Why volunteer? Connection, fun, fulfillment and a sense of honour COMMUNITY PROFILE: SUSAN COOPER One of Susan Cooper’s first encounters with Pickering College was when she attended the Holiday Home Tour. It was one of the very first home tours and she had a friend who was a home captain. When her grandson Alex started Grade 3 at Pickering College in 2014, and she heard they needed volunteers, Cooper quickly stepped up. Now, Alex is in Grade 12 and Cooper has been part of the Pickering College Association (PCA), chair of the Holiday Home Tour Committee, grade representative, and has been a part of a number of events including staff appreciation, galas and golf tournaments. She was also elected to the Pickering College Corporation in 2019 and to the Board of Directors in 2020, where she currently chairs the nomination committee. “Volunteering on any Pickering College committee is memorable,” says Cooper. “And the people that are on these various committees, they're creative and they're energetic and they've got fabulous ideas and it's always inspiring to work with them.” However, after almost a decade of dedication to the school, one of her favourite volunteer experiences remains the Holiday Home Tour. “It's so exciting because it's just all the hustle and bustle and it's seeing things come together,” she says. On the Friday of the tour, she enjoys going with fellow committee members and seeing the homes, all decked out and glittering with the lights turned on. Then on the Saturday, she acts as one of the home captains and enjoys connecting with the guests, many of whom come year after year. For Cooper, there are four main reasons she says she feels compelled to give back to Pickering College: connection, fun, fulfillment, and a sense of honour. By contributing to the PC community and spending time on campus, she feels connected to the vast history of the school but also to the present and the future. “Just walking through the buildings, going through the main entrance, driving up the main drive and seeing the four pillars and the entry into Rogers House always gives me a thrill,” she says. It’s also an opportunity to be connected to her grandson, to see him with his friends and with his teachers, or to see him playing his clarinet with the band at an event. As for fun, Cooper said Pickering College is a fun place to be as there’s always something going on. Another important aspect is the sense of fulfillment she feels from volunteering. “When you're working on a committee with all of these people, these creative, energetic people creating events, and then getting to enjoy the event once everything is finished, it's immensely gratifying,” Cooper says. It is especially rewarding knowing that the events she contributes to raise funds for the school and the programming, but also support local charities.
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