Hoo Stories: A UVa Student Blog

So some of you following my blog might remember that in my first blog I had just accepted the opportunity to volunteer through Madison House Med Services at the UVA Medical Center/Hospital…. at 5:30AM on Monday mornings. Well I stuck with it all through the first semester and I am now continuing onto another semester. Luckily, I don’t have to walk all the way to the hospital in the morning, especially since it's dark and COLD. I catch a shuttle around 4:55/5:00AM in the Scott Stadium parking lot, which is pretty close to my dorm, Gooch-Dillard.  

Unfortunately, it’s pretty cold in Charlottesville right now, especially at 5:00AM.

However, you’ll eventually adjust to the temperature…or I should say you’ll adjust as best you can to the often-changing weather in the state of Virginia.

The organization that has provided me with this opportunity is MADISON HOUSE. Madison House is a non-profit organization that is run by students and helps to get students involved in philanthropic activities as well as helps to build student leaders. Madison House offers activities at 110+. Some of the activities they offer are Pet Pals, Athletics, Adopt-A-Grandparent, or even English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). It’s pretty easy to get involved with most of the groups because you just submit either an online application or a paper application in the office and then they let you know when you’ll be able to volunteer with the program.

 Madison House also provides students to gain leadership experience. Maybe after a year or two of experience with one of Madison House’s programs you can apply to be a Program Director (PD) or a Head Program Director. A Program Director is a student leader who coordinates volunteers, communicates with the Community Partners, and works with other Program Directors. The Head Program Director on the other hand oversees anywhere from 5-20 Program Directors. And although you probably don’t know much about these now (because I hadn’t even heard of Madison House when I got to UVA…) it’s important to know that there are countless ways to get involved at UVA and in volunteering activities on and off Grounds.

I would say Madison House is definitely a program to get involved with around Grounds. Whether you are looking to volunteer, gain experience, or want to be a leader it provides you with countless opportunities to accomplish any of those goals. I actually recently signed up to coach soccer to children ranging in ages from 4 to 6. I am so excited for that program to start in March and will hopefully even get to coach with one of my friends! So keep an eye out for Madison House and definitely check out UVA Activity Fairs for more programs and details!

Here’s the link for Madison House’s Website: http://www.madisonhouse.org

Also if you have any questions about UVA or want to know more about Madison House, feel free to shoot me an email at ler7pb@virginia.edu !