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KOLOT – Reflections on RALLY

By Zoe Waldman

Zoe Waldman and a RALLY camper celebrate the last day of camp.

Zoe Waldman and a RALLY camper celebrate the last day of camp.

Zoe Waldman of West Hartford is director of Hartford RALLY, Inc.: Racquet and Literacy League for Youth. A graduate of the Kingswood Oxford School, she is a sophomore at Brandeis University majoring in History and American studies.

The importance of Tzedakah was instilled in me at a young age. Raised in a Jewish household and taught about Judaism at Hebrew School, I was exposed to the concept of Tikkun Olam. It was not until I began volunteering with an organization called RALLY, though, that I truly absorbed these Jewish principles and realized how much and what exactly community service means to me.

The summer after my freshman year of high school, I applied to volunteer as a counselor at RALLY, which stands for Racquet and Literacy League for Youth. A non-profit organization based in Hartford, RALLY teaches children ages 4-12 how to play tennis and provides literary and art enrichment. Through tennis and reading instruction, RALLY hopes to demonstrate the importance of teamwork and personal growth and aims to encourage learning and creative thinking as life-long passions. Since I was, and still am, and avid reader who had a passion for writing and playing tennis, I knew this would be the perfect cause for me to support. RALLY offered me a wonderful opportunity to be a role model for young children and to be a leader among my fellow high school counselors.

I volunteered again during the following two summers of high school and assumed the role of Director the summer after I graduated. I continued to hold this position this past summer after my first year of college. As the Director, I was responsible for fundraising, recruiting volunteers, advertising to prospective campers, training the staff, organizing and scheduling, and supervising the program on site. Every step I took to prepare for the summer confirmed my love for RALLY and my belief in the program’s continued success.

This past summer, enrollment increased to 85 campers supervised by 25 high school and college volunteer counselors. Six of the counselors were graduates of the program. Just as the counselors and I were serving our greater community, these younger volunteers were helping to continue the tradition of directly serving their own community.

In five years, I have witnessed truly inspiring transformations, especially among the returning participants. One mother told me that her seven- and four-year-old daughters woke her up, enthusiastically, at 6:30 a.m. every weekday morning so that they would not be late for RALLY, which began at 9 a.m. They were eager to work on their tennis skills and show off their improved reading abilities. They had been gleefully practicing at home with the books we give to each camper upon completion of the program. The sparkle in the campers’ eyes when they recognize the letters from their names on a page of “Curious George” and the grins of self-satisfaction when their racquet makes contact with a tennis ball for the first time put a tear of joy in my eye and a smile on my face. Stories like this are a strong indication that every individual can change another individual’s life.

Community service in general and RALLY in particular have been an integral part of my personal growth as I have matured into a young woman. When I was studying for my Bat Mitzvah five years ago, my Rabbi told me an old proverb: if you give someone a fish, they have a meal; if you teach someone to fish, they can eat for a lifetime. That lesson has had a profound impact on the way I view community service and the way I value my own life. The concept of helping others help themselves has taught me, simply, to live. Through conversations at home and at school, I have learned the significance of being an active and engaged contributor in everyday life. Volunteering for and directing RALLY has provided me with a significant purpose and a fundamental understanding and appreciation of this journey. I have discovered that Tzedakah is not about giving money, although financial support is part of a successful non-profit equation; it is more about putting one’s heart and enthusiasm into a project.

RALLY has strengthened in the six years since its inception, and I have no doubt that the program will continue to expand and flourish. I know that I have greatly benefited, as an individual and as a member of the Jewish community, from my involvement and my leadership.

Every person can take a little step in their own community, which, when added to the steps of others, can clear a path on the trek towards repairing the world.

Readers are invited to submit original work on a topic of their choosing to Kolot. Submissons should be sent to judiej@jewishledger.com.

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