Category Archives: volunteering

Earth Day Event

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On Saturday, April 26th, I had the pleasure of helping the Mission Viejo Library with the Earth Day event. The Mission Library had two booths: one was run by the Teen Advisory Board (TAB), while the other was run by the teen interns. I worked at the TAB booth and helped people decorate succulent pots as well as assemble the mesh bottom cover, the soil, the rocks, and of course, the plant itself. All of our succulents were donated from the community, which goes to show how caring the residents of Mission Viejo are. Many people (including a member from city council) came to spread the joy of Earth Day.

The best part? It was all free! From the live band (that played all day, except to take a short break for the rain) to the assortment of tasty food, residents could stop by and partake in the festivities without having to buy tickets or RSVP. There were multiple stands giving away free merchandise and educating visitors about the environment, such as the El Toro Water District which handed out dog waste baggies. Not interested in getting free items? Our Teen Intern booth had a nature-based scavenger hunt where savvy explorers were challenged to locate birds, insects, and plants in an effort to appreciate our community’s natural beauty. Or, if fairs, aren’t your interest, many volunteers planted trees along the trail behind our booths. Getting to meet so many people who are also environmentally conscious was a delight, and I can gladly say that I made new friends! No matter what you were looking for, the Earth Day event was sure to have it.

While the festivities were wonderful, it is important to consider the message behind Earth Day. Cleaning up after ourselves is extremely important especially when considering the impact of anthropogenic waste has on ecosystems both locally and globally. Thousands of species suffer from genetic bottlenecks, have their mating passages disrupted, or even go extinct every year due to human actions. Taking AP Environmental Science at my high school has taught me about how humans need to take more accountability for our environmental impact, and this event reinforced what I have learned.

Free Music Tutoring – Musical Mentors

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Interested in music and want free tutoring? My high school has a weekly after school program on Thursdays from 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm that offers music tutoring for elementary, middle, and high school students in the Capistrano Unified School District at no cost.

The goal of this student-led program is to inspire more students to keep practicing their instruments. Students are not required to have prior musical expertise, but they must bring their own instruments. Additionally, the students perform on a wide variety of band and orchestra instruments. Similarly, the mentors represent all instruments and grade levels. The students receive free lessons, grow closer to their mentor, and become more enthusiastic about music. As a result, the mentors build their confidence in their own teaching and playing skills while also gaining experience in mentoring. The mentors receive community service hours as an added incentive to participate in the program.

My brother volunteered as a musical mentor tutor for around four years and he passed the baton to me. Through this, I’ve learned how to teach and break down concepts for my students. Depending on the level of my students, I customize the lesson plans to meet their needs. This can include working on scales (fixing pitch and tone quality of the notes) and practicing how to count notes. Subsequently, I spend about an hour working with my students on songs that they need assistance with. Afterward, with thirty minutes remaining in the session, all students gather to practice rhythmic skills and prepare for our annual concert. At the end of the year, we host an annual concert that helps students become accustomed to playing in front of an audience while also providing parents with a chance to see what their children have learned.

Overall, the program helps our mentees develop a greater understanding and appreciation of music, increase their motivation to play their instruments, and work toward improving their musical skills. Musical Mentors is a beneficial and satisfying experience for parents, children, and mentors. I love teaching students, as I find it incredibly rewarding to connect one-on-one and expand their knowledge of music. I plan to continue mentoring for the rest of my high school career.

-Sophia B.

STEAM Stations: Engineering Day

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At the beginning of February, the youth team of the library hosted our 2nd STEAM Stations event! What are STEAM Stations? For those who don’t know, STEAM Stations is the monthly library youth event that the Teen Advisory Board organizes that focuses on various aspects of STEAM (Science, Technology, Art, Mathematics). Last month, we focused on binary coding which was a super fun experience. This month, we focused on engineering which was very exciting!

For those who missed it, we had three different stations that focused on simple aspects of engineering:

Our first station was our spaghetti and marshmallow towers. Participants would use their spaghetti sticks and mini marshmallows in order to build a tower as tall as they can. Once they had their tower built, their challenge was to balance one large marshmallow on top. They were all able to test their structures and building skills with a super fun activity.

The second station was our pom-pom catapults. Another activity focused on building but also trajectory! Participants would follow the directions using popsicle sticks, rubber bands, and a plastic spoon in order to create their own catapult that they could test out with fun, colorful pom-poms. It was an entertaining activity that tested more of their building skills and challenged them to launch their pom-poms the farthest they could with their craft. 

Finally, we had our paper-airplane station. A nice, simple station that allowed participants to test what kind of design created the best working paper airplane. Participants could create their own design or follow given directions to try and create the best paper airplane that would be able to soar as far as possible. 

