Name: Brian Roots
Age: 56
Hometown: DeerfieldL
Name of organization: Family Service: Prevention, Education and Counseling
Describe what the organization does: Family Service is a community organization with a customized approach to delivering professional services to all ages, from children to seniors. Their mission is focused on three service cores: Senior and Caregiver Services, Counseling for All Ages, and Latino Educational and Support Services.
The Escuela en Casa program is offered to adults with very limited or no English proficiency in the communities of Highland Park and Highwood. The program is designed to serve adults who are not able to attend traditional ESL classes by bringing lessons to students’ homes and other easily-accessible community locations
What role does it serve in the community? We provide advocacy services, counseling, and referral assistance for seniors and caregivers, and we provide an employee assistance counseling program (EAP) for local governments and other employers.
What made you want to get involved in this type of volunteer work? First of all, I joined because I wanted to find another way to serve and help people. Second, I saw it as a great opportunity for a cross-cultural experience. It was a chance to meet someone who is clearly different from me, which is very enriching. Volunteering was something I could do to help someone who was ready to learn and work on a specific goal, so it sounded like a really neat opportunity.
What surprised you about the work once you started? I was surprised at how quickly I grew comfortable with my student. I was a little nervous about not knowing how to teach English because I am not a trained ESL instructor, but I built a strong rapport with my student and she was really engaged and responsive.
If you could offer local officials a piece of advice about how they could help the community you serve, what would it be? I want to encourage officials to be as cross-culturally sensitive as possible. Having Spanish abilities would be ideal, but regardless, they can work hard to help integrate both communities and bridge the gap between Spanish- and English-speaking communities. The more we can do to bring language and culture together, the better.
What mistakes did you make as a volunteer? On a superficial level, I am not a good speller, so sometimes when my students would ask how to spell something, I would spell it wrong. On a deeper level, a challenge I face is to try to keep our conversations and lessons fresh and challenging. Relying too much on one book and not doing enough to vary what we do is an ongoing challenge to overcome.
What did you do right? Having a good rapport with my student and seeing her progress — she became a citizen during the time I was working with her. It has been really satisfying to make such a good connection with my student and her family.
What advice would you give to someone else looking to volunteer? I would recommend contacting Family Service, churches, synagogues, and social service agencies to talk about what’s needed and look for what connects you with something you enjoy. The needs in the community are so diverse that there is surely something you can do and enjoy. In my experience, I have found that ESL tutoring is a really great way to build a new friendship, and I would encourage people not to be nervous about it and to instead look forward to it.
What is the phone number and website of your organization? 847-432-4981; http://www.famservice.org.
