MSFS students took time away from their books on Saturday, Feb. 2 to spend the morning ice skating with kids from Hearst Elementary School in Tenleytown. The morning event was sponsored by Big Buddies, a student group that pairs MSFS students with at-risk youth for activities that are both fun and educational. This event was organized by Big Buddies’ Delana Lensgraf (’13), Mike Stock (’13) and Betsy Wendt, a youth counselor at Hearst Elementary.
Wendt says the program is designed to reach kids that need a little extra help, and teach them some important life lessons. “It’s usually children who come from single-parent families, who have some behavior issues, and who need some one-on-one time with adults,” she said. “They’ll get some more self-respect through the activities, and they’ll burn some energy and feel good about themselves. It’s all about self-esteem, and it’s a chance to give them some opportunities that they wouldn’t otherwise have.”
“This program has been run by Betsy for 12 years,” said Lensgraf. “She’s really the heart and soul of it. She’s so dedicated to helping children; she’s a wonderful counselor, and she knows exactly what types of kids need a little extra attention and a little extra fun.”
And what do the kids think? According to all reports, the day was a rousing success. Xavier Perry, 10 years old, said it was his first time skating: “It was good to be on the ice and it was cool hanging out with Arno [Gasteiger (’14)]; he’s cool.” Jasmine Nicole Meyers, 9 years old, shared Perry’s sentiments: “I went ice skating with my buddy Becky [Farmer (’13)]. My favorite part of the day was when I was able to get the hang of skating. I’ve been skating before, but only once.”
Bethel Eyob, 10 years old, had more to say about the experience: “I want to thank the Georgetown Buddies, because they were really nice. They helped a lot. I wasn’t really good at skating. I fell a couple times, but I got back up. Carmen [Muñoz (’13)] helped me a lot. She’s a really good person, and she’s really friendly.”
But it wasn’t just the kids having all the fun, the MSFSers had a good time too. “It was fun to spend a day with kids, to be outdoors and to see how happy they were,” said Gasteiger. “My little buddy Xavier ice skated for the first time today, so I had to teach him how to balance his weight and how to use the skates. In the end he was able to do a full lap by himself without any help, so that’s pretty amazing.”
The experience wasn’t just about ice skating. Nina Shaw, 9 years old, said she learned an important lesson: “My favorite part of the day was when I gave away a penguin [a tool for new skaters] to make another kid feel happy. He didn’t know how to skate. It made me feel really happy that I was helping someone.”
Keeping perspective on what’s really important is key, especially for MSFS students, many of whom have a full course load during the semester. “I used to be a teacher; I did Teach for America for three years,” said Lensgraf. “Activities like this are just good reminders that it’s not all about studying and our careers and ourselves, it’s more about the wider community and giving back a little bit.”