RON thrives on public volunteers and we love to give our thanks for their awesome work! This month we highlight Saul, a local college student who worked with us this semester. Here's what Saul has to say on volunteering:
This semester was definitely one for the history books. It was my second semester at CSUMB and unfortunately it was online due to the global pandemic. I decided to take a media service class simply because my counselor told me I needed it to graduate. When I asked what it was about I was told it was about serving the community and I wondered exactly how that would work since we were not allowed to do anything in person. After I began the class I learned that our objective was to obtain a community partner and help them out by using our media skills. As I scrolled through all the service partners I came across “Return of the Natives.” Their name sounded familiar because I had actually worked with them in a clean up about 5 prior for community service. I decided to email them and see if they needed any more service learners and sure enough they accepted me.
My experience with RON was really a great one! There was always back and forth communication with them about the work. What I most admire about the team at RON is that they had great patience, understanding, and empathy. I had a cool idea about making a short nature documentary but due to work, school, and the general chaos of this pandemic I was unable to even start until really late in the semester. Despite my late start the people at RON provided support and feedback for my project and I was able to make a video I was proud of and complete my hours with time to spare! Volunteering for RON provided me with valuable work experience as an aspiring filmmaker and it helped me learn more about the local environment. This experience gave me so much and all the while I was able to do a small part in helping the local habitats.
Thanks so much Saul! How cool is it that Saul has a pet duck?!
