“We are here to add what we can to life, not to get what we can from life” – William Osler
“As long as you want to be there and want to help, anyone can volunteer.”
This summer, Clara Scaglione started volunteering with BCMOS as a Land Volunteer with its Paddling Program. She helps set up all the paddleboards and kayaks, making sure they are fitted with pontoons so that clients don’t have to worry about flipping over out on the water. Clara also helps guide clients into the kayak while the staff operates the lift. Setting up the paddleboard, she helps roll a special wheelchair onto the paddleboard and secures it to the board. She describes using “special poles that help guide the board into the water, and then use these same poles to hook onto the board and pull them out of the water when they are done paddling.”
As a Kinesiology student looking for volunteer opportunities, Clara was aware of adapted recreation and fitness which led her to discover BCMOS. Although she does not paddle or kayak herself, she saw that as a land volunteer, she didn’t need to know how and could still help. Clara says that this “sparked her interest as a way she could help out, and thought it was a really cool opportunity.” Interested in pursuing physiotherapy in the future, Clara loved how hands-on volunteering at BCMOS was. She was able to not only talk to a wide variety of people but also help get clients ready to go out on the water.
One of the main responsibilities of being a paddling land volunteer is ensuring that clients are comfortable and secure in the kayak and paddleboard seats. Clara uses different pieces of foam placed around the client, ensuring that they are sitting properly throughout the paddle: “We make sure to put a pad by their feet in the kayak so there is no chafing as well. It is not too big of a challenge, but I always want to make sure they are comfortable.” It is little things like this that make her role as a paddling land volunteer so important as she helps clients have the best experience possible out on the water.
When asked about what she would tell future volunteers Clara says, “you probably don’t need as much experience as you think.” As someone who was nervous to start, Clara quickly “learned a lot from our staff and through the orientation.” She recalls how awesome the program was and that once she started it became a lot less intimidating. Even “knowing all the correct terminology and lingo about paddling” was not as important as she thought. Clara says, “as long as you want to be there and want to help, anyone can do it.” The Paddling program also has an inviting happy environment among the staff, volunteers, and clients. Many times, clients who are not paddling that day will still come down to the docks to chat and say hi to everyone.
Thank you, Clara, for your dedication to BCMOS Paddling! We are so grateful to have had an amazing volunteer like yourself on the dock with us this summer.