My Take-Aways: Volunteering at Tufts Edition
My experiences at Tufts Medical Center and what I got from it!
Welcome to the first edition of my unique Take-Away section of my blogging journey! In this series, I use a bullet point format to effectively share my personal experiences and "take-aways" (as the title suggests) from my extracurriculars, school, and academic journeys. Today, I will start off with one of the most impactful ec's on my life: volunteering at Tufts Medical Center.
It's takes the #2 spot on the common app activity section and my personal statement topic for a reason.
Stepping foot on the front steps the medical center with my badge wrapped around my neck brought me a slight sense of excitement and wonder into what would actually happen at this place. Stepping out of Tufts, I came out as a completely new person, full of memories that still have place in my heart to this day. Here are my takeaways:
As an in-patient escort, I led patients to medical departments. The labyrinth of facilities and the plethora of rooms were almost like a path I took, gaining experiences and meeting new people along the way.
I learned which floors had the most people, so I would wait patiently in the 1st and 3rd floors for people to escort. I loved going to the GI Unit (Gastro and Endo Room) and the Urology Unit even though the latter was quite a trip to reach. The Atrium section and the Proger building were surely the busiest, so most of my escorting were done in those two buildings.
Tufts taught me three values: Empathy, Communication, and Friendship. The three are all intermingled within each other.
As I conversed (communication) with new volunteers, workers, and patients, I formed a bond with people I never knew before, but through kindness and empathy, I could be a friend to anyone I encountered. I befriended a cashier lady in the Atrium 3rd Floor, a piano player, two ladies at the main front desk, and even several volunteers who some still snap me to this day. The amount of connections I made at Tufts redefined the meaning of friendship to me: it taught me that friends don't only come from school and sports. I listened to stories about the cashier's daughter's college tuition, the piano player's love patriotic songs, and the diverse cultural backgrounds of Hong Kong and Poland from the two front desk ladies. I even bonded with the 1st floor chef in the kitchen; he didn't talk much but he always smiled warmly. As I communicated with my new friends, I got more closer with them, so my last day was really emotional for me.
I learned life skills I never knew before. I became more independent and I gained more worldly knowledge and experience. I attempted to place a broken car seat in a car for a non-English-speaking patient, scanned parking tickets, and even used a debit card for the first time. These skills were something I never were used to before, and through this volunteering opportunity, I became furnished with my newly gained life skills.
I also had fun with my newly made volunteer friends. One time, we literally played hide-and-seek, sending 3 pictures as clues for the "seeker" to find the "hiders". Sometimes I crouched in the Floating Building or hid in the garage. Though these leisurely activities were not too professional, the small games we played formed lasting memories in my mind that helped me bond more deeply with the friends I made.
To me, Tufts means more than just escorting and patient assistance, it opened up my medical knowledge, led me to new friends, and allowed me to come out of it as a changed person. I confidently say that volunteering at Tufts was one of those extracurricular experiences I truly will never regret nor forget.
(Below are some pics I took at Tufts!)
