Mita Patel, Heart House Austin

Mita and Sunil Patel at the Great Wall of China

Mita Patel and her husband Sunil joined the Heart House family in August of 2002 when, as newlyweds, they were looking for a charity to “adopt”. Mita has been an active volunteer since then. Sunil, Mita’s husband, also volunteered at Heart House until he was hired to a time-consuming new job. Mita says that her most memorable experiences at Heart House occurred when Sunil came to volunteer with her. As a result of the time they spent volunteering together at Heart House, Mita and Sunil have given much thought to one day having children of their own. They first decided to adopt a puppy and go from there. 

Mita spends a lot of her time with the new puppy. When she isn’t volunteering, or taking the dog on a walk, she attends art classes. Mita is very passionate about art and wants to start a creative career in interior design. 

At Heart House, Mita uses her creativity to help with the kindergarten and first graders. This energetic group of children has learned a lot from Ms. Mita. She helps them with homework, reads with them and teaches them about being good citizens. Because Mita has been a volunteer at Heart House since we opened, she has developed a keen ability to know exactly what is needed. Her dedication and long standing commitment are huge assets to the program- especially to the K and 1st graders. Program Leader for the K/1st graders, Vicki Sicola says, “Mita is always on time, willing to stay late if needed, and is extremely attentive to the children’s needs. And, the kids LOVE her!” The entire Heart House staff sincerely appreciates Mita’s continuous support of our program. 

Sara Cunningham

Sara Cunningham, Heart House Dallas 

Heart House Dallas beams its next Volunteer Spotlight on Sara Cunningham, a very familiar face at Heart House Village of Royal Oaks. Sara is completing her sophomore year at SMU, with an Economics and Financial Consulting Major. Her involvement with Heart House began in September of 2002 through SMU’s ICE tutoring program. She has also volunteered with the Texas Beach Clean-Up; the Vacation Bible School at her home church in Alvin, Texas; and SMU Rides (which provides taxis for SMU students from 10-3a.m.).

The Program Leaders value Sara for her reliability, sense of responsibility, intelligence, and initiative. They feel that she is their peer, and could easily handle the children, all by herself, with no direction. Sara’s longevity and stability as a volunteer can be attributed to many things. Sara says, “About ten seconds after I walked through the door, I fell in love with the kids at the Heart House, and they’ve had my heart ever since. In their innocent, happy way, they provide me with a dose of reality that I believe we all need sometimes, especially those of us who have led fairly comfortable lives. I think usually they teach me more than I teach them. Also, it seems to never hurt to have an extra volunteer to help out, so I am happy to fill a need. But more so, because it enriches my life.”

Through her ongoing and caring involvement, Sara hopes to be able to convey to these kids that they “are smart enough, talented enough to anything that they want to do, that they can overcome anything, beginning with their social studies homework. I also hope that they realize that they are valuable to me and that they are loved.”

She cherishes the hugs, gifts of amateur art, and special moments along the way. Sara described to us one such moment:
“A couple of weeks ago, while the older kids were having time out on the playground, one of the fifth graders sat down by me and began telling me about what boy she ‘liked’ and the woes of fifth grade gossip. Although I’m sure it was not a life changing moment for her, to me, to have the trust and friendship of a 10 year old was priceless.”

Thank you Sara!

Whether working directly with the children or providing technical or administrative expertise in the background, your help is needed!  Check out our website and volunteer opportunities or fill out an on-line application today!

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