For my project I interviewed Mark Watanabe a youth area leader for SGI (Buddhist practice).  I interviewed him because I was interested in how he helps the youth in our community. What I learned from the interview was don’t let the obstacles get in your way and try your hardest to overcome them. I also learned how to help people and how to make differences in people’s lives. Some of his responsibilities are to set up meetings, encourage and help people overcome their challenges. This interview opened multiple opportunities for me in the future. It taught me how to start volunteering and help people with their daily challenges.  If I follow Mark’s footsteps I can connect with new people and to make new friendships. Here are the question i asked him:

 

Why are you passionate about your job?

I’m passionate about volunteering because I am able to make differences in people’s lives. Our focus is to always encourage and help people overcome their challenges, so when I hear and see people’s victories, it’s a satisfaction like none other.

What obstacles have you faced to get where you are today?

There was a lot of personal obstacles to overcome to be where I am today. I was never comfortable with talking in front of others or having conversations with people I didn’t know. By volunteering, I was able to get over these insecurities, which helped me in the long-run. These obstacles are always internal, as growing and developing as a person can only be built internally.

 

What advice would you pass on to someone interested in what you are doing?

I would tell them to be open and honest. People can tell when something is not genuine.
You also don’t have to know everything. You just need to listen to what others are sharing, and understand.
This helps me plan our events or is a compass on how I communicate with others.

Would you be open to further contact from Riverside students and if so, how can someone contact you?

I would be open. Would prefer if they go through Leo first.

How did you get interested?

Above everything that I enjoy from participating, I always get to meet new people and create new friendships. This is how I started too. I was volunteering when I was 20, and remember I didn’t really enjoy the activity, but made so many connections. That’s why I continued.

How long have you been volunteering for?

I’ve been volunteering for 15 years.

Community Connection Alternate

http://seniors.nikkeiplace.org/need-volunteers/

The volunteer program that I found was Nikkei center seniors volunteer. For this volunteer program i would be helping seniors with their daily life,  helping people who are living with dementia, and instructing slow paced activities. This volunteer opportunity can benefit my future because I can get a reference letter, I can network with members of the community, I can also get experience working with seniors for your futur career, and it is a great opportunity for me to learn the Japanese culture and Japanese language.  I am passionate about getting involved in this field because every week I go to Japanese school and I think it would be pretty cool if I can get to practice my Japanese while giving back to the community.

I got this picture from their website http://seniors.nikkeiplace.org/need-volunteers/

Referees

The employment opportunity I am researching in my community is Poco soccer referee. This employment would benefit my future since i would not only gain leadership skill but also better judgment. For this employment you will need to take a couse to be qualified to referee. I think that the current and qualifications I bring to this job is my knowledge of soccer. I’ve been playing soccer for over 5 years so I feel like I have pretty good knowledge on this sport. The only steps  that you need to do is to take and pass a soccer referee course, and there is also an age requirement of 13 years old.

I got this picture from pexels and it was taken by Noelle Otto