It has been an amazing experience to volunteer with the New Taipei City Volunteer Center for the past three months.  I never knew I would have so much fun and meet so many great people by volunteering to teach English to seniors at the volunteer center. 
 Originally I came to Taipei, Taiwan to study for four months, doing my Masters of Global Entrepreneurship and Management at Fu Jen University.  Yet, I soon realized I had some days free from school and I wanted to get more involved in the Taipei community.  In addition, I am in the process of applying for the Peace Corps, a American volunteer program, that I hope to participate in after I graduate from my masters program.  I hoped to improve my English teaching and volunteer skills for my application to this program.  Overall, I have a strong passion and history of volunteering in my life.  When I was just 12 years old, I started to volunteer with my Mom in Colorado, U.S.A.  We would work at the Food Bank and other non-profits in our community.  My mom, also a teacher, taught me how important service and giving back to the community you live in is.
 However, besides teaching English in Ukraine two years ago at a summer camp (kids aged 5-15), I have had no experience working with seniors or teaching English.  Yet, when I moved to Taipei, Taiwan I knew I wanted to give back to the community and I had the asset of the English language.  The seniors and staff at the volunteer center were extraordinary.  Even though I am a new teacher, they were so helpful and nice to me.  The seniors were fast learners and great students.  I loved going to teach in Banciao every week because everyone was so happy to see me.  It was a great way to start my week!
 The seniors learned English very fast.  Although, I had to work on writing more legibly and speaking slower, they were very considerate in helping me improve my teaching skills as well.  The senior students were very respectful to me even though I am so much younger than them.  It was so great to learn about their families, past professions, and interests.  Even with such a big cultural and age difference, we had many things in common.  The seniors were timid at first to speak in English with me, but as our weeks together continued they became more confident and outspoken.  Many of the students began to ask more direct questions of me and were more eager to speak in class.  I could see that their English was improving drastically, not just in confidence, but in vocabulary and understanding as well.
 I learned so much from the seniors at the volunteer center.  They taught me I need to write larger on the blackboard as well as speak more clearly when teaching.  The seniors are just like the younger kids I taught in Ukraine.  They like having a variety of activities and are quick learners.  They like to practice their speaking and conversational skills the most as this is the most important asset for them.  I learned that the seniors and all of the people at the volunteer center are so friendly and welcoming.  Everyone helped me so much as I do not understand Chinese.  It has been a pleasure to volunteer to teach English here in Taipei and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience!

志在我心  服務無國界- 新北市教學樂無窮

     這三個月以來，能在新北市志願服務推廣中心當志工真的是一個超棒的經驗。我從沒想到在推廣中心擔任志工教長輩學英文是這麼的有趣而且可以認識許多很棒的人！
     一開始我來到臺灣只是為了在輔仁大學研習為期四個月的全球企業經營管理的碩士課程，不過我很快就發覺我可以運用課餘之際投入當地的社區服務，期望藉此提升英語教學及志工服務的技能，亦為未來的服務工作做準備。因我目前正在申請加入美國和平團(一項美國志願服務的專案計畫)，希望研究所畢業後能投入參與服務。總而言之，我不僅具有高度的服務熱忱也有一些當志工經驗，在我12歲時就開始和媽媽一起在美國科羅拉多州的食物銀行和社區內的非營利組織擔任志工。我的媽媽是一位老師，她教導我：「服務和回饋你所居住的社區是非常重要的一件事！」
    然而，除了兩年前在烏克蘭兒童夏令營教5-15歲的小孩學英語外，我沒有服務過任何年長者或教他們學英文的經驗。不過當我來到臺灣臺北，我知道我能運用自身的語文能力回饋這個地方。在推廣中心的長者及工作人員都非常的讚，即使我是一個新手老師，他們都很幫忙而且對我非常好。而長輩們是學習快速的好學生，我喜歡每星期一到板橋上課，他們也很高興見到我，這讓我每週都有一個很棒的開始。
    長輩們學習英文的速度非常快，雖然我仍需要用較簡易的英文書寫和放慢說話的速度來上課，但這對提升我的教學技巧很有助益。即使我比這些年長的老學生年輕許多，他們仍然非常尊敬我。透過課程的會話，我對他們的家庭、過去的職業、和興趣有了些許了解，即使我們的文化和年齡有相當大的差距，但我們還是有共通之處。一剛開始，長輩們還不太敢用英文和我對話，但幾週之後他們變得更有自信及勇於表達，許多學生也會直接問我問題，在課堂上也有更多的互動，我可以看見他們不僅是自信提升，在詞彙及理解力上也大大有所進步。
    從推廣中心這些長輩身上我學到了很多，他們讓我知道教學時書寫黑板的字體要大一點和說話時要更口齒清晰，這些長輩就像我在烏克蘭教的孩子一樣，喜歡各式各樣的活動，同時也學習的很快。他們最喜歡練習對話和說英文的技巧，因為這對他們而言是很重要的一部分。我深刻感受到這些長輩及推廣中心每個人的友善及熱情歡迎，因為我不懂中文，每人都很熱心幫助我，在這裡當志工?英文真的很快樂，而且也是一個再好不過的服務經驗！！
(文章撰寫：Rebecca Levy)