DRAKE KAISER

Helping Others Help Themselves

           DRAKE KAISER

Graduate student Drake Kaiser has been volunteering for as long as he can remember.  For the past seven years he has volunteered at Charleston's 2-1-1 Hotline, a counseling service for people in need.  "Helping People Help Themselves" is the organization's motto.  The hotline serves as an information source as well as a suicide counseling service.  The volunteers are trained to help callers with questions about phone bills, house payments and referrals to other companies. 

Drake and the other volunteers at the 2-1-1 Hotline are trained in "active listening skills" that help
get callers talking about their problems, being attentive listeners, and helping callers come to their own conclusions-- and often solutions-- about the problems they are having. 

When not working at the hotline or studying for College of Charleston graduate school courses,
Drake works at the college as a transcript evaluator. 

Hometown:  El Paso, Texas    
Degree Objective:   Master's Degree candidate (his bachelor's degrees are in Comparative Religion and Linguistics)
Expected Graduation:   Spring 2005

Current volunteer activities:  Charleston's 2-1-1 Hotline, a community help service

What are you most proud of contributing to your organization?  I love to volunteer and the hotline is perfect for me because I like to help and I am good at it.  I found my strength and use it to its full potential.  For the hotline, you have to be able to listen.  This is another thing I am good at. 

Previous volunteer activities:  I previously volunteered at a hospital doing whatever needed to be done.  During school I was always on the ball, organizing Special Olympics or trips to help out in the community. 

What do you enjoy about community service?  I moved here to Charleston about seven years ago, and as soon as I did move, one of my friends recommended that I volunteer at the hotline.  The hotline helped me with the transition.  I met a whole new group of people and it helped me find my place in the community.  While I helped people by volunteering, the hotline also helped me.  I enjoy helping people by just listening.  I think people out there are lonely and need to talk. 

Most memorable volunteer experience:  The 2-1-1 Hotline is confidential, so I cannot share any specific details, but I will share that volunteering is always memorable. 

What have you learned about yourself through volunteering?  I see life more broadly since volunteering.  Volunteering is unpredictable; you never know what you are going to get when you pick up the phone.  I have learned how rewarding volunteering truly is.  Volunteering has helped me feel part of the community.

How do you think your friends or co-workers would describe you?  I think my friends at the hotline would describe me as "smarts with hearts." 

What would you tell someone who is thinking about volunteering?  Some reasons I think you should volunteer include all the skills you learn which will help you with your own interpersonal relations.  It is also a great help in the community.  It's a valuable experience and you get to meet great people. 

For more information about the 2-1-1 Hotline:  The website is 211help.org and the phone number is 2-1-1.