Ann Van Sickel became a SaddleBrooke Community Outreach volunteer after relocating from Northern California in 2012. She and her husband, Jim, moved to SaddleBrooke to join their golfing friends, but she soon heard about the many volunteering opportunities in our community. Upon learning that Kids’ Closet was all about helping local children, her interest was piqued.
Since then, Ann has worked as a Kids’ Closet dresser helping children select and try on clothing, and an inventory re-stocker ensuring that students have many items from which to choose. As a merchandise receiver, Ann compares the items received against the vendor’s packing slip and SBCO purchase order, tags clothing with the correct bar code and then places them into bins for delivery to the Kids’ Closet facility in Mammoth.
As a result of wearing “many hats”, Ann has been involved in most of the steps Kids’ Closet uses to distribute clothes to local students in need. While she describes many of these tasks as “somewhat mundane,” she has found that working with other volunteers is very rewarding and makes her happy.
When asked if she has a memorable moment from her volunteer work, Ann replied: “Actually, I have such two such moments. The first was a somewhat stressful event when I had to help size a set of clothes for a young boy with a broken leg. The other moment occurs whenever the kids get their bags of clothing and are about to get on their buses. All together they say one big ‘thank you’— that is very satisfying!”
Ann has discovered that while helping a worthy organization is rewarding, volunteer work also helps her keep busy and provides a sense of accomplishment. She would encourage potential SBCO volunteers to “give it a try!”
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