Champlain Today

Champlain volunteers are celebrated

This winter, the Burlington Free Press profiled two Champlain students who were selected as the United Way’s Volunteer of the Week.

“With energy to spare, Champlain College student Nicole Jakobeit ‘03 juggled a full academic load with many hours of homework help for youths at the Boys and Girls Club of Burlington and sparked a huge interest in her lively Spanish lessons,” the newspaper reported in January.


	Champlain volunteers are making their mark on the community. Two were featured in the Burlington Free Press this winter for being United Way’s Volunteer of the Week, while other students were caught on film as they gathered food for a local food shelf (pictured above).

Twice a week during the fall semester, Jakobeit helped youngsters with math, English and vocabulary assignments, and supervised, played with and read to younger children. As time went on, she went above and beyond her volunteer role and developed a weekly Spanish class.

“Nicole’s dedication to the Boys and Girls Club of Burlington is both greatly appreciated and admired, “ said education coordinator Halina Gangi. “Club members were always thrilled to see Nicole and excited to join in her activities.”

An international business major from South Burlington, Vt., Jakobeit is looking forward to a corporate career after graduation. She’s had a wonderful experience as a volunteer. “I really like the kids,” she said. “They have a lot of love and if you’re having a bad day, they make you feel very special.”

The Get Real/Community Service Connection at Champlain College provides a full menu of feel-good volunteer options to choose from. Students sign up for everything from one-time activities to full-semester assignments.

Charlie Degener ‘02 of Chester, Vt., chose to do long-term projects at the city library. He was also honored this winter for being a top-notch volunteer. A senior in Champlain’s Business program, Degener balanced a busy academic schedule with his work for the outreach program at Fletcher Free Library. He helped select, check out and deliver books to homebound seniors. He also did a literacy project at the King Street Youth Center, where he assisted teachers and read to the children.

“Degener is also working on a marketing plan for Fletcher’s Get to Know Your Library project,” the Free Press article reported. “He has researched interesting and unusual facts about the library and compiled a preliminary photo and ad layout for the theme.”

According to Barbara Shatara, outreach director at the library, Degener is a model volunteer who is creative, reliable and able to take an idea and run with it. “Charlie is very valued here and we’ll miss him when he goes off to make his way in the world,” she said.

“I enjoy meeting different people and helping to create and foster a sense of community,” Degener said.