A Different Kind of Reward

Hardly had I thought much about being a volunteer and just being of service to my community or anything of sorts until I read something. It was a chapter about the satisfaction of unselfish thinking. Next thing I knew, I signed up for a volunteer service and it brought a whole new experience.

A mathematics competition for senior secondary schools for the purpose of supporting young kids and keeping them reminded that hard work always pays. And the rewards are quite generous. All I had to do was contribute in any way I could to make it happen and so that many kids get access to such an opportunity.

It's a league competition, and there are three stages. The first stage is the screening, where applicants take an entrance examination to qualify for the league, the second stage. And then the top percentile move on to the final stage, where they compete for the prizes. The league is the most extensive, as it lasts for weeks. Before all that, however, we need to create awareness and get young chaps registered for the opportunity.

In every way possible, we publicize the competition. This could be through social media, but the most effective is by outreaches. As volunteers, we go to schools to tell the students about the competition and get some of them registered. We sometimes don't get access to the school buildings, so we try to catch the kids on the roads. Interestingly, many of them have phone numbers and email accounts.

Meeting and talking with the kids from random schools and different ages is surprisingly fun. Their energy is on another level. Being with them kind of makes me forget my own issues.

Anyway, we're running another edition this year, and the registration window just closed recently. We're now preparing the kids for the screening stage and also gearing up for the rest of the competition process by planning and executing.

It initially took me quite some time to get in the groove and begin actively volunteering. But that changed when I first met the founder herself. She happened to be a pretty driven and inspiring woman herself, as well as kind. Soon enough, I started slotting myself into places I could be useful. And the experience has been exciting so far.

Doing things just for the community, giving back in one way or another, impacting youthful energy—it has been more than I previously thought. Fulfilling and satisfying might be better words. While I am here and there for my own personal agenda, it's just a whole different feeling being a part of something generational and empowering.

Oh, and by the way, I found myself designing the posters for Verboheit. The previous designer became unavailable and we needed something urgent, and that's how I hopped on that opportunity. It's an opportunity because I get to be creative and improve with graphics design while I am more focused on other skills that are rather technical.