Parents invest a lot of emotional capital in their children, and we look for dividends in various ways. When our daughter Amy first approached the subject of becoming a Lasallian Volunteer, the news was greeted with much the same eagerness as hearing the pharmaceutical company you hold a large position in has forked over a major portion of its profits to develop a cure for the dreaded disease of the day. While we applauded the altruistic motivations, we weren’t sure about the outcome, nor were we comfortable with day-to-day effort required reaching such a lofty goal.

Our daughter was going to be counseling court adjudicated teenage boys on the other side of the country, and we didn’t want to imagine the things that would be said to her or the problems she would be facing alone.

As we observed the decision making process our daughter and the Lasallian Volunteer staff went through during her placement, we began to see how thoughtful and considered everything really was. Former LV Director, Karin McClelland, worked with Amy to determine what kind of job and community was best for everyone. Just because there was a need, Volunteers are not used as commodities to be thrown into a position. After the passage of time, we see that Karin was working just as diligently with the Brothers in the community Amy was headed toward.

We also discovered that “community” was not just a generic word, interchangeable with Philadelphia, where Amy was assigned. And soon, it was just as clear that whatever problems would arise, Amy would not face them “alone.” Every phone call home was filled with cheerful regaling of community happenings with the new group of lifelong friends. We were fortunate to meet the other Volunteers and Brothers of Spring Garden, and were warmly welcomed to see first-hand the community she had grown so fond of.

In the large mosaic of experiences that comprise one’s life, it is easy to see how being a Lasallian Volunteer will be an anchor for many other decisions, favorably influencing the development of better individuals and communities—both our own and those where Volunteers serve. Our advice to every Volunteer is to get a good address book and stay in touch with the people you are coming into contact with now, because you may never have the opportunity to associate with such a diverse, creative and dedicated group of people again in your lifetime. These experiences will touch your life forever. And by the way, they touch your parents’ lives as well, we are happy to say.

And our advice to parents: relax! Your investment is in good hands!