If you work with volunteers, random acts of kindness are an everyday occurrence. A large part of my job is spent communicating with people interested in giving their time freely to help fight poverty. But that doesn't mean it is no longer special when someone goes out of their way to lend a helping hand. And that is exactly what happened to me and Stefanie (your very own volunteer department) when we were stranded in Jamaica, Queens with our car's license plate hanging by a screw.
Stefanie and I were dropping of craft supplies for the Youth Enrichment Program - the weekend mentoring program we hold for homeless children every Sunday in Queens. When we parked to unload the trunk, I noticed a group of women pointing and laughing at our car. It didn't take long to discover what the joke was: our front plate was nearly coming off, held together by one loose screw. It looked like it could fall off at anytime, so we decided it would be best to get it repaired right away.
We were lucky to find an auto body shop after ten minutes of aimless driving. I pointed out the loose plates to the owner of the garage and asked him how much it would cost to repair (we, being from a social service agency, had a limited budget). He looked at me and, while smiling, called for his assistant to get a wrench. He then told us it was on-the-house.
So here we were, two volunteer coordinators in need of some assistance, and we were lucky enough to find yet another wonderful volunteer wiling to do the work pro-bono. It made both of our days! Which goes to show how people are volunteering their time and talents all the time to help out those in need.
So if you find yourself in Jamaica, Queens in need of auto repairs, I recommend you check out Lucky Auto Body on Liberty Avenue for friendly service!
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