Volunteering

Volunteer Report
On the 7th to the 10th of January, I volunteered thirty four hours of service to the St. James Parish Council, located on 19 a Union Street, Montego Bay. I was supervised by the acting director of administration, Ricardo Rhoden, along with other members of the organization. Mr. Rhoden endeavoured to place me in a department that was as close as possible to my department at school , the Pre-University Arts. Some of the responsibilities of the Parish council include: Planning of building, Acquisition and sale of land, Making signs(danger signs, place names and bus stop signs), and provision of litter bins and anti-litter capaigns. On the 7th and 8th of the month, I volunteered by record keeping, where I went through the available building plans of citizens and made record of their information, such as their names, plan numbers, location of building and type of building, such as single or extension. On the first day, it was difficult to do the task correctly and to lift the heavy building plan documents, but by the second day, it became easier and less confusing. On the 9th to the 10th of the month, I did data entry. This included going to the Parish Council’s website, with the permission and supervision of a worker, to enter the information that I made a record of into the system. I had to enter data without errors because the information entered could not be deleted. This made me anxious and fearful because of the many silly mistakes that I usually make, but I eventually put anxiety and fear aside and entered the data with ease. I also answered telephone calls and helped customers who came to the organization, seeking assistance with different things, such as building plans and permission for advertisement.
While working at the organization, I learnt to change my mind set about working, which was negative, to a positive one, because working is necessary in order to make a living and support yourself and family. I also learnt to open my mind to different perspectives and to not underestimate organizations, because I did not think that working in that organization would be so tedious. This leads to career exploration, as it introduced me to a different path and I learnt more about that particular work place. As it relates to my personal growth, the service has taught me that it just feels good to be valued and appreciated for my skills. It has taught me responsibility and gave me a reality check, especially as a teenager and student. It has also made me want to aspire for more in life and do my very best to be successful, so that I may be in a career that I am most comfortable with. Lastly, this experience has taught me to not underestimate or look down on individuals, because in life, you will meet upon many persons, of different personalities, with whom you have to work with in order to achieve.