Retiree expands cultural horizons ....................Tara Erwin

Retiree finds adventure in lifelong learning

Assisting refugees expands cultural horizons

BY TARA ERWIN

For Chera Apruzzese Thompson, life has always been an adventure. Since retirement, she’s discovered that volunteering is a great way to continue it. “Volunteering has enabled me to try new things in arenas I have always wondered about,” she says. “These experiences have brought me new friends, a sense of fulfillment, and lifelong learning.”

Thompson, who grew up in Los Angeles and lived in Ohio before moving with her husband and two children to Buffalo more than twentyfive years ago, donates her time and skills to area nonprofits such as Operation Good Neighbor, Explore Buffalo, Paws for Love, Stitch Buffalo, Shea’s, and Tifft Nature Center. Nearest and dearest to her heart, however, is International Institute of Buffalo (IIB), where she’s been a Job Club Instructor and a Tutor Trainer for the Home English Language Learners

Chera Apruzzese Thompson volunteers as an English tutor

with the International Institute of Buffalo. Photo courtesy of Ned Miller

Outreach (HELLO) Program. Both IIB volunteer opportunities are perfect for Thompson, who taught ESL to adult refugees for BOCES and the Buffalo Public Schools before retiring in 2017.

IIB’s mission is to make Western New York a better place for, and because of, immigrants and refugees. Its Job Club prepares clients for the workforce by helping with resumes, teaching about work safety, and transitioning their professional and personal lives. The HELLO Program offers homebound students, typically women with young children or the elderly, basic English instruction to help to navigate their new community.

Thompson’s always loved travel and experiencing different cultures. In fact, she worked for American Airlines before earning her Masters degree in Adult Education/ESL in her fifties. Before she moved to Buffalo, her husband’s job had them living in Hungary and Australia. And the couple has traveled with Habitat for Humanity and Fuller Center Global Builds as well.

“I love teaching and engaging with Buffalo’s refugee population because it lets me engage with different cultures

on their home turf,” Thompson says. Her tenure with IIB began shortly after her arrival in Buffalo. Even during the pandemic, she still taught via video apps, which she described as “challenging, but manageable.” (According to the IIB, exposure to a new language for just two hours per week makes a radical difference in language acquisition.)

Volunteering has given Thompson more than she’s given it, she says, and she urges anyone—retired or not— to be of service. “It’s a way to learn something new or explore a hobby or interest,” she points out. It’s also an ideal way to make friends and become more familiar with the region.

“When you move to a new place and don’t have any friends or family nearby, volunteering really brings socializing and friendships to the forefront,” she said. “It’s easy to form a bond with others involved in an organization because you’re all interested in the same thing. Some volunteers devote time and skills above and beyond what is asked of them and maintain a long-term commitment to the organization they volunteer with.”

In a full circle moment, Thompson, who kept her maiden name as a shout out to her immigrant grandparents, recently learned her Sicilian grandmother lived in Buffalo for three years before moving to Cleveland’s Little Italy. “This was a huge surprise to my entire family as we had only heard Cleveland stories,” she said. “Now I understand why it was love at first sight for me and my adopted city. I am proud to have Buffalonian roots!”

Editor’s note: Commitment to the HELLO Program is flexible, but usually around two hours a week over a twelveweek period, and volunteers need not have any prior teaching experience. Anyone interested in becoming a HELLO volunteer or any other volunteering opportunities with the IIB can email volunteers@iibuff.org.

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Tara Erwin lives and writes in Western New York.