Spring 2017 UVA Course Designed for Madison House Volunteers

Madison House and the UVA writing department will be partnering in the spring of 2017 to offer a unique one-credit liberal arts course to current Madison House student leaders and student volunteers.

Titled, "Words Matter: Writing, Leadership, and Community Engagement" (LASE 2559) and taught by Kate Stephenson, the course will explore the relationship between the written word, being a leader and being actively involved in the community. Madison House student leaders will draw on their current experiences to reflect on their involvement with community programs and their role as liaisons between the University and the Charlottesville community. 

"We are excited to partner with the UVA writing department to offer an opportunity for Madison House leaders and volunteers to connect their experiences in the community to their academic and professional pursuits," says Director of Community Engagement Rachel Winters. "Participating in a course with ample opportunities for writing and reflection will provide students a dedicated space to make meaning of their community engagement experiences, and the potential effect it has on them as students and citizens." 

Students will collaborate with a community partner and the professor to develop a writing project that explores the intersections between social issues, politics and civic engagement. These projects range from research papers to photo essays, oral histories or digital writing. Participants will also learn how to present leadership experiences on a resume and in a professional interview—demonstrating how writing lives beyond the classroom and evokes change in the community. 

For more information on the course, please contact instructor Kate Stephenson at sks9h@eservices.virginia.edu, or our Director of Community Engagement Rachel Winters at rwinters@madisonhouse.org

New Director of Development Joins Madison House

We are thrilled to announce that Melissa Fountain will be joining Madison House as our new Director of Development!

Melissa comes to Madison House after nearly ten years of experience working with UVA Advancement. Most recently, she served as the Associate Director of Reunion Giving at the University. 

Melissa brings a wealth of development experience to the Madison House team, and we look forward to her official start the week of November 21. 

You can reach Melissa at mfountain@madisonhouse.org.

Be a Sponsor for Madison House's Holiday Sharing

Madison House's annual Holiday Sharing program kicked off with "Falliday Sharing," a festive "tailgate" on The Lawn. Each year, with the help of students leaders, volunteers, organizations and individuals from across the community, Holiday Sharing partners with the Salvation Army of Charlottesville to provide holiday gifts and three full meals for over 100 low-income families. 

Now, Holiday Sharing needs your help! Sign up to sponsor a family in need. 

"Sponsoring a family with Holiday Sharing provides the opportunity to make a huge impact on the lives of people in our very own Charlottesville community," says Head Program Director Emily Brown. "Many recipients have expressed that without Holiday Sharing, celebrating the holidays in their household just wouldn't be possible."

The deadline to sign up to sponsor a family is November 18. On December 3, or "Distribution Day," volunteers will be able to give their donations directly to the gift recipients in a special celebration of giving and the holiday spirit. 

For more information, please email holidaysharing@madisonhouse.org, or read an overview of our Holiday Sharing program.

Alumna Profile: Sarah Rae, UVA Class of 2007 - Medical Services

Did you know more than 30,000 UVA alumni have volunteered with Madison House since the early 1970s? We caught up with one of them, Sarah Rae Easter, and asked her to share how service has been a part of her life since graduating from the University of Virginia in 2007. Here's what Sarah Rae had to say:

"Delivering babies is the best job in the world. As a Maternal-Fetal Medicine fellow at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, I get to witness one of life's most precious moments on a daily basis. Certainly my hard work and formal education at UVA afforded me the opportunity to care for patients in this unique way. But my informal education at Madison House played a huge role in my path towards a career in medicine.

As a volunteer with Madison House's Medical Services program, I spent four years at volunteering in the dialysis unit at UVA Medical Center. Each week, I came in to help healthcare providers or educators organize their work on the unit. But I spent most of my tie in the dialysis center talking with and learning from the patients there for treatment.

