National Volunteer Week: Celebrating The Volunteers Who Inspire Our Students

From tutoring and mentoring to job shadowings and career fairs, The Fresh Air Fund creates countless opportunities for students to connect with career professionals and explore potential career paths. These experiences would not be possible without the incredible volunteers who generously share their time, knowledge, and inspiration to encourage and uplift our students.  

In celebration of National Volunteer Week and in appreciation of the dedication our volunteers show to our students, we’re excited to highlight some of the incredible career professionals who participated in our annual Career Fair. 

Fiona Li Weisser 

Fiona Li Weisser, a Managing Director at Ernst & Young, LLP, led a case study activity with students and shared insights about pursuing a career in business consulting. 

“I try to find those impactful programs where I can really add value, and The Fresh Air Fund Career Fair is one that really caught my eye.  I love to talk to middle schoolers because I  think it’s an age where you can be a positive influence on what they think about the world and give inspiration about what they want to be when they grow up.”  

Anissa D’oyen 

“Volunteering is important to me because it’s important to pass it forward. It’s important to let the next generation know there’s endless possibilities for them. And I think The Fresh Air Fund does that in a great way.” 

Anissa D’Oyen, Special Events Manager at The Fresh Air Fund, led a session where she broke students into small groups and taught them how to brainstorm and plan events they would like to see at camp. 

“The Career Fair gives children a unique opportunity to see things they never thought of. Thinking back to my own childhood, I never knew there were so many avenues I could take with my career.” 

Amadeus Platinum 

Amadeus Platinum, a multi-platinum music producer from the Bronx, spoke with students about his upbringing and the challenges he faced pursuing a music career amid a lack of representation and inspiration. 

“As a child, I always wanted to go to The Fresh Air Fund summer camps. I love the fact that the students here can be part of such a great organization. This is my second time volunteering, and I’m always grateful for the call to be able to share my journey with the kids because no one really did it for me. It’s my opportunity to show up for the students and say, ‘Hey I’m just like you, I’m from where you’re from. I’ve struggled, I know the hardship and I know what you face every day.’  I just want to be a support system for them.” 

Shakima Figuera

Shakima Figuera spoke about her passion for providing free financial education and workshops to communities and how inspiring it was to connect with students, some of whom have already launched their own businesses. 

“In my role, I get to be the bridge between JPMorganChase, regular chase bank and the community. So, I get to work with and collaborate with nonprofits like Fresh Air Fund,” Shakima Figuera shared.  “My daughter used to be a participant of Fresh Air Fund. Volunteering is really important. It’s the law of reciprocity, of giving back, so it just brings me joy coming back to a space where my daughter was able to learn career building skills and college readiness.” 

Jeffrey Krebs

“I’m a physician’s assistant, and I work in a hospital. I get to talk to the kids about what I do, and how I got here,” said Jeffrey Krebs, who has volunteered with The Fresh Air Fund for two years. Jeffrey brought in sutures and surgical instruments to give students a hands-on demonstration of how to tie surgical knots. 

“Hopefully their biggest takeaway is it’s okay to not know what you want to do. It’s okay to figure out what you want to do and it’s okay that it’s a process.” 

Rebecca Ann Grodski 

Rebecca Ann Grodski, an occupational therapist, shared that many people aren’t aware of the wide range of careers in mental health beyond traditional talk therapy. 

“My passion for mental health came from being a middle schooler struggling with depression and anxiety and not getting the support I needed. My favorite thing to teach young people is also that it’s okay to not be okay, that they also deal with stress and anxiety, and there’s people there to help them,” she said.  

“A high point today was just seeing the aha moment in their eyes when they learned that there are many ways to get involved in mental health.” 

Tamiko White 

Tamiko White, a Fresh Air Fund alum, is an author, actress, host, and fashion entrepreneur. She shared how The Fresh Air Fund shaped her childhood and volunteered her time to teach students about the fashion industry, emphasizing that creative thinkers are in high demand. 

“I’m a huge advocate of camp. I know what The Fresh Air Fund did for my life. I’m a huge believer in what they do and their values. I’m here today to share that fashion influences everything. And no matter your skillset or passion, there is a career in the fashion industry. Or an industry that is seeking creative thinkers that they could find a job in.” 

Shariff Bukari 

Shariff Bukari is a Camp Mariah and Career Awareness Program alum who mentors students participating in the College Connections Program. After attending job shadowings and being introduced to a volunteer tutor, he began his own career in finance.  

“I would say my standout moment was hearing a child talking about a business plan or endeavors that they plan on going about. They had their own business model, what product they’d exactly sell.  And it was really encouraging to hear them talk about that. The more we are being there for these kids and teaching them the different ways to explore career opportunities and different ways they can be a benefit to society is all the better to not only us but to them as well.” 

Volunteers are essential to The Fresh Air Fund’s work, serving as mentors and role models for our students. The Fresh Air Fund is deeply grateful for their dedication and the vital role they play in our mission.