At the Children’s Foundation of America, we love our volunteers. Those who volunteer give their time to help us fulfill our mission to help children who have been victims of abuse, neglect or abandonment to heal, learn and thrive. We couldn’t do it without you! This month, we are featuring Aniketa Shinde, who has volunteered with us for two years.

Where do you live?

Duarte, CA

What are your favorite pastimes?

My hobbies include reading, hiking, biking, watching TV and movies, dancing, sewing and volunteering.

Where did you go to school and what was your major?

I went to UCLA for my undergraduate degree in Physics and UC Irvine for my doctoral degree in Physics.

What compelled you to volunteer for Children’s Foundation of America?

I grew up in Covina and went to Charter Oak High School. Now that I am back in the area I wanted to find ways to get back into the types of volunteering I did as a high school student. I remember having a lot of fun volunteer gift wrapping at the West Covina Mall (as it was known in the 1990’s) but I do not remember what organization it was for. In 2015, I was able to find gift wrapping opportunities on VolunteerMatch with Children’s Foundation of America.

What do you find most rewarding about volunteering at Children’s Foundation of America?

I find it very rewarding to provide a service to others (wrapping their gifts) while raising money for children in the foster care system. I enjoy the creativity of wrapping gifts and will never forgot the nonstop gift wrapping session on December 24, 2016. It was hectic and chaotic at times, but really fun as well.

Anything else you would like to share with your fellow volunteers?

I’ve had a great time gift wrapping the past two years. All of the volunteers I’ve worked with have been hard-working and easy to get along with, thank you!

Thanks to Aniketa for volunteering to Be the Difference. If you would like to volunteer at the Children’s Foundation of America, call 1-800-KIDS-730 or email volunteer@trinityys.org.