Our February STEAM Stations was another success! It was super popular with people of all ages coming around combined with a mix of returners and newcomers. We had people who knew the event was happening and people who had no idea what STEAM Stations were come to participate. Our participants had a lot of fun experimenting the best ways to build their spaghetti towers, some even working together to build one giant one. They also had a great time launching pom-poms into the air and throwing paper airplanes around the Children’s Center. All of our stations focused on an aspect of building and required everyone to really think about how to create the most efficient design and model while also having fun.

Our third and final STEAM Stations event will be held on March 8 at the Potocki Center for the Arts and will be centered around Biology! We will have even more fun and creative activities ready for everyone who wants to attend. We hope to see you all there!

-Nicole R.

Empowering Kids with Disabilities to Ride: My Volunteering Journey

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During the summer of 2024, I volunteered at a camp where I had the opportunity to teach children with disabilities how to ride a bike on special bikes. The program was called “iCanBike” and I came across it through Lion’s Heart, a teen volunteering non-profit organization. I pursued two of my friends to volunteer at the week-long camp hosted by the nonprofit organization iCanShine, and all three of us loved every moment of it. 

We attended orientation where we learned how the specialized teaching bikes worked, the student that we were assigned to teach, and different strategies to keep our student focused on biking. 

At the beginning of the week-long camp, my student rode the specialized bike that iCanShine provided while I kept full control of the handle. I taught my student how to use his pedals and how to steer. My friends and I had split jobs to keep our student engaged, as they were in charge of keeping him motivated, while I was in control of our student’s safety (like keeping the bike from running into walls). 

Gradually, my student learned how to fully pedal the bike without my assistance. Using cues, I would tap my finger on his shoulder as a reminder to keep pedaling. As the camp came to an end, my student was able to bike on a two wheel bike instead of the specialized bikes and it was so amazing to see his growth!

Overall, this was an extremely rewarding experience. I got to connect with my student one-on-one and teach him the basics of how to ride a bike. I even made an impact on his family, as his mother was so excited to see her child ride a bike. Additionally, the smile on my student’s face when he realized that he was in control and riding the bike all on his own was invaluable. His mom even got him a bike of his own, showing how I’ve had an influence on his life. This volunteer project was important to me because I realized that I can help children with special needs to gain self confidence in their skills like bike riding. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and would 100% do it again.

-Sophia B

The Best Ways to Volunteer in Orange County

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A new year has started again, and what better way to start off your new year than helping out in the community? There are many ways to volunteer in the community, and volunteering helps not only others but gives you important skills as well. Here are some local volunteer opportunities to try to start out the new year. 

1. The Mission Viejo Library

Some of the best opportunities to volunteer locally are at the Mission Viejo Library. The Library holds many events and activities around the community which are great to volunteer at. The Santa’s Workshop event each December is a great way to volunteer, as well as the Arbor Day program at the Oso Creek Trail. I would also recommend writing for the Teen Voice Blog. For the blog, you can write one or more blog posts a month, and you can get service hours for this as well! To learn more about volunteering at the Mission Viejo Library, visit here: https://www.cityofmissionviejo.org/departments/library/about/volunteer-opportunities-library  

2. Second Harvest Food Bank

Another great way to volunteer in the community is at the Second Harvest Food Bank. It’s a great way to give back to the community with programs including food drives that help people in need, especially those without a home or who are food insecure. You can help here by harvesting food from the food bank’s farms or helping in the food distribution center to package and move food and canned goods. To learn more about how to help, visit here: https://feedoc.org/get-involved/

3. Mission Viejo Activities Committee

Another way to volunteer locally is through the Mission Viejo Activities Committee, which plans many of the activities in the community each year. Some of my personal favorite activities to volunteer for are the 4th of July Street Fair, Santa’s Workshop, and holiday decorating around the city. The Activities Committee hosts activities and booths at many city events, so if you are looking to volunteer, visit here: https://mvactivities.com/volunteer-opportunities/ 

4. Mission Viejo Animal Services

One of my personal favorite organizations to volunteer for locally is the Mission Viejo Animal Services, and this is a great opportunity if you enjoy working with animals. To volunteer, you can assist with services at the animal shelter, including walking dogs and caring for other animals including cats and rabbits. To learn more about volunteering at the Mission Viejo Animal Shelter, visit here: https://www.cityofmissionviejo.org/departments/animal-services/volunteer-opportunities/volunteering-center 

5. Pacific Marine Mammal Center

If you are interested in learning more about the ocean and marine biology, the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach is a great volunteer opportunity for you, and there are a wide variety of ways to help here as well. Volunteers can care for animals, feed animals, and clean enclosures and pools. You can also volunteer as a marine science instructor to teach others about marine biology and assist with activities for visitors, making this overall a great and educational volunteer opportunity to participate in. To learn more about volunteering at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, visit here: https://www.pacificmmc.org/volunteer 

Overall, all of these opportunities are great ways to help and give back to the community. These are all great opportunities if you are interested in helping with activities, helping those in need, or helping to care for animals. I would recommend all of these opportunities to anyone interested in volunteering or getting involved in the community. 

