Say hey to Beatrice Jones — a Sophomore in high school and a total rockstar volunteer!
When she’s not kicking goals on the soccer field, she’s out in the community making an even bigger impact. Beatrice is a regular with First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta’s Community Ministries, City of Refuge, and Make-A-Wish Georgia — talk about a service superstar! She's passionate about fighting homelessness, helping others, and rallying her friends to join in too. Funny, creative, and full of heart, Beatrice is proof that young people are leading the way and having fun while they’re at it.
Learn more about Beatrice in our interview below!
What impact areas or pressing needs facing Atlanta do you care about most? Why?
One of the issues that I care about is homelessness. I see the impact of homelessness each week through my volunteering with my church. I've come to understand that it is something that is hard to escape. Many of the people who come to the breakfast have been coming for many years. They also tend to have challenges that are hard to overcome. I also care about it because being present and giving someone who's homeless a chance to interact, and hopefully get inspired, is really important to me. Bringing people joy while they are experiencing it means a lot to me.
What do you love most about an organization you volunteer with? Why do you volunteer with them?
What I love most about volunteering with First Presbyterian Church's community ministries is that it is also part of my church, and so the people I help, I also see worshipping with me. It's not that I am only serving them; I am also growing in my faith with these people. This makes it even more special. We are also interacting and building connections. What I also like is that there are a lot of different volunteer roles and people of all ages get involved, so it brings the community together. People who like to cook and plate the food can do that. People who like to interact with the guests can serve coffee and plates of food. I think it's unique that children can participate from a young age. And this also makes it fun. I started passing out cups for juice and coffee when I was two. Now I've got young kids working on the line with me.
How has volunteering impacted your personal/professional life?
Volunteering has made me more perceptive and aware of the differences in people's lives and the challenges they face. It also has influenced me to look for the positive in situations. Because I've been volunteering from a very young age, it's also taught me to seek out and interact with other people, and to look for creative ways to be of service or bring others happiness. Just in every day life and daily situations, not necessarily through volunteering.
What skills have you honed or what have you learned through your experience as a volunteer?
The biggest skills that I have honed as a volunteer are efficiency, creativity, and patience. Though I'm still working on patience! I've learned to find efficiency when there are a lot of things to get done (e.g., make sure everyone gets fed, serve seconds, clean up and set up for a worship service) and there's a limited amount of time. I've honed creativity through trying to be efficient. Serving at the breakfast challenges me to continually think outside the box about how to do things better and offer a more meaningful experience to our guests. During COVID this involved experimenting with many different ways of packing and distributing to-go bags. Volunteering also continues to teach me patience. I work with a lot of little kids and new people on the line when we're trying to serve more than 200 guests in a short period of time. I've needed to learn how to communicate with others in a way that they can understand and to be okay when things may not exactly go how I would have planned.
“What I love most about Atlanta is that you can have so many different experience all within the city. There are great restaurants, cool parks, and people from all over who bring many different perspectives. There are a lot of different things to do that allow you to participate in your community. It is also a place where I can make connections across school and sports and church and volunteering that help deepen my sense of community and enrich my experience with the community.”
Can you share a memorable highlight or moment you've experienced that might motivate others to volunteer?
Some of my most memorable moments have come when I have invited friends to go with me. The guests always ask if they are my sibling. Whenever I've responded that, no, they are just someone who also wanted to come, I've been inspired to see how their eyes light up. They ask about my friends' stories and find a small way to connect. My sense is that they may not have a lot of interactions like the ones at the breakfast and to know that other people care and want to be part of the experience means a lot to them. It's inspiring, too, because my friends continue to come back and to be part of this community. Another memorable experience has been to see the journey of one of the men who I've seen over many years. When I first met him before COVID, he was usually on drugs and I would watch him take more of the snacks and food than he was supposed to. Now I see him drug free and sharing about his life at our youth group. I also see him volunteering in community ministries and supporting other guests.
What advice would you give to someone who is interested in getting involved with volunteering?
My biggest piece of advice would be to find something that interests you. Then you'll be spending your time with something you really enjoy. It doesn't need to be done out of obligation. It should come from what brings you joy. It's meaningful to find the joy in serving because that's when you'll feel most connected to what you are doing.
Volunteering in April? Share where, when and if others can join you or how they can get involved.
We are always looking for people to come out and join us at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta on Sunday mornings. We serve a hot breakfast of grits, sausage biscuit and eggs, juice and coffee to more than 200 folks who are homeless or in temporary housing. You can help with serving juice, coffee and plates of food. Or you can work on the line. There are lots of options. You'll meet a great group of volunteers from across Atlanta. Plan to arrive before 6.30 a.m. (yes, it's early) and you'll be done by 8 a.m. It's great fellowship and a lot of fun. There's also a nice Starbucks around the corner for a refreshing drink afterwards. You can learn more here: https://www.firstpresatl.org/community-ministries#Volunteer.
Please list anything else you think our community should know about you, your volunteer service, or your commitment to Do Something Good!
I've been getting up at 5.45 a.m. and going to the breakfast at First Presbyterian Church a few Sundays a month since I was two years old. I even try to get there on Sunday mornings now when I have 9 a.m. soccer matches. My younger sister goes, too, and we've recruited a posse of kids from the church who are there as frequently as we are. Sometimes the average height on the food service line is about 5 feet. I am grateful for all of the adults who've made a special investment in me and my being there. From the beginning it was a lot of fun and that kept me coming back. I want to give a special shout out to Mr. David who made rubber glove balloons for us each week when we were little and whose grits are one of the main reasons all the guests keep coming back to this day.
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