The remarkable thing about service is that while most of us volunteer out of a sense of altruism, we often leave with as many benefits as we give to those serve. Being a doctor is no different. These special times spent with remarkable individuals through Madison House gave me the first glimpse into what a unique privilege it is to care for patients.

My involvement with Madison House paved the way for other experiences at UVA, including being Program Director for the Medical Services Program at the UVA Kidney Center, serving on Madison House's board of directors, and opening the door for many other service-oriented opportunities throughout Grounds.

Most importantly, my time at Madison House gave me the education and inspiration to pursue a career in medicine and celebrate babies' birthdays every day!"

Come to the Madison House Programs Fair on August 29

'Hoos, are you looking for a way to volunteer this fall semester? Come to Madison House's Volunteer Programs Fair on the South Lawn in front of Old Cabell Hall on August 29 anytime between 11am and 2pm.

Madison House is your student volunteer center. Last year, 3,114 UVA students volunteered with 175 community partners through Madison House. Whatever your passion, we can help you find a way to give back to the local community. 

During the Madison House's Volunteer Programs Fair, you can meet the students who serve as directors for our many service programs and learn more about how *you* can get involved.

Please invite your fellow 'Hoos to our Facebook event and help us spread the word!

2016 Madison House Volunteer of the Year

Madison House named Holly Brooks as its 2016 Volunteer of the Year this past spring. Holly is a rising third-year student from Atlanta, pursuing an Echols Interdisciplinary Major in Sustainable Agriculture. She has volunteered with AHIP - Home Repair Nonprofit and The Haven's Housing2Home initiative, both through the Housing Improvement program at Madison House. This fall, Holly will serve as a Program Director for Housing Improvement.

Holly says, "Volunteering with Madison House is important to me because it allows me to give back to a community that is so generous to UVA students."

Holly is also meaningfully involved other activities around Grounds. She volunteers weekly with Morven Kitchen Garden at the University of Virginia, and this fall she will act as their student beekeeping leader. She is also an active member of First Year Players and sings with one of UVA's jazz combos.

Congratulations, Holly, and thank you for everything you do!

Madison House Alumni Council Names 2016 Alum of the Year

The Madison House Alumni Council has named Julia Shafer (member of the U.Va. Class of 2012) as its Alum of the Year! We asked Julia to share a little about herself and how service has been a part of her life since graduating from the University of Virginia:

"Manahoana! My name is Julia and I graduated from UVA in 2012 with a degree in Foreign Affairs.

I am currently a second year Education Volunteer in Madagascar with Peace Corps. I live in a small town about 60 miles south of the capital, Antananarivo, in the chilly highlands. I teach English to kids of all ages, from tiny primary school kids up through adults at a private school. Outside of teaching English, I led a GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) camp to help empower young girls in my community to become leaders. Some of the girls that attended the camp had never left our small town before so it was an exciting week. Outside of teaching and the GLOW camp, life is very laid back in my town. I spend a lot of time talking with people at the market, helping my friend at her soup shop, and exploring the big red island. If you ever get a chance put Madagascar on your must visit list. Yes, there are plenty of lemurs, but there is also so much more to see.

My two years of service with Peace Corps is quickly coming to an end (very hard to believe). I will be leaving Madagascar in August of this year. While I am unsure what my immediate future holds when I return to the United States, I eventually would like to return to school and get a masters in school counseling to continue working with kids and help them better navigate their future. If anyone is interested in learning more about being a volunteer with Peace Corps I am happy to speak with you!"

You also read more about Julia's time with the Peace Corps in this article from UVA Today.

[Image details: Julia with a group of her students via UVA Today]

Awards for Service During Valedictory Exercises

During Valedictory Exercises for the Class of 2016 at the University of Virginia, the Ray of Light Award was given to Annie Clark and the 2016 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award was given posthumously to Margaret Lowe. 

