The New Member Community Experience

JLW New members are required to complete a Community Experience.  This is a chance to experience some of the great work JLW is doing in the community – usually in short volunteer projects that last between two and four hours.

The list of potential Community Experience projects to choose from is incredible, and shows how JLW is just everywhere in the Metro Washington area. New Members can select a Community Experience based on time constraints (they are available weekends, evenings, etc.), location (throughout the Metro DC area) and interest (many of the committees offer Community Experience projects).

I chose a weekend morning project last November that was coordinated through the Done in a Day Committee. My Community Experience shift was working at an American Girl Fashion Show to benefit the Prevention of Blindness Society. This experience was interesting to me frankly because I had been an American Girl doll devotee as a child and thought it would be fun to be a part of one of their fashion shows.

Fun was an understatement! I was assigned four girls to chaperone. They dressed in American Girl fashions, and I felt like a den mother to these wonderful young ladies who gave up their morning for a good cause (perhaps they are going to be future JLW members?). I met so many JLW members that morning and was amazed at how quickly the time flew by.

The greatest part of the experience was seeing Valerie Tripp, author of the American Girl “Molly” books. My Community Experience was a wonderful experience, and it hardly felt like work at all. Once again, I am just overwhelmed by the amazing opportunities my membership in JLW gives me.