Meet Josie, an Outstanding Youth Volunteer!
Josie joined the Volunteer Services team in the Dakotas Region at the American Red Cross as an intern prior to her senior year of high school. A current senior at Fargo North High School, Josie took on the task of improving volunteer engagement throughout the region. Josie’s ambition and dedication helped her develop tools that staff across the division now utilize as a best practice. Along with her hard work in Volunteer Services, Josie also had the privilege of planning and organizing the region’s Volunteer Appreciation Dinner. Josie has supported staff in every line of service to ensure a great volunteer experience for individuals in North and South Dakota. By working towards the end goal of providing exceptional service to clients, Josie lays the groundwork so that fellow volunteers can succeed.
Josie (middle) spoke about her work with the American Red Cross at a luncheon for PAY (Philanthropy And Youth), a program of the Barry Foundation that aims to promote philanthropic work amongst high school students. The luncheon was attended by many non-profit directors in the Fargo Moorhead area.
The power of youth volunteerism was exemplified in Josie’s internship efforts. Her determination and drive guided her to surpass expectations. Her fellow volunteers and supervisors describe her as focused, connected, and committed to her work and any task she takes on. As the Volunteer Service’s intern, Josie worked in a busy office all summer and was able to maintain focus on her project. She developed multiple projects and published them in centralized locations like our “supervisor’s corner” on Volunteer Connection. She also considered needs from all lines of service. Josie was able to completely wrap up her detailed project in one summer. She also went above and beyond and met with every staff member to explain what the tools were and how to best utilize these new resources. Josie came to us through a referral of another non-profit in the Dakotas region, the Barry Foundation. Josie came in for an internship opportunity but has continued her stellar work with the Volunteer Services team as a volunteer. Josie mentioned she had “an eye-opening experience” while learning about everything the American Red Cross does for our communities. “I had no idea the Red Cross worked with our Armed forces or collected blood all over the country,” exclaimed Josie. She mentioned that she would love to get involved with Disaster Cycle Services upon turning 18 and potentially working on a local Disaster Action Team. Josie plans to attend North Dakota State University to study electrical engineering while continuing her work with the American Red Cross.
Thank you, Josie, for your hard work and dedication to the American Red Cross and for being a model for Red Cross youth across the country!
– Andrew Cave, National Youth Council, Crash Course Call Lead
To contact Andrew, please email [email protected].