Student trustee Elise Bottimore had these words to say about Annie: "Clark has tutored prison inmates through Madison House’s Beyond the Bars program, conducted advocacy workshops dedicated to the prevention of intimate partner violence through the One Love Foundation, and served as a leader in her sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma. She is known by her peers for her integrity and compassion."

And, here is what Daniel Judge, chair of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award Committee, said about Margaret: "Margaret Lowe was a fourth-year Classics-Ancient Greek major who was looking ahead to medical school when she unexpectedly passed away last year while running – one of her favorite activities. During her time at the University of Virginia Lowe co-chaired the student-led Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Team, and led various educational efforts aimed at reducing the risks of alcohol use among her peers, volunteered with Madison House, and was a counselor with Camp Kasem, a summer camp for children who have a parent living with cancer. She also biked last summer from coast to coast with Bike and Build to promote and raise funds for affordable housing. She was a member of Pi Beta Phi and a leader within the Inter-Sorority Council."

To read the full article on UVA Today, please click here.

Photos from this article were taken by Dan Addison and Sanjay Suchak.

Youth Mentoring Volunteer Profiled on UVA Today

Meet Ellie Leech, a Madison House volunteer and member of the UVa Class of 2016, through this great profile from UVA Today!

Q. "What’s your work with Madison House's community partner, Abundant Life, been like?"

A. "For the past three years, I’ve been a Bible club leader for middle school girls and I’ve stayed with the same group of students throughout. Now I direct their high school program. We meet once a week and have a Bible study, and we’re starting to do tutoring and mentoring. We also really try to help students experience life outside their neighborhoods, so we do field trips, college trips and service projects.

It’s been a totally chaotic enterprise and it’s so fun. Growing up in Charlottesville – my parents live on a farm outside of town – I didn’t really experience the diversity of the city. There’s a large refugee population and there’s a blending of cultures. A bunch of my students are from Africa and I get to learn a lot about how they think about the world in a way that’s totally different from me. I’ve learned a lot about how to be patient and to recognize that I’m there to be an advocate for them and to serve them, but not to direct their lives in the way that I think is best for them. I’m just there to be their friend and help out wherever I can."

Read the full profile HERE!

Rec Therapy Volunteer Profiled on UVA Today

"What do tutus and Tinker Bell have to do with medicine? A lot. Bruno is describing a downhill skiing run she shared with Emma, a 6-year-old with spina bifida, during Therapeutic Adventures’ annual Independence Cup race. Working through Madison House, Bruno has coordinated 40 volunteers for the adaptive ski program all four of her years at UVA."

Get to know Bethany Bruno, a Program Director for Madison House's Recreational Therapy program, on UVA Today HERE!

Volunteers and Community Partners Honored

Yesterday, Madison House hosted its annual Legacy of Service celebration to honor community partners and student volunteers at the University's Colonnade Club. The Community Partner of the Year award was presented by Executive Director Tim Freilich to Corbin Breaud, the Volunteer Coordinator at Albemarle Housing Improvement Program. Eric MacBlane, the Head Program Director of Holiday Sharing, was named the Head Program Director of the Year, Ryan Murphy, Program Director for YMCA Basketball, was named Program Director of the Year, and Holly Brooks was named Volunteer of the Year.

GivingToHoosDay A Success for Madison House

Tuesday, April 12 became the biggest fundraising day of the year for Madison House.

On April 12, the University held GivingToHoosDay, a 24-hour online fundraising event. We challenged Madison House alumni, parents, and friends to give $20,000 to help us secure $20,000 in matching funds for GivingToHoosDay. Our supporters gave more than $37,000 in response, bringing our GivingToHoosDay total to more than $57,000! 

The 185 gifts made on GivingToHoosDay will help us make the Madison House volunteer experience even better. We're improving volunteer training, encouraging more reflection, and serving more community partners and local families than ever before. Thank you for rising to the challenge!

