By By ANDY HAMILTON / Niles Daily Star
NILES - Kelley Wolff has got so much going on, it is hard to imagine she ever has time to spare. But, a few extra minutes last July is all it took for the high school junior to land at the front desk of the Volunteer Center of Southwest Michigan in Niles.
With the help of Sandy Marietta, a court services coordinator who sometimes works at the volunteer center, Wolff was in touch with the youth coordinator for the program, Pat Leonard, and lined up for volunteer work within hours.
She may not have made the stop that summer day if it was not for those spare moments. But, what really got the ball rolling was Wolff's insistence on approaching people, and situations, face-to-face.
How easily Wolff collaborates with people may explain how she has been able to handle so many separate projects. Besides holding a steady 3.92 grade point average at Berrien Springs' Andrews Academy, being a member of National Honor Society and earning a black belt in Tae Kwon Doe, Wolff donates countless hours of her time to people and places around her community.
It was at Niles Seventh Day Adventist where Wolff said she really caught the volunteering bug. Since then, she has immersed herself in numerous activities, such as helping to start a mentoring program at Andrews for new students and joining a group that works with teens who have fallen into trouble.
The Community Restorative Board is made up of four to five community members and covers all of Berrien County. The board works with young adults who have committed smaller crimes, such as minor vandalism, and attempts to bring the teen and the victim together in hopes of together assigning a suitable punishment.
Part of the deal is wiping the record clean after a year if the teens have kept away from the wrong side of the legal system.
Back at the volunteer center, Leonard said keeping young adults away from trouble is just one of many reasons parents and schools now push their children and students toward volunteering. The holiday season and graduation requirements from schools are also some of the ways young adults end up at Leonard's door.
But, she said the majority of the time teens choose to volunteer because the example has been set and passed down from an adult.
No matter what the reason is, Leonard said the purpose of the center is to find a volunteer opportunity the person will enjoy being a part of. To start, she said they ask the young adult what they are interested in pursuing after school. Most of the time, Leonard said, there is something on the “everlasting list” of opportunities that attracts a person.
Some of the more popular sites include Curious Kids Museum in St. Joe and the multiple festivals in the area, such as the Hunter Ice Festival and Apple Festival.
As long as the work is not dangerous or a liability, Leonard said the volunteers can do almost anything.
The jobs Wolff handles every Friday afternoon at the volunteer center in Niles do not come remotely close to dangerous. In fact, many people would find stuffing envelopes and answering phones too dull to handle.
Describing Wolff's attitude about the position falls on the other end of the spectrum, though. Words like enthusiastic, confident and proud are better indicators of Wolff's feelings toward the job.
For now, the clerical work is simply a warm-up for the steps she plans to take in the future.
Wolff hopes to attend law school at either Notre Dame or Andrews University, followed by a stop at an Ivy League school. Volunteer work in a law office would be the ideal place to put in some hours. That is, if she can find the time to spare.