Giving Back!

Although the exam season is upon us, you can’t help but feel that tingle of holiday joy in the month of December. Whether it’s organizing gatherings to see friends and family, exchanging gifts or taking some time off to relax, these are all aspects of the holidays that we enjoy. However, there is one important part of the holiday season which I look forward to, and that’s giving back to the community! This year I’m planning to volunteer a couple of hours of my time at the Yonge Street Mission (YSM). The Yonge Street Mission is a local charity dedicated to providing food and shelter to the less fortunate in the Toronto community. This year, I will be volunteering at YSM's “Food Market”, where I’ll help with the organization and distribution of the food donations to YSM's clients. Last year, I volunteered at the ornament sale with YSM and had a lot of fun interacting with the public all the while helping those in need. I enjoy these volunteering experiences because it allows you to give back to the community. In addition, through my studies I have become aware that there are systemic factors in society that can deprive individuals from basic needs such as food and shelter. This is commonly seen at the most intimate level, the community. I feel it is important that these disadvantaged individuals are given some form of aid and assistance. Volunteering a few hours out of my day is the least I can do to help out those who need it most. The volunteer experience that I’m partaking in is being organized by a club in at the Faculty of Pharmacy called the Pharmacy Student Service Team (PhaSST). This student club organizes community outreach initiatives to inspire social and community integration in pharmacy students. I’m definitely looking forward to volunteering with them again this year! In short, I encourage many of you to consider volunteering a couple of hours of your time at a local charity to give back this holiday season! I really hope you do! Happy Holidays!