February Volunteer of the Month: Chris Hanna

This month, we honor volunteer Chris Hanna as an “everyday hero” in our afterschool program. She helps the kids at one of our elementary school sites with their homework, reads books to them and helps out with various afterschool activities. Our afterschool staff and kids really appreciate her support and the joy she brings to the classroom. Recently, Chris even made winter hats for all the children in the program.

We interviewed some of the kids about Chris, and they had this to say: “Sometimes she helps me with my homework. She always tells me to try my best first when we do homework and that’s why I like Mrs. Chris.” Another student said with a grin on her face, “I like working with Mrs. Chris because it’s really fun and I feel like she’s my Grandma.”

Refugee students frequently struggle with homework because they often arrive in the U.S. with little formal education, or significant gaps in education, prior to entering our school system. Chris encourages our students to try their best. She says she enjoys coming to our afterschool and working with our kids. She sees their resilience and is kind and patient with them. Volunteers like Chris are crucial to the work we do in afterschool, and we are proud to honor her for her dedicated service this month!

Interested in getting involved as an afterschool volunteer? Click here to contact our volunteer engagement AmeriCorps member!

Leave a Comment