UVA students volunteer with The BIG Event

From UVA Today:

Many nonprofit organizations and individuals in the Charlottesville area have a wish list of projects they don’t have the time and resources to finish. With the help of hundreds of University of Virginia students, they checked a few projects off those lists after Saturday’s “Big Event,” a nationwide day of community service.

Madison House, UVA’s student volunteer center, brought together 330 student volunteers who fanned out to nearly 40 nonprofit organizations and residences around Charlottesville and Albemarle County. The Big  Event encourages the UVA student body to serve neighbors as well as local organizations that work tirelessly to improve Charlottesville.

The volunteers worked on a range of jobs, from mulching playgrounds and planting flowers at the Barrett Day Care Center to fixing bicycles at Community Bikes to renovating displays at the Virginia Discovery Museum. At the JABA Mary Williams Community Senior Center, located in the historic Jefferson School City Center, students wielded paintbrushes and mops to help spruce up the place.

It’s a way “to just say ‘thank you’ to the community for making Charlottesville, this college town, a great place to go to school,” said program director and Ph.D. student Katelyn Ahern.

Madison House helps with Earth Week at UVA

Calling all Madison House volunteers! Celebrate Earth Week with us by volunteering on the Rivanna Trails from 10:00am-1:00pm on Saturday, April 23. To find out more details, click HERE.

From UVA Sustainability:

The Rivanna Trails Foundation’s (RTF) mission is simple: to create and protect footpaths, trails, and greenways within the Rivanna River watershed.

The foundation began its work in 1992, when citizens in the area organized to create a trail system throughout the greenbelt of the Rivanna River and its tributaries, including Meadow Creek and Moore’s Creek. The trails are excellent for bikers, joggers, and nature lovers alike. There are fishing spots and grassy clearings that are perfect for sighting wild deer, beavers, rabbits, and other wildlife. This community resource is freely accessible to the public. Over the years the trail has gone from uneven dirt paths, gravel roads, and grassy knolls to more robust paths, wide enough for bikes. These upgrades are a result of the work of volunteers who help maintain and build the trail system. Groups such as the University of Virginia’s Madison House continue to support these trails with volunteer days.

UVA intersects with many sections of the trail, notably behind the School of Law and Observatory Hill. These areas are frequently used by students for running, afternoon strolls, or the occasional short-cut. Due to heavy traffic and storms the trails have begun to accumulate trash and debris. Luke Nicholson, a second year student in Madison House is organizing a volunteer day during Earth Week to help clean-up the trails.

“My favorite part of the trail is behind the law school and the opposite side of Observatory Hill, near a narrow slice that goes deep into the forest,” said Nicholson.

Madison House has partnered with the Rivanna Trails Foundation on many clean-up events to help improve and rebuild existing trails. As a non-profit, the foundation does not have a full time staff of trail maintenance workers. They rely mostly on outside groups and volunteers to service over 10 miles of trails throughout Charlottesville

A Madison House trail volunteer day typically consists of removing debris such as branches, rocks, and over growth from paths along the trail. Occasionally, the RTF will identify new trails that need to be built to supplement older ones. To do so requires charting out the topographical elevation of the river bank and surrounding area. Then, volunteers use shovels to remove large rocks and flatten the ground to produce an even elevation, with a reduced incline. To traverse wet marsh, volunteers lay down a series of wooden pallets. These improvements help to increase the accessibility of the trail to differently abled individuals.

“Anyone can join and help us with this work. No experience required. It’s also a great learning opportunity, especially for those who appreciate nature and want to help others do the same,” said Nicholson.

Madison House's Big Siblings Program featured in Bloom Magazine

The current issue of CharlottesvilleFamily's Bloom Magazine has a great article about Madison House's Big Siblings program and our community partner Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Central Blue Ridge.

Caroline Vangsnes, a fourth-year double major in Economics and Media Studies at the University of Virginia and the Head Program Director of Big Siblings, was one of the students interviewed for the story.

She told the magazine, "I truly fell in love with the program. I saw that I was making a direct impact on my little sister's life."