Be Part of a Community Art Project and Earn Double Hours!

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Write a letter to someone who has demonstrated kindness! Scan the QR for more details or visit: https://www.cityofmissionviejo.org/departments/arts-culture/ordinary-voices-extraordinary-impact.

Letters can be turned in to the Ask Here desk at the library through February 21. Earn 2 hours per letter, up to 4 hours per person.

To see some of the local artist’s work, visit https://www.conceptzombie.com/artgallery

Volunteering at Santa’s Workshop

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Image result for mission viejo library santa's workshop

Each year in December, the Mission Viejo Activities Committee organizes and hosts Santa’s Workshop, an interactive experience for Mission Viejo families to come and enjoy the magic of the holiday season. Several nights a week, the outdoor area outside the Mission Viejo Library and City Hall transforms into a winter wonderland. I remember going there with my family years ago to play, take pictures with Santa Claus, and spend time with friends.

This year, I was able to go again, but this time as a volunteer. It was exciting to see the thrill on the kids’ faces coming in to spend some time with Santa and his friends, to engage in activities, and play in fake snow. For teens looking for volunteer opportunities, spending time at Santa’s Workshop is a fun and festive way to gain those hours.

There are different tasks from which to choose when volunteering. Volunteers can choose to help with the activity table where kids make their own elf hats out of paper or color their own Christmas trees.  Some volunteers sign up to be characters, such as a snowman or reindeer, who walk around taking pictures with attendees of all ages.  Volunteers can also sign up to be a character walker guiding Frosty or Rudolph around and helping them interact with kids.  My job was to be an elf, helping families lined up to take pictures with Santa and Mrs. Claus. It was rewarding to be able to introduce kids to Santa and see their smiling, happy faces and also to help take pictures as needed.

Overall, helping with Santa’s Workshop was an enjoyable way to get volunteer hours and spend time celebrating the holiday season. I would strongly recommend it to high school students in the Mission Viejo area.

Gleanings For the Hungry

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Imagine being followed by the scent of peaches everywhere you went. That’s what it was like serving at Gleanings for the Hungry, a Christian volunteer camp in Central California. Their main goal is to feed both the physically and spiritually hungry through shipments of dried peaches and nectarines. These are distributed to poverty countries all over the world, along with excerpts of the Bible.

Our youth group went there in July. It was a 6 hour drive, and we would be spending 6 days there although it was open all summer. When we got there, I was immediately hit with the sulfurous fumes from their plant. The weather was oppressively hot, maintaining an average of 110 degrees all day.

We got settled into our cabins, which were separated by gender. Inside were 10 pairs of bunk beds, and we would be sharing with the other churches and families. Soon after, we went to the dining building to get an overview of how our day would be like. At 5 am, we would do 1 hour of field work before the sun came up. Then, we would work in 4 shifts of 2 hours in the plant, turning peaches for the machines and sorting out the bad ones. In total, 9 hours of work a day.

My week went exactly like that. Every day, we got up early to work our shifts, taking breaks in between to eat lunch or snack. After we were completely finished with the work shifts, we cleaned ourselves up. Everybody was splattered in juice and chunks of nectarine. Crickets hopped around the bathrooms.

After work, we had free time. We happened to be at Gleanings during National Slurpee Day at 7/11, so we drove there to get free slurpees. Other days, I mostly spent time in the game room, bonding with members from the other churches. There was pool, ping pong, and card games. You could go out to the volleyball and basketball courts to challenge your friends, or go swimming in the pool. Or, you could walk around the plot of land, hiking up the surrounding hills to see the view of the far away city. Towards the end of the day, we had dinner and chapel. I got to hear amazing testimonies from some of the Gleanings’ staff.

In total, Gleanings was a blessed experience. It was the subversion of my expectations that made the experience all the more worthwhile. I thought we would be exhausted and irritable after all our work. Not to be mistaken, we were exhausted, but our smiles were as bright as the sun.

If you’re planning on going, I highly recommend it. Especially if you’re on the fence about Christianity or you’re looking for a good service opportunity. Just remember to pack clothes you’re not attached to. After Gleanings, those clothes are not recovering.

Join the Teen Advisory Board!

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The Teen Advisory Board is a group that meets once a month and works with the Teen Services Librarian to develop programs and services for the community. TAB members have the opportunity to create their own programs and take on leadership roles.

Check out these pictures of some of the fun activities TAB worked on last year (scroll down).

Applications will be accepted June 15-July 31.

For more information, please contact the Teen Services Librarian at ohoward@cityofmissionviejo.org.