Joshua Li, better known as Josh around Circles, has been volunteering at Circles for only a short amount of time with the children’s program, but he is already fitting in well with both students and teachers alike. He comes to the Circles children’s program after searching for ways to get more involved with the community and children specifically. It seems clear that his friend Tiffany has also played a large part in getting him involved with the program, as she originally found the opportunity and told Josh he should consider joining her.

Josh is a student at the University of Michigan who is also working part-time through the university and volunteering at a few other places. He’s a busy guy but has prioritized working with the program because he feels it’s really cohesive, both with the children and the parents who serve as Leaders in the adult Circles program. He also really likes that the curriculum provides guidance for teachers but also allows enough room for them to be creative and meet the students where they’re at.

Since Josh is still new to the program, he is still learning the ropes. So far though, he really enjoyed the emotions section of the program and is excited to get to the financial literacy section. Josh really enjoys that the children’s program is set up to parallel some of the things their parents are learning in the adult Circles program, and he feels the program as a whole is really important and effective in its goal to help lift people out of poverty.

Josh’s desire to learn and be authentically himself makes him a perfect match for the Circles teacher role that he’s in. Currently, he works in the elementary age classroom where his desire to learn and grow will be so beneficial to the students in that age-range. In case you didn’t know, elementary school-aged kids are often very high-energy, so finding healthy outlets for them to express and expel that energy is key. That’s where Josh comes in. His advice to the younger generation is to always have something you’re passionate about, no matter what other people think. Josh’s passion is map-making. If you’re curious, you should ask him more about it; who knows, maybe you’ll start creating your own maps after hearing how passionate he is!

Josh—thank you for all of your hard work so far! Without volunteers like you, the Circles children’s program would not be so beneficial and successful. We look forward to seeing what your continued support and care will provide to the many families involved in the Circles program.

One of the benefits of being an older college student is a deeper appreciation you get from the new experiences that you may have taken for granted as a fresh-faced teenager. Having taken time off from school before my second-go-round, I was in the workforce for several years and dealt with the hardships of making ends meet as I began work at an entry-level position with little experience and no degree. So, as I entered my final semester of school at Eastern Michigan University, my Communication Capstone class offered all of us the chance to volunteer at a non-profit organization in our community and assist in a communication-related role. I had previously heard about Friends In Deed through my professor and remembered a friend telling me how he had dropped a couch off at FID and what a cool mission they were serving in the community.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I first showed up at FID, but I soon learned that they do far more than just accept donated furniture. I was told all about the Circles program, and I could tell from everybody’s voices just how proud they were of the work they had been doing. Circles is a really neat program that goes above and beyond the typical charitable work of donating money or a few hours here and there. The fact that real, genuine time is being spent by people from all walks of life to help neighbors and fellow community members was really inspiring. And then I started talking to volunteers to profile them and that opened my eyes even more.

The quality of people involved with FID is second to none. In the roughly ten weeks or so that I’ve been profiling FID volunteers, I have been so impressed with how dedicated the people are and how truly thrilled they are to be doing the work they’re doing. I could see it in people’s eyes, hear it in their voices, and even in an exchange over e-mail I could sense the passion in reading their typed words. All the people I spoke with truly believed in the work they were doing and the difference it was making. From an eighteen-month commitment for Circles allies to the weekly dinners at St. Luke’s, this was so much more than writing a check every few months. These people put forth their time and energy to help less fortunate members of their community. They sat with them and talked, mentored, cried, hugged, and, most importantly, listened. Every person I talked to stressed that they learned so much about poverty, about their community and themselves by hearing the stories of those less fortunate.

As I wrap up my college career and re-enter myself into the workforce, I consider myself lucky to have met the people I have met through FID and Circles the last few weeks. I’ve talked with my wife about the two of us spending more time volunteering, as her company has excellent partnerships with organizations in the community. While I just got a small look at the work FID and Circles do, I am really grateful to have had the opportunity to speak candidly with so many fantastic people. In a time when people in our country seem pitted against each other at every turn, it’s been really refreshing to witness such kindness and compassion from people right here in my own community.

For over sixteen years, Ann Bogits (center) has been volunteering her time and energy to work with Friends In Deed. She has spent time as the chairperson for the Annual Dinner Committee and spent three years on the board all while being a regular donor throughout her time working with the organization. She is equal parts impressed and proud with the growth FID has achieved over the years, and she counts herself lucky to have witnessed it first-hand.

“I love how Friends In Deed has expanded its role over the years to further meet needs all the while staying true to the mission. It’s also really inspiring to see how everyone I have ever met through FID truly wants to serve. I have seen people who were once clients go on to become volunteers, and that’s really special.”

Ann first joined FID after hearing about the work that was being done through her church. She says she was drawn to FID by the mission to help the underserved in the community and joined the board as a representative from her church after being asked by the head of social ministries. She was thrilled with her decision from the get-go, and she has never looked back—crediting her time spent volunteering with making her a more grateful person.

“Once I joined the board, I was really impressed by how much of the budget goes to serve the clients’ needs, as I had heard about a lot of nonprofits with surprisingly low numbers due to high overhead. My sales pitch to someone thinking about volunteering their time would be that this is a humble organization that truly treats its clients as friends, not people to be pitied. And that FID is the best opportunity in this community for people to not just survive but to thrive. And who wouldn’t want to be a part of that?”

As an occupational therapist at St. Joe’s hospital, Ann has referred some of her patients to FID when she saw they would benefit from everything FID could offer them. Having lived in the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti area for twenty-one years, she’s witnessed scores of people from her backyard bond across socioeconomic levels in ways a lot of people never get to do.