Volunteer In Education, Volunteer: Pat Rodrigues
It’s National Volunteer Week and today we are putting the spotlight on Volunteer In Education volunteer, Pat Rodrigues. Pat was born in Liverpool and educated in England. Pat’s first degree was in zoology. She went as a VSO volunteer to work in Kenya on pesticide pollution where she met her husband Caje, another Zoologist. After 6 years they emigrated to Canada in 1974 where Caje continued with post grad degrees and Pat switched to do a degree in physiotherapy. She worked as a physio for over 30 years before retiring in 2015. She has two children who fortunately live in Ottawa.
“Pat is absolutely amazing with the students. She is incredibly supportive and brings a wonderful sense of excitement and energy to math, which really helps engage the kids. She’s patient, kind, and works exceptionally well even with our most challenging students. Her positive impact on the learning environment is clear, and we’re so lucky to have her at Sawmill Creek ES.” – Teacher, Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
“Ms. Pat has been a great help during math class. She makes the kids laugh by telling them jokes. She brings in food for them when we have celebrations. She is great when working with a small group of students or one on one with a student. Overall, the students really like her and are upset when she is away.
– Teacher, Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
“Pat is a wonderful volunteer who has encouraged my son and changed his outlook on going to school. He looks forward to working with her and is feeling more confident about the subjects he finds difficult. From what I hear, all the kids love her – and we think she’s fantastic!” – Parent
What made you decide to volunteer with the Ottawa Network for Education’s VIE program?
After retiring and dealing with having my knees replaced, I started to find I needed something useful to do and tried to figure out where I could help. There are a lot of elementary schools in my area and I thought that would be interesting. When my kids were in school, I used to volunteer on the parents committees in the schools.
When you were in school, who was your favourite teacher and why?
To be honest it’s 60 years since I graduated high school. I went to at least 6 different schools (my dad was in the RAF) so I don’t remember a particular teacher.
How do you balance your volunteer work with your personal and/or professional life?
As we are able to choose how many hours, when we want to volunteer, and have many options in the different schools and subjects, I find it is easy to fit it in with my home and exercise schedule.
What unexpected lessons have you learned through your volunteer experiences?
Volunteering with a class of 10 year olds has actually been hilarious. I’m 77 and this seems to surprise them. They are convinced I dye my hair white and insisted on checking my roots! They have had to teach me how to ‘high five’ properly (they were very patient) and how to use a Mac Book as well as educate me on current soccer hero’s and other sports figures. I have had to convince them that they will not die from math despite their groans and panic each time a new concept is introduced.
What would you say to someone who is considering volunteering but feels hesitant?
If you are thinking of volunteering with ONFE but not sure what you could do I would say do not undervalue yourself. You have a lot to offer, and if you are older like me, a calming older person can really help a child who is panicking or see themselves of lesser value because they are having problems reading, writing or doing math, etc. You have a lifetime of experience to draw on to help them feel successful and valuable as a person.
