By Merritt Frey, Executive Director
We do a lot with a little here at Mali Rising, and much of that is possible because of our great volunteers. Today, I want to feature a new volunteer — Lawrence Long — who has stepped up to help us with all kinds of critical, behind-the-scenes work as our Volunteer Operations Coordinator. Lawrence is tackling everything from helping us keep up with all of our great volunteer project submissions, researching solar power options for our school, analyzing data from our schools to help us be effective, and much more. We are so glad to have Lawrence’s help, and hope you’ll enjoy getting to know him through a little recent Q and A!
Mali Rising’s Volunteer Operations Coordinator, Lawrence Long.
1) What drew you to the Operations Coordinator volunteer post?
I was looking for a long-term volunteer opportunity (not a one-off thing) for an organization that supports people in poverty, and this spot fit perfectly with what I was looking for.
2) What projects are you tackling for Mali Rising currently?
I'm currently researching (aka googling around) easy and elegant ways to keep track of volunteer hours.
3) Have you learned anything that particularly surprised or interested you yet?
Certainly! I was surprised when you mentioned how the schools used solar panels to ward off bats. Seems like a creative (but perhaps inefficient) way to use solar panels.
4) What do you hope to gain/experience through volunteering?
For myself, I hope to gain some organizational and work experience. However, the main reason that drew me to Mali Rising in the first place was to gain a better understanding of how the life of students in poverty is like and how we can improve their lives.
5) What do you like to do outside of volunteering at Mali Rising?
In my free time, I love solving chess puzzles (actual chess games not so much). I also hope to start playing table tennis again after I get my second shot.
