Volunteer Stories

A homeless child needs you!  And one hour a week is all you need to help her.  We've learned that being someone special to a homeless child doesn't take alot of time.  But the impact is enormous - for both of you!  Become a School on Wheels tutor and make a difference in your community.  Tutoring for School on Wheels is fun and one of the most rewarding experiences you will ever have. 

Volunteer tutors are the heart and soul of School on Wheels.  Our volunteers come from all backgrounds and professions with one goal: to make a positive difference in the life of a homeless student and to be a consistent positive role model.

Read about what motivated some of our volunteers to become School on Wheels' tutors. (photos and stories may not match)

Anna Kemp

   I grew up with my parents taking in Foster and Underprivileged children, and when I was 15 we adopted my sister. During my college years I spent a semester in the inner-city of Chicago getting an Urban Studies minor, and working with the homeless there. I have a huge heart for under-privileged children, and want to be involved in helping any way that I can. – Anna Kemp, Ventura.
Arlene McKinney

   I believe that all children should be given the chance to get a good education. They need to know that they are important and they can make a different in this world. – Arlene McKinney, Los Angeles
Ashley Van Kranenburg

   I believe education is very important and that every child makes a difference. When a person values education, they pass it down to their children, and their children's children. This begins a legacy of education within a family. Each generation has a better opportunity to succeed in their goals and dreams. My father’s family emigrated from Argentina to the United States in search of a better future. I am the only one in my family who has gone to college and now I am always telling my younger brother that he too can go to college and succeed. I didn’t let my family’s financial troubles stop me from pursuing a degree and I want to be an encouragement to other children who do not have as many opportunities as their fellow classmates. I have a heart for kids and I would love to make a difference in a child's life if given the opportunity. – Ashley Van Kranenburg, Santa Barbara
Ashley Wubben

   My biggest motivation has been my mother. She was a runaway, and went without a home for most of her teen years. There were many things she overcame, and it's amazing to see a group out there that's helping children overcome some of the same obstacles. I am also going to school to become a pediatrician, and I have never felt more strongly about anything than helping children and teens. School on Wheels shows its support for children and their families in many ways, and I want to be a part of that support system”. Ashley Wubben, Northridge
Dusty Fortune

   I plan to get my credentials and masters degree in education in the next couple of years and I would like to specialize literacy improving schooling for culturally diverse student populations. This program would be a perfect fit for my life goals and interests. I feel that education and especially literacy is essential to a successful society. As Plato once said, "The whole can not be well without the part." This program seems like the perfect opportunity to do my part while doing something that I am passionate about. Dusty Fortune , Santa Barbara
Jamie Larson

  
I entered college as an adult and had experienced poverty in my childhood and other difficulties in my adult life. Returning to school and pursuing an education has had a phenomenal impact on the improvement of my self esteem. I would love to have an opportunity to share even the smallest amount of that with a child. Education is so important to providing and equal footing for these young people as they grow into the world! – Jamie Larson, Port Hueneme
Matilde Menjivar

   As a member of the South Bay community, I feel it is my responsibility to help my fellow community members in the best way I can. This program interests me because it deals with two matters very close to my heart: education and children. I believe education is a core element in a successful, model citizen. Education is a ray of hope: it is a means of liberation. With an education these children will have the skills and confidence to better their lives and rise above their current situations. I would love nothing more than to be an encouraging, motivating force that helps produce positive effects in their lives.- Matilde Menjivar
Nicole Louis

   I've lived all of my life with the security of knowing that when the day is done, I'll always have a home to go home to, a meal that awaits me, and the necessary finances to support basic (and often pleasure) expenses. However, my parents, though never without a home, have gone through more than their fair share of financial and provisional uncertainties. They constantly remind me that if not for the education that their parents fought so hard to give to them, life would be much different.

My grandparents gave lifetimes worth of sweat and blood for the one thing that I (and I believe many people) take for granted; and that it is education. So with the education that's been granted to me, I hope to multiply the fruits of my parents' labor to those who need a little help by fighting alongside them in their battle for a chance at something grander; for a future filled with a huge home, excitement and security. I was given that chance and I would love to give that to others as well. Nicole Louis, San Marino
Shannon Lea Fogelmanis

   I have always wanted to do volunteer work with children. When I saw the opportunity, I knew that it was something I should be doing. – Shannon Lea Fogelmanis, Thousand Oaks
Vanessa

   Vanessa was seven when she became homeless. She was homeless for about three years and spent much of her childhood in poverty. She and her family moved up and down the east coast and eventually settled in Las Vegas, where she and her parents spent many days in Circus Circus parking lots because they had restroom facilities and free parking for their van. There were months when she didn’t go to school and times when she went to several schools in one year. It was difficult to make friends. Kids laughed at her sad clothes. She was deeply embarrassed about the way she lived. But in all that turmoil, she always excelled at school. For her, learning was like eating good food. And she was starving. Vanessa finished high school and college where she earned her Masters in Physics. For her, there was comfort in the defined structure of math. She wanted to find a place where she could contribute her skills for the best possible service, and to finally understand the greatest equation of all: 1 = 1 squared. She started teaching math and science in middle school, knowing firsthand how education can make a difference in a child’s life. Being in a position to help others and to see the results gave her hope. This was especially the case when she was one of our best tutors. After all, who knows better than Vanessa how education can move homeless children beyond their circumstances? Vanessa believes homeless children don’t get the targeted educational support they need. They don’t know how to access resources for help;
Vanessa knows things can be different. She also believes she can change them. So Vanessa is now studying to be an advocacy lawyer for homeless children.