Volunteer Spotlight: Teens

Volunteer Spotlight: Teen Volunteers from Summer of Discovery and Boulder Teen Advisory Board

Christine Burke

We have many committed teens who support the library. Throughout the pandemic, the Boulder Teen Advisory Board (BTAB) has continued to meet, led by staff Leanne Slater and Julian Ingram. Then, this summer, teens were our primary helpers to register the 4,135 Summer of Discovery (SOD) participants who logged over 2 million minutes!

Since January, 22 teens have volunteered 253 hours with BTAB, supporting multiple library programs and projects.

This summer, we had the help of 74 teen volunteers who helped at both Main and Meadows for the SOD program, and volunteered 1,062 hours, filling 559 separate shifts at both locations!

Keep reading to learn a little more about a few of our amazing teen volunteers.

Tell me a little bit about yourself—who you are, what you like to do?

I’m Chloe Manning, an incoming sophomore and a voracious reader! I love going on bike rides with my friends, crocheting, and baking.

I'm Pranav Kadekodi, and I'm a rising junior who attends Fairview High School. In my spare time, I like to read, and I like to make retro video games (Snake, Pac-Man, Pong, etc). My name is Christopher Smit and I am a Volunteer for the Boulder Teen Advisory Board (BTAB). I love aviation and plan to work in one of its sectors. I also swim and I watch soccer.

I’m Andrew Goldwasser. I am an 8th grader at Centennial Middle School. Not surprisingly, II love to read, I love all things related to aviation and planes, I play Minecraft, and I have a tendency to stay up late reading horror/romcoms!

Teen volunteers Chloe Manning and Bennett McDannell together at the SOD tables

Why did you decide to volunteer with the library?

Chloe: Looking back on what an astonishing difference reading has made and continues to make in my life, I realized I wanted to be a part of people discovering joy and passion for reading.

Pranav: I decided to volunteer with the library because Fairview's National Honor Society chapter recommended it to me as a non-stressful way to get volunteer hours while also getting the opportunity to meet new people.

Christopher: I decided to volunteer because I loved going to the library but because of COVID19 I had to stay home and I needed something to do so my mom found BTAB. I joined in May of 2020.

Andrew: I decided to volunteer at the library because of all the places to volunteer, it was the one that I could read the most at, as well as try to convince other people to read more. Also, it would be a good way to improve my social skills. Our fearless leaders for all things teens—Julian and Leanne—enjoying a restful moment in the Teen Space before the Teen Volunteer Appreciation Party in August.

What have you enjoyed most about your volunteer role this summer?

Chloe: Seeing how excited the kids got about reading and how proud of themselves they were! I loved making a couple of amazing friends and having long conversations with the person I was volunteering with.

Pranav: I enjoyed meeting other volunteers and getting to know them during my shifts.

Christopher: I have really enjoyed participating in events and helping organize the Summer of Discovery.

Andrew: I enjoyed being able to read tons more over the summer, as well as having the ability to talk with other people who share a lot of interests with me