April is Volunteer Appreciation Month. What better time to spotlight our HVAF employees as they share, in their own words, their unique volunteer experiences in the community. All month long, we’ll be sharing their stories on the HVAF blog.

Meet Rachel Brown. She’s Case Manager for HVAF’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program. (photo of Rachel with her husband Ryan)

When I resided in Terre Haute, I volunteered at the Lighthouse Mission which provides services to men, women and children who are need of food, shelter, and clothing. The specific location I volunteered at was for men only. Through volunteering, I was able to interact with the men staying at the shelter, attend chapel services with clients, serve meals to men at the shelter and families who would come to eat. I knew that I wanted to attend college and major in social work and volunteering at the Lighthouse Mission was one of my first experiences after making that decision. This experience made me realize even more that I enjoyed working with people. Being able to interact with the men at the shelter helped me to learn a lot about what the social work field brought. I love working in the social work profession and it allows me to learn something from every person that I come in contact with.