CharlottesvilleFamily's Bloom Magazine is available on newsstands around town now or you can access it online HERE (starting on page 46).

Head Program Director for ESOL Featured on UVA Today

Check out this wonderful interview and video from UVA Today with Nena Evans, a fourth-year statistics major at the University and the Head Program Director for Madison House's ESOL program. Here is an excerpt from the story:

Evans, a long-time Madison House volunteer, now serves as the head program director for its English Speakers of Other Languages Program. She takes great pride in seeing students progress through the program and enjoys collaborating with other program leaders on initiatives around the Charlottesville area.

As she prepares for graduation and life outside of Charlottesville, Evans sat down with UVA Today to discuss the University’s strong community of service and the impact that it’s had on her.

Q. In your video, you said that the first minute you stepped on Grounds you knew it was going to be your home. What made you feel that way?

A. When I think about the moment when I decided to come here, it was instantly when I stepped on the Lawn for Days on the Lawn. The band was playing, with the Rotunda on one side and the Lawn spread out on the other, and I was with a bunch of people who were so excited to be here, especially the people who were leading it.

Q. You’ve been involved in volunteer work since you started here. Why do you think there is such a strong commitment to service at UVA?

A. I think one part of it is that a lot of people come to UVA having done some type of service before, but I also think that everyone who goes to UVA really cares about Charlottesville, and one way that we care about the city is by giving back to it. To me, that means leaving this place better than the way that it was when I got here.

Q. The language-skills teaching you do through Madison House dives into a different type of education than your major in statistics. What made you choose that?

A. I’ll be honest, when I got here I didn’t even know what the English Speakers of Other Languages Program was. But one thing that I did know when I got here is that Charlottesville has a really large refugee population. That drew me into English as a second language, when I saw that it was a big need here because of the unique makeup of Charlottesville.

That work and statistics really don’t have a huge correlation, but being able to communicate is really important for both. To be an effective statistician, you have to be able to communicate well, especially in the job force. It’s imperative that you can speak in layman’s terms and have a normal conversation with someone when you’re trying to discuss statistical information and data.

To read the complete story and watch the video, please click HERE. 

UVA Parents Fund Gives Generously to the Student Experience

Madison House is incredibly thankful to the UVA Parents Fund for their generous support during this academic year. UVA Today featured Madison House in a story about how the Parents Fund enhances the experience of University students through grants. Click the link below to read all about the technological upgrades we are able to make thanks to their grant of nearly $28,000.

Here is an excerpt from the UVA Today article:

“… There is a debt of service due from every man to his country, proportioned to the bounties which nature & fortune have measured to him.”

-- Thomas Jefferson to Edward Rutledge, Dec. 27, 1796

Jefferson’s notion of service to community is woven throughout the University of Virginia. Madison House, UVA’s largest volunteer clearinghouse, enables approximately one in five undergraduates to serve the community each each year.

Among other things, that means more sports coaches for young teams in the Charlottesville-Albemarle community, more volunteers for Habitat for Humanity and more UVA students working with refugee youth arriving to Charlottesville from countries like Burma, Congo, Iraq and Liberia.

“We have about 3,100 students who volunteer on a weekly basis throughout the year at 168 local sites,” Tim Freilich, Madison House’s executive director, said. That service was worth $2.5 million last year. But logging all of those volunteer hours had become a chore because Madison House was using an antiquated system.

For help, Freilich turned to the UVA’s Parents Fund, which makes annual grants to enhance the undergraduate student experience. A grant of nearly $28,000 enabled the volunteer hub to upgrade to a sophisticated system that enables students to log their hours using a smart phone. The funding was also used to upgrade Madison House’s computer lab.

Would Madison House have been able to make the upgrades without the grant? “No,” Freilich said. “The grant is letting us upgrade our systems in a way that we would not have been able to do otherwise.”

