Medpedia

At Berkeley, one of my most unusual students was a psychology major named Sandy Tesch, who by then had risen through Red Cross volunteer ranks to be on their national youth council. A few years later she was head of the youth council. During college, she assumed that after she graduated, she would work for a non-profit. Now, however, she does fund-raising for the UC Berkeley library.

She won a post-graduate fellowship and during her fellowship year she met a woman who worked in fund-raising. She realized she liked it. Why? I asked. Because when you do fund-raising, you’re working with a lot of caring people, she said. They’re like the volunteers she worked with during her Red Cross years. Instead of giving time, they’re giving money.

Peter Hessler on Peace Corps volunteers.