Recently, we talked to local high schoolers about their experiences with volunteering and what they knew about volunteering in the Austin community. For anonymity, we won’t share their names or what high schools they go to, but if you’d like to know, their ages ranged from 15-17. It was very exciting to get to talk to teenagers from the general Austin community, and we hope to talk to more!

Below are the conversations between the four teenagers and a TAB member who interviewed them. Talking to all of them, I found it super interesting how different all their responses were, and it’s always great to hear new perspectives!

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TAB: Why should we try to help our community?

Interviewee: Community is a family, and in a family, we should always try to help each other. Also in a community, whatever goes around comes around. If I help someone, they’ll help me right back whenever I need it, so that’s why we should always try to help our community.
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TAB: What was one of your favorite times volunteering?

Interviewee: I really loved volunteering. I’ve been volunteering since I was a little kid. I think it’s such a fun way to connect with your community and help it. One time last year, I was volunteering at an art class with little kids, two to four year-olds. I thought they were so cute. At the end, on Friday, because it was a one-week camp, a little kid came up to me, and she was crying and hugging me because she was sad to leave. That was just a really touching experience for me because I was like, I’m actually making an impact on these peoples’ lives
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TAB: What does community mean to you?

Interviewee: To me, community is a place where people with common interests can come together to spend time with each other, volunteer together, and create big projects together. They kind of just give you a big sense of belonging. You’re talking with all these other people, spending time with all these people that might think similarly to you, and it makes you feel like you have a place you can always go.
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TAB: What does volunteering mean to you?

Interviewee: Volunteering means to me that it gives you an opportunity to help within your community and give to people that don’t have the best privilege that you have every single day. It also gives you a sense of community within the volunteering process.
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