COVID-19, Community Partners, History, UVa Students, Volunteer Stories
Madison House
Looking Ahead, and Celebrating Over 50 Years of ...

Madison House’s Creating Assets, Savings, and Hope (CASH) program works to train and coordinate student-volunteers to provide free tax preparation for low- and moderate-income community members…This year marks 15 years since the launch of the C’ville Tax Aid Coalition — a partnership including Madison House and the University of Virginia Community Credit Union that is coordinated by the United Way of Greater Charlottesville. Since its inception in 2007, the Coalition has generated over $35 million in direct economic impact for the Charlottesville area community.

Looking Ahead, and Celebrating Over 50 Years of Madison House Tax Preparation
Volunteer Stories, UVa Students
Madison House
Student Leadership: Chelsea Li

As a first year at the University of Virginia (UVA), Chelsea Li (CLAS ‘20) wanted to soak up all the opportunities that the University had to offer. She found herself exploring new clubs and classes and was especially eager to be in the community. “In high school,” she said, “I felt as if I was missing a lot of the learning that happens outside the classroom.” This desire to stretch her curiosity across disciplines and interests, along with an intrinsic desire to uplift those around her, was what first brought Chelsea to Madison House.

Student Leadership: Chelsea Li
Alumni, Volunteer Stories, Student Athletes
Madison House
Olympic Silver Medalist Paige Madden’s Madison ...

The House has long been a place where students can come to find or rediscover themselves and their place within the community. This held true for Paige, who shared that “it gives me peace of mind knowing that I am a good swimmer but that's not what defines me. There's so much more to life, like helping others. My time at Madison House has allowed me to see that.”

Olympic Silver Medalist Paige Madden’s Madison House Experience
UVa Students, COVID-19
Madison House
Madison House Youth Mentoring Volunteer ...

Kruse, from Ridgeland, Mississippi, is a fourth-year student in the McIntire School of Commerce. She initially got involved in the program because of her prior experience in advocacy work.

“Ultimately, the goal of the program is for students to learn about environmental science through a native lens,” Kruse said. “Maelee Hearington, another UVA student, and I wrote the curriculum to focus on science, social activism and social justice. We also provide additional resources like workbooks, markers, easels and notebooks.”

Madison House Youth Mentoring Volunteer Inspires Native American Youth Through Science
UVa Students, COVID-19
Madison House
Hoos Helping (Virtually!)

On March 11, 2020, all Madison House in-person volunteering was suspended in an effort to slow the emergence of COVID-19. Shortly after, a Spring Action Team headed by Madison House student volunteers Simmy Bhatia, Caroline Hallowell, and Mikaela Rirchardson worked in coordination with Dr. Rose Cole, the Madison House Director of Community Engagement, to begin developing a virtual volunteering initiative called "Hoos Helping."

Hoos Helping (Virtually!)

Volunteer Stories

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Harmonies for Healing brightens up hospital life through music

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Harmonies for Healing brightens up hospital life through music

Influential Madison House program allows volunteer musicians to play for patients during long hospital stays.

When fourth-year College student Grant Frazier decided to combine his passions of music and medicine, he began working with Madison House to bring music into the hospital setting. This idea led to the creation of Harmonies for Healing, a program which sends three student musicians to the University’s Transitional Care Hospital each day with hopes of improving the lives of both patients and medical staff.

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Volunteer Spotlight: Shannon Mooney

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Volunteer Spotlight: Shannon Mooney

Every year, I pick up a different Madison House program as well, it just depends on what's going to fit my schedule the best! Through Madison House, I've volunteered with New Century Hospice, where I would act as a companion once a week to patients. As a companion, my job was mainly reading, playing board games, passing the time, or just listening to what the patients wanted to say. I initially joined because I was pre-med at the time, but I stayed with the program for the eye-opening and rewarding experience. It was decidedly the most difficult volunteering experience I've ever had, due to the nature of the position. But I always felt like I was doing something that mattered; a little act of kindness goes a long way.

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My Abundant Life Story: Emma Grover

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My Abundant Life Story: Emma Grover

When I first became a student at UVA, I was so impressed with all the great programs available in Charlottesville and through Madison House that allowed for interaction and mentorship between kids in the community and college-age students. I was eager to get involved with one of the nearby elementary schools, and I was told about the great work that Abundant Life had been doing at Johnson Elementary. Soon after, I began attending the afternoon tutoring sessions at the school and working with a second grader named Abdikhayr. Our time together has continued on this year, and I still see him once a week as he is moving along through the third grade.