“Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.”
– Sherry Anderson
Hello All,
Once again...Welcome to Lit the Light's Coordinator aka Leads Blog Series. Today we want to present the testimony of our coordinator “Mr. Sriram” sharing his experience and moments with Lit the Light in simple words. He is here to express himself on "What?... How?... Why?... and a few more questions on dedicating his time, volunteering with Lit the Light"…in his own words.
These testimonies are considered as an assessment of Lit the Light’s performance and work on improvement suggestions (if any) from our Leads, who have been part of us during our ups and downs. To continue with... Here's our Mr. Sriram, a dedicated coordinator, a valuable team lead, supporting us with various volunteering activities for the betterment of Lit the Light.
Lit the Light's Coordinator Mr. Sriram’s words on travel with us…
- Tell us a little bit
about yourself?
Hey everyone, I’m
Sri Ram, an assistant manager at Chennai Metro Railway Limited. I enjoy
reading, writing Tamil Poetry, and also engaging in speech and debate.
- How did you hear about
LTL and why did you decide to start volunteering here?
I heard about Lit
the Light through a Facebook post and had attended an initiation and
orientation program for volunteers conducted by LTL in Namapuram. Every now
and then I would help out by volunteering but then one day Mr. Divakar offered
me an opportunity to lead and coordinate the requirements of the visually
impaired individuals in Porur and Poonamalli and I’ve been doing that ever
since.
- What aspects of being a
volunteer do you like the most?
I remember when I
used to read to these two children in Poonamalle named Devinder and Nawaab.
They had asked me to come back the week after to read to them again because
they loved the way I read their subject books to them. They told me it felt
like listening to a story rather than a school lesson. The fact that they believed
I had something special gave me confidence, I even wondered if I should be a
teacher! I have always been passionate about teaching. For instance, back when
I was in college, my friends and I would go to the orphanage near our college
to teach them basic English. We had set up a library there and the children
always seemed to pick only the Tamil books, so one day I decided to read to
them an English storybook and much to my surprise I realized that many of them
didn’t even know the first letter of the English alphabet, this motivated me to
teach them English two times a week. It made me realize how much I valued the
feeling of helping those in need, which was what motivated me to continue to
volunteer.
- What is your most memorable experience
volunteering here?
There was a student
studying in Presidency college who had a History exam the next day and still
hadn’t found someone to read to him. So both of us sat on the stairs of the
college and spent the whole day reading and learning the portions. A few days
later, I got a call from him saying he got a 96 and I felt so happy that it
almost felt like I was the one who wrote the exam and got an amazing grade!
- Do you have any messages
for anyone who wants to join us at LTL?
Lit the Light is
not borne out of just one person’s effort or initiative, every single
volunteer’s contribution adds to its success. Every single one of you has the
ability to make such a contribution and all it takes is to make that first
step. Even during an unprecedented time like this, the student’s requirements
are met through a courier system or through audio calls, so there is always a
way for anyone to help. Don’t hesitate and come join us at LTL!
