THE VOLUNTEER SPIRIT
Saluting Student Service at the College of Charleston
MOLLY PALMER
For this Caring Student Helping Victims is PAR for the Course

by Laura Ross


Molly Palmer
MOLLY PALMER

Molly Palmer is a senior at the College of Charleston, majoring in Media Communications.  In her Human Sexuality class this semester, Molly became interested in Charleston 's People Against Rape (PAR), which is a trained volunteer group.  In the class, students are required to participate in a volunteer activity from a list given by their professor.  Molly decided on PAR because it is “more hands on and involved than any of the other options.”  To become a volunteer for PAR, volunteers are required to take a 22 hour, two week training class before helping rape victims.  As a volunteer, Molly helps counsel rape victims while they are in the hospital and she helps them understand the procedures and the other doctors' and officials' involvement during the initial visit.  After working with PAR for a year and graduating, she hopes to go into “TV production and broadcasting with a focus on human interest stories to help educate the public about social issues."


 
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Degree Objective: Media Communication
Expected Graduation: Spring 2005
Current Volunteer Activities:  People Against Rape (PAR)
What do you enjoy about community service?  Being able to give back and contribute to programs that are there for everyone.
What is your most memorable volunteer experience?  Gaining a connection with a victim and having breakthroughs from past experiences that help to start to deal with past issues.
What have you learned about yourself through volunteering?  I think that I am a good listener and that I am emotionally capable of hearing tough things and being a strong source of support for people.
How do you think that your friends or co-workers would describe you?    That I am trustworthy and have a sense of humor and can be a good friend.
What would you tell someone who is thinking of volunteering?  That volunteering is extremely rewarding and you get just as much out of it as the people that you are helping and that you can be there for someone when they really need you.
What is the contact information for your volunteer organization?   People Against Rape (PAR).  The phone number is (843) 745-0144 and the website is coming in January, 2005.

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