This National Volunteer Week, we’re featuring our team in green!
This past year, we had over 400 incredible individuals donate their time in our office, events, and programs across BC.
One of those volunteers is Sam Weston in Victoria.
After benefiting from CAN programs as a participant for a number of years, Sam recently joined our volunteer team! This past summer, he supported our partnered day camp with the University of Victoria.
As our programs switched to weekly lessons in the fall, he signed up to support CAN swim. Since October, he’s been in the pool every week, helping participants learn life-saving swimming skills!
Before his latest session at Esquimalt Recreation Centre, we caught up with Sam to talk about volunteering.
What motivated you to sign up to volunteer?
I had a lot of fun with CAN when I was younger. And now I get to help other kids have fun. I thought it was a fun way to re-live CAN in a different way.
What is one of your favourite memories as a CAN volunteer?
There are many memories to choose from. In programs, we play a game called “staff vs participants”. When the staff and volunteers are trying too hard, we have a secret hand signal to tell each other to back off. It might have worked, because the participants ended up winning the game.
What would you say to someone who is interested, but unsure about volunteering?
It’s a fun experience. You’re expected to do more and treat the kids well. Volunteering for CAN has lots of different roles and tasks to choose from, from setting up the lane ropes to setting up the visual aids.
Anything else you want to add?
I like volunteering, and CAN is a good opportunity to do that!
Thank you to Sam and so many volunteers like him who give back so passionately in our programs!
Want to make a difference in your community? We are currently recruiting volunteers for summer day camps across Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Kamloops, Kelowna, Nanaimo, and Victoria.
Learn more and apply at canucksautism.ca/volunteer!