a proudly owned no-kill shelter, so the staff worked hard to show Beau the love he needed.
“One afternoon, a gentleman came in, and he was kind of an older grumpy man,” said Dorow. “He had just lost his best friend a few weeks prior, and he asked us to see some of the dogs.”
As they looked around at each other, smiling and noticing the similarities between the two, Dorow recalls a staff member saying ‘I wonder what he would think of Beau’. Taking the gentleman outside to the play area, Dorow said that the group of staff members asked the man to sit on the bench to see if Beau would approach him.
“I kid you not, Beau jumped right up on that bench next to him, and started licking his face and snuggling him,” said Dorow. “The man took Beau home that day.”
Dorow said that shared that stories like Beau’s are what highlight PAWS’ mission.
Volunteers are the reason the animals at PAWS can have positive experiences and find homes according to PAWS Operations Manager Kathy Teller.
“We [the staff] can’t do it all ourselves,” Teller told Spark. “[The animals] wouldn’t get all the attention and love they need without having volunteers.”
Open four days a week, volunteers come into PAWS during any of the operating hours to help in various ways.
“Our volunteers are amazing and we love them all,” said Dorow. “They help so much with the animals in many aspects.”
Dorow explained that having volunteers take the dogs for car rides, walks, and adventures, helps the dogs “get a chance to be a dog.”
“If you can imagine being in a kennel 24 hours a day, it is very stressful and not a great environment for a pet,” said Dorow. “Just getting them out helps them learn what it’s like to be a dog.”
Home to around 24 dogs and 30 cats, PAWS has many different animals to interact with and help according to East senior Christa Mathew.
From February to April of 2024, Mathew volunteered at PAWS. Acknowledging the importance of volunteering, she said that she learned valuable lessons there.
“Volunteering with animals improves their quality of life and helps support the people working in shelters,” Mathew told Spark. “Working with the animals allows them to have human interaction and helps them become more social.”
Mathew noted that volunteering is a great way of reaching out to the community and showing support.
“It lets us help others and experience new things,” said Mathew. While volunteers may not be providing animals permanent homes, Dorow and Teller agree that their work does not go unrecognized.
“It’s a hard job but it’s rewarding,” said Teller. “I’ve worked a lot of other jobs but this is just different.”
Indigo Hippo is an art supplies store that takes in donations and has a pay-what-you-can system.
Jewelry supplies, yarn, old magazines, even scraps of pottery and stained glass: anywhere that a customer looks in the art supply store, Indigo Hippo, inspiration can be found.
This 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Over-the-Rhine (OTR), Cincinnati takes a bit of a different approach to sales than many other art stores. All materials are donated through donation drives or drop-offs.
Instead of having a set price for the items in the store, there is a pay-what-you-can system. According to Executive Director Emily Dake, this system works with stickers that correspond to a different range of prices for the item.
For example, items with yellow stickers have a price range of $0.05 to $1.00, and the customer can decide what they are able and willing to pay within that range.
“Our pay-what-you-can system was born from the desire to widen the doors of access to creative materials even further,” Dake told Spark, “removing barriers and making sure everybody could get what they needed to be creative.”
Dake was one of three people who started Indigo Hippo, and she said that the process for starting the business began with a community brainstorm session in order to find out how to best serve the community. They went through legal steps to make Indigo Hippo a 501(c)(3), and they had to decide their vision, mission, and values along with how to plan services that they would provide.
In March 2016, Indigo Hippo opened on Main Street in OTR.
Dake said that the goal was to provide this resource to Cincinnati because of the many art schools in the city such as the Art Academy of Cincinnati and the School for Creative and Performing Arts.
There are usually around five volunteers a week, and they work on things like sorting, organizing, pricing, testing, and processing materials. The way that the workers decide what materials to display in the store is by comparing with other creative reuse centers and keeping track of popular materials.
Lucy, who did not provide a last name, is a regular customer, and has been going to Indigo Hippo for about eight years. She said that she usually shops there for jewelry supplies to make her own jewelry.
“I love little stores like this,” Lucy told Spark, “and I’m really into thrifting.”
There are usually around 50 customers per day. Sales Associate Hugh Moscoe said that the majority of customers at Indigo Hippo are students and teachers looking for school supplies. Other customers are artists, regulars, and visitors in Cincinnati.
Moscoe is also an artist, who creates things like jewelry and woodburnings under the name “A Blue Hugh.” He has been working the register, sorting supplies, taking donations, and running the social media at Indigo Hippo part time for about three months. Moscoe started working there because of his alignment with the Indigo Hippo mission: broadening accessibility for artists in the area.
“I really value accessibility,” Moscoe told Spark. “I want to serve the community as an artist.”
Dake said that the creative, inspiring environment in the store is cultivated through attention to detail and displays that are arranged in an inviting way. Just walking through the store can inspire customers to create something new.
“Our aim for our space is to create a welcoming environment where people can encounter an inviting, safe, welcoming atmosphere and feel a sense of belonging,” said Dake. “Questions are welcome and we are always seeking to help connect people to materials they need for their projects.”
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