Read the complete story HERE. 

Save the Date for The BIG Event, a Day of Service

The BIG Event is the largest day of community service nationwide for college students, and Madison House — the volunteer hub for University of Virginia students  — is bringing it to Charlottesville for the second year in a row. In 2015, Madison House's The Big Event at U.Va. served about 40 job sites via the help of 400 U.Va. student volunteers.

In 2016, Madison House is preparing for The BIG Event will be even, well, bigger! Hundreds of U.Va. students will come together to perform acts of service throughout Charlottesville on Saturday, April 9, 2016 from 9:00am-1:00pm.

The goal of Madison House’s The BIG Event is to encourage the U.Va. student body to serve neighboring residents as well as the local organizations that work tirelessly to improve Charlottesville. Many non-profit organizations, charities, and individuals in the Charlottesville community have a wish-list of projects that they never seem to have the time and resources to finish. Volunteers with The BIG Event will help complete those projects.

Volunteer registration opens online at madisonhouse.org/thebigevent on Monday, February 15, 2016. The deadline for University students to register to volunteer is March 25. Students are welcome to register individually or as under a group affiliation (as a CIO, fraternity, or sorority, for example) or simply with your friends!

From February 8 through February 12, student organizers of The BIG Event will raise awareness about volunteer recruitment on Grounds. Students will table daily from 11:00am until 2:00pm at Newcomb Hall to give prospective volunteers the opportunity to indicate their interest.

More than 3,179 U.Va. students volunteer through Madison House in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area every week during the academic year. Because all of Madison House’s other volunteer opportunities require a weekly commitment, The Big Event is the perfect way for ‘Hoos to give back to the community if they already have a busy schedule.

For more information about Madison House's The BIG Event, please visit www.madisonhouse.org/thebigevent.

Charlottesville Area Community Foundation

Madison House has received two grants recently from The Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band and the Enriching Communities grant program, both in the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation. 

Madison House is grateful for the generous support of The Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation, which awarded a $5,000 grant to support our Cavs in the Classroom program. Last semester, 182 University of Virginia students volunteered in local elementary schools every week through that program. You can watch a fun video about Cavs in the Classroom filmed by Charlottesville Newsplex here.

Madison House is equally thankful to the Enriching Communities program of the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation for generously supporting Madison House's Latino and Migrant Aid (LAMA) program with a $5,000 grant. Madison House’s LAMA program serves the Albemarle County and Charlottesville region's low-­income adults and children as referred by our community partners, Albemarle Regional Migrant Education (a department of Albemarle County Public Schools) and the Iglesia Rios de Agua Viva. Madison House is very excited to partner with the CACF to continue the meaningful work of LAMA this year!

Holiday Sharing Volunteers Help Local Families

Holiday Sharing is a Madison House program that provides toys, gifts, and non-perishable food for local families need in partnership with the Salvation Army. About 50 students worked together during the fall semester to make Distribution Day 2015 (on December 5) a success. This past Saturday, Madison House volunteers with our Holiday Sharing program made the season merry and bright for 160 local families by tirelessly distributed toys, gifts, and non-perishable food in partnership with the Salvation Army.

During this semester, Holiday Sharing volunteers planned two new events, "Holidays in October" and a canned food drive, which raised over $1,000 combined. Each volunteer serves about three hours a week -- until the week leading up to Distribution Day when some volunteers serve over 15 hours!

Eric Macblane, the Head Program Director for Holiday Sharing and third-year Engineering student, said:

"Holiday Sharing is truly a coming together of the larger community. Without everyone coming together through this program, we would not be able to provide for the 160 Charlottesville families we work with over the holidays. At the heart of it are about 50 volunteers who work extremely hard to build the connections and partnerships necessary for the holiday season. At the end of the day, we have one community of kind, caring, and thankful people who all walk away happier from this program."

Thank you to all of our generous "Santa" level sponsors.