A group of 105 teenage girls is learning to walk Tucson's philanthropic talk through Assisteens, an auxiliary of the Assistance League of Tucson.
"This is a great way for young women to start volunteering. Once they get the volunteer bug and see how they can help in the community, they usually continue to volunteer in whichever community they live in. Assisteens gives them a good foundation," said Susan Sellers, Assisteens coordinator.
The teens commit to the auxiliary as freshmen and serve throughout high school. Their signature program, "Assisteens Helping Tucson Teens," funds grants to Title I middle schools in four local school districts in art, music and physical education. The teens stage an annual spring fashion show to raise money to fund the grants.
"Teachers send in requests for everything from exercise bras to paintbrushes and paint canvases. One teacher asked for sheet music, and another had a lot of violins but couldn't afford strings, which break easily.
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"The girls select as many of the projects as we can fund with the money we make from the fashion show, and they are proud of what they can accomplish," Sellers said.
Assisteens also choose individual class programs: Seniors support Ben's Bells by making and delivering bells to chosen recipients; juniors and sophomores work with Project Linus to collect and make blankets for children in local hospitals; and freshmen collect personal items for women and children victims of sexual assault through Assault Survivors Kits.
The young volunteers also help with Operation School Bell, the Assistance League of Tucson program that provides new clothing, shoes, backpacks, hygiene kits and school supplies for local children in need.
"We fill a gap in the community. . . . We help children and families in need that fall through the cracks because they aren't qualified for other services," said Brenda Smith, chairwoman of the upcoming Tux 'n Boots fundraiser, honoring senior Assisteens.
The Assisteens experience has been extremely rewarding, said Grace Tooley, a senior at Catalina Foothills High School and chairman of Assisteens for 2010-11.
"It has exposed me to a lot of the silent hardships people face in our community that I was not otherwise aware of. I grew up pretty sheltered from the poverty that affects Tucson, and this has made me realize how fortunate I am. I have adopted the Assisteens mission for myself," Tooley said.
She has already researched community service opportunities in the cities where she has applied for college and plans to continue working with children's charities.
Grace's mother, Paula, believes Assisteens is effective because the diverse network of girls is able to experience the full cycle of philanthropy, from fundraising through hands-on contact with recipients of the aid. That fosters responsibility toward the community as well as self-respect, while inspiring creativity for solving problems in society.
"As a parent, I think the most important way to try to teach kids to give back to the community is for the child to do it," she said. "They have to participate and own it. It is about them and what they can do."
Contact freelance writer Loni Nannini at ninch2@comcast.net
