21 · Thursday, April 12, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com VOLUNTEERS Bringing a youth-friendly business initiative to Halton Continued from page 20 Youth envision a healthy and non-hostile as well as youth friendly environment to live in which is not shown in many places where youth like to "hang out." By this I suggest that many business owners across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) believe that teenagers do not deserve much respect because of the belief that youth are going to illegally steal some object from their store. In my home town of Halton Hills, we are currently trying to bring up a Youth-Friendly Business Initiative. I think that this is a great way to help change my community into a Youth-Friendly Town where youth can casually go into a convenience store and not be suspiciously eyed upon by the cashier behind the desk. This is only one of a million ways youth are bringing awareness to society to help Change The World! As my final note, be ready and be on board to Change The World because we are about to take off! The Change The World Campaign for youth volunteers is starting on April 15th to May 6th, 2012. Visit www.volunteerhalton.ca for more information. GROWCOMMUNITY From a personal perspective, volunteering has allowed me to develop work skills, time management skills and independent living skills that I know have helped me in my work and school life. Volunteering has given me life experience away from school and home that I will use now and in the future. Through volunteering in Halton I've met inspiring people and made incredible friendships. I now have a greater appreciation and understanding of some of the behind the scenes work that goes on to plan many of the events that make Halton such a great place to live. Whether its Ribfest, The Sound of Music, Midnight Madness or The Jazz Festival, even working at the local food bank, or coaching a kid's hockey team, find what you love to do through the data base and as Nike says, `just do it'!! You'll be glad you did!! Amy Stringer Grade 11 Assumption CSS, Burlington Youth Volunteering in Halton from a student's perspective through the database, they encounter the dilemma of being spoiled for choice in Halton! By closely matching your skills, interests and time available to the volunteer opportunities then completing the mandatory high school hours becomes achievable and fun. Rather than viewing volunteering as a mandatory requirement for graduation or a hassle to fit in, timely planning using the database resource makes the process of finding volunteer opportunities something that can be done from any computer at any time. For teachers, parents and kids who want to get a heads up on volunteering start getting prepared before high school or even in the middle school years. This way students can experience volunteering while their schoolwork isn't as demanding and they don't have part-time jobs to balance. That way, they can go into high school knowing where they'd like to volunteer and how to go about doing it. Volunteering for forty hours is a mandatory part of high school life but many students quickly realize the inherent value of volunteering and begin a lifelong commitment to volunteering and volunteer for hundreds of hours. I remember back in grade 9, I had no idea where to even find these volunteer opportunities, and more so, ones I could relate to and have fun with. Soon enough I found the Volunteer Halton Opportunities Database, which soon answered my question. There are endless volunteer opportunities. Whether you're an eager beaver, getting your volunteer hours completed within your first month at high school, or a procrastinating grade 12 student scrambling to get your last few hours, the database is key to finding a whole range of different opportunities. Once students recognize that they can Harnoor Gill find volunteer opportunities in a variety Grade 8 of services that cover a range of interests Stewarttown Middle School, Georgetown Free Peer Counselling Support Groups Employment Programs Courses and Workshops HOST FAMILIES NEEDED! Red Leaf Student Program needs families in Oakville and Burlington to host a Student from Spain in July and August. Students attend classes and activities Monday to Friday. Open Your Home & Hearts to a Student From Spain This Summer The Women's Centre Support Educate Empower Thank you Volunteers! If you are interested in joining our dynamic group of volunteers, please visit our website. Hopedale Mall 1515 Rebecca Street, Suite 229, Oakville, ON L6L 5G8 Tel: 905.847.5520 Fax: 905.847.7413 Website: haltonwomenscentre.org Email: admin@haltonwomenscentre.org Remuneration of $70000/4 weeks paid to host families. Veronica 905-637-0879 For more information Thank you! Recognizing the commitment and contributions of Canadian cancer Society volunteers, who are at the centre of it all in communities across Canada. Celebrating Volunteers OAKVILLE Volunteers Together, we're strong in the fight against cancer. Everyday you're making a difference in the lives of people living with Cancer. Thank you for fighting back by helping us prevent cancer and fund research to outsmart cancer. Thank You Alice AnneLeMay LeMay Alice Anne Chair ofthe theBoard Board Chair of Michael W.Pautler Pautler Michael W. Director ofEducation Education Director of Make Cancer History to all of our dedicated volunteers who share their time and talents to enrich all of our school communities! Don Vrooman Don Vrooman Chair ofthe theBoard Board Chair of David Euale David Euale Director of Education Director of Education Visit www.cancer.ca or call 1 888 939-3333.