Leadership Through Serving the Community

HES 275 Response 7/30/2013 Temporary Emergency Services Tuscaloosa How Helping Others Has Helped Me I am currently a senior on track to graduate in May 2014. All my life I have been told that I am a fairly nice person who is always willing to help others out and do so without hesitation. However, upon registering for classes this summer I realized that I have not really utilized this characteristic to the fullest. Thus, I decided to enroll in this class. I expected to do some volunteer work and knew that, despite it being for a class, it is just a good thing to do. What I did not expect was how much I would learn and takeaway from this experience and how much it has affected my life in a positive way. The nonprofit organization I chose to volunteer at is Temporary Emergency Services Inc. (TES) located on 15thstreet here in Tuscaloosa. Their Mission statement reads as follows: “Temporary Emergency Services Inc. (TES) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping individuals and families in crisis situations. Churches in the Tuscaloosa Community funded TES in 1945 to serve clients unable to receive assistance from local social services agencies. TES and the Thrift Store serve residents of Tuscaloosa County on an as need basis. TES receives donations from United Way, local business, churches, and individuals. TES assists individuals and families in crisis situations in order to allow the clients to survive the immediate crisis they are encountering. TES operates its programs efficiently and effectively, thereby maximizing its limited resources, and the productivity of its employees. TES utilizes programs and services that have been successful for other public, private, and nonprofit organizations. “

This statement can be found on their website, however it is a very broad description of everything TES does for those in need. As the mission statement states, TES assists those in crisis situations to allow the clients to survive the immediate crisis they are...