Haddonfield Today HT091_2021Mar05

38 | haddonfield.today
The Last Word
#091 • MARCH 5 TO APRIL 2, 2021
Discovering volunteerism:
The essence of community
By Joe Serico, Citizen of the year 2021
As a boy growing up in the New York City borough of the Bronx, I never gave
much thought to the Little League and CYO coaches who surrounded me, the
volunteer ladies and men who worked alongside me at the hospital, and the
many adults who gave freely of their time and treasure to support church or
synagogue activities in our neighborhood.
More obvious to me was the dynamic that ruled city life: local government
officials were professional politicians paid for their services and aspiring to
higher office. There were no local garden clubs that I could recall, as the Parks
Department oversaw all the green spaces. What I knew growing up and in my
first two teaching positions was nothing like what I would experience beginning
in 1987.
It was in coming to work in Haddonfield that I experienced the exceptional
commitment citizens can make to a community. In my first year at Haddonfield
Memorial High School, it was evident that parents played a unique role
supporting the schools. Sure, some schools have booster clubs and parents
have some limited involvement in supporting
teams that their children play on, but HMHS
was different. At the High School, parents
undertook major events like the Senior Fashion
Show, the After-Graduation Party, Teacher
Appreciation Luncheon, back-to-school
breakfasts, and the hosting annual back-toschool
nights. Beyond this very substantial
commitment, parents were equally willing to
become partners in school decision-making.
They served on multiple school committees
on scholarships, curriculum review, school
advisory councils, teacher recruitment, and
strategic planning.
Equally committed were the selfless
men and women who served on the Board of
Education, most of whom had children in the
schools. They undertook tasks like negotiating
contracts, overseeing personnel decisions, and
making decisions about facilities – decisions
that put them squarely in the public eye. They
devoted enormous amounts of time and energy
assisting in overseeing the operation of the
schools.
These volunteer women and men were nothing short of inspiring in their
effort and commitment to support the school. I had never been exposed to
anything like that. When they accepted a seat at the table, they were willing
to commit many hours and do the heavy lifting that such work required. To
this day I remain very grateful to PTA Presidents Jeanne Runne, Linda Giudice,
Nancy Wills, and Julie Vick, who were role models for what engagement in the
community could look like.
That commitment to volunteerism was everywhere you looked. HMHS
students were also deeply involved in service activities. Organizations like the
National Honor Society, Interact, and perhaps a dozen other clubs had a focus
on community service when I arrived at HMHS. Today that number is even
larger than when I left the High School nineteen years ago.
If I needed further evidence that service was a deeply ingrained in the culture
of this community ... rEaD on, HErE: bit.ly/3c6fEoq or scan the QR code n.
to read
on your
smartphone
or tablet,
SCAN
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