BICA학생들 가운데 이번 여름 US President Volunteer Award를 수상한 두 학생이 있습니다.
자랑스러운 우리 학생들을 축하해 주세요. Two BICA students were honored to receive the US Presidential Volunteer Award this summer. Please join us in congratulating our proud students.
한편, 비카에서 최소 10시간을 채우면, 다른 기관에서 채운 시간들과 합쳐서 1년안에 100시간이 넘으면 수상대상이 됩니다. 어스틴에 사시면 BICA , CAMP Nikos, 교회들의 어린이 프로그램 추천합니다. 두 학생의 BICA, CAMP Nikos등에 대한 발론티어 경험에 대해 나눈 글 아래 있습니다. 참조하시기 바랍니다. If a high school student completes a minimum of 10 hours at BICA, combined with hours from other organizations, the student will be eligible for the award if you complete over 100 hours in a year. If you live in Austin, we recommend BICA, CAMP Nikos, and children's programs at churches. Below, Yejoo and Daniel share their experiences with BICA and CAMP Nikos, and more.
Yejoo Kim (17years old)'s Award
Event Name Hours Dates
Camp Nikos 46 03/13/2023 - 03/17/2023
BICA Retreat 12 06/24/2023
Cedar Park Regional Medical Center 72 06/05/2023 - 07/12/2023
Total 130
Daniel Pi (15years old) s Award
Event Name Hours Dates
Camp Nikos 46 03/13/2023 - 03/17/2023
BICA Retreat 12 06/24/2023
Lord's Church Of Austin VBS 68 09/04/2022 - 07/09/2023
Camp Camp 100 06/04/2023-06/16/2023
Total 226
Yejoo's Sharing
US President Volunteer Award Essay
Throughout my high school career, I’ve done many volunteer opportunities, adding up to
over 100 hours. Each had their ups and downs, but the end result has always rewarded me well and has come to make me realize a valuable lesson.
One of my first volunteer experiences was assisting teaching the English Language to
North Korean Refugees. This has helped me realize that I am able to extend a helping hand to those who seem so far away and unreachable. Using this gracious opportunity, I was able to experience what it is like to help those who are not given many opportunities to learn, such as education, and see their progress throughout their endeavors and struggles. Being able to assist in their wonderful journey and success brought me so much joy and happiness.
Another volunteer opportunity I was given was becoming a mentor at a church camp
called Camp Nikos. This camp allows children from low-income families and backgrounds to get away from their troubles and create heartfelt memories. Mentors were paired up with children of the same gender, and my partner was a kind-hearted yet strong-willed 10 year old girl. However, she was quite difficult in the beginning. Her bored eyes showed she had little
motivation to participate in activities, and her inpatient attitude and sharp tongue led her to
frequent fights with other children. I must admit there were times I was frustrated and wanting to quit, my patience and perseverance wouldn’t seem to leave this girl alone. Through this, I was able to come to an understanding of her personality and her needs, which allowed great progress in her getting the most out of this experience and improving relationships with the other children. Then one day, during an art class she reluctantly decided to participate in, she turned towards me and asked me one question that made me realize that I was able to create a change in her: “Will you come back during the summer?”. I couldn’t help but be overjoyed that my efforts to help someone brought successful results. I can proudly say that this was one of my best and most impactful volunteer experiences.
Lastly, this summer of 2023, I was given the opportunity to volunteer at the Cedar Park
Regional Medical Center. Here I rotated through 4 shifts which were medical surgery, front
desk, materials management, and physical therapy. For the most part, I observed how workers did their duties and assisted with whatever they needed help with. Although I may not have done tasks with great responsibility, helping out with little tasks allowed me to see that it took the workload off the workers' burden when they were busy. It also moved me to see how they carried out their duties perfectly even though they may have been overworked or tired. This is the type of person I wish to be when I grow up, so that I am able to bring a smile to the faces of those I help in the future.
The reason I volunteer is because I wish to create an impact on the people I assist, and
these hours and hours of volunteering I’ve accumulated will surely benefit me in the future.
Although I have a long way to go, I wish to continue my volunteering experiences so that I can continue to seek ways to assist others and bring a change for the better in their community.
----------------------------------------
Daniel Pi's Sharing
Over the past year, I have spent 226 hours of my time volunteering for a few different kinds of non-profit organizations and events. Volunteering my body and my time to help other people has given me a sense of compassion and warm hearted empathy. The first camp I ever went to as a volunteer was a minor camp called Nikos. Nikos was a non profit christian camp that its purpose was to gather kids from low income backgrounds to give them a chance at being normal children, while also giving them an opportunity to meet Jesus and grow a closer relationship with him. At first when I heard about this camp, I tried to turn down the offer and rejected the idea of spending my spring break at Nikos. However, once I truly got into the camp atmosphere and met the other staff and volunteers there, I reconsidered my thoughts. Everyone was so passionate about helping the campers who would come the following day. I, too, fell in with them and really wanted to stay. The camper who was assigned to me the next day was called JJ. We became instantly close and constantly hung out with each other, from worship time to dinner. I was ecstatic I was able to give JJ a chance at having fun like a normal kid. JJ was also very enthusiastic about worshiping and sang loudly. Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever, and on the morning of the campers departure everyone was in a lower spirit than the night before. After they had left and I was on my ride home, I reflected on the past week. It wasn’t the spring break I had anticipated, but it was much better. Going to this camp gave me a different perspective on compassion. Another camp I went to was called CAMP CAMP. Camp was also a non profit organization, but it wasn’t Christiaan. Since this camp was much bigger than Nikos, I had more trouble fitting in. Camp was designed to give disabled people the same chance that was given to the campers in NIKOS, with the age ranging from 5 years old to 55 years old. However, since I was 14, I did not get my own camper and was assigned to the activity canoeing. The impact of this camp was different from Nikos. While I was paddling for the campers in the river, it warmed my heart watching them have fun. All of the campers are people who are stared at constantly in public and made fun of. But in camp, no one looks a second time. That's why this camp has a special relationship in my heart. Everyone is treated equally with no exceptions. The final one that I am writing about that impacted me was the BICA North Korean retreat. The point of going to this retreat as a volunteer was to learn how to tutor refugees that have defected from North Korea. I really liked the time there because it delineates how much passion the leaders have for the North Koreans, with even a goal for the far future where North Korea and South Korea reunite back into one Korean Nation. It was a full day retreat, and I really appreciated and admired the work and effort everyone put into this organization. In the coming days, I will take the learning that I was taught from this retreat and apply it when I am tutoring the refugees via Zoom. Volunteering for non profit organizations gives me a different kind of viewpoint on kindness. I am thankful for going to each and every one of these events that have all taught me about compassion and am excited for many more to come.