February Volunteer Spotlight: Eleanor Schorre
What motivates you to volunteer? I’ve always enjoyed the community that is built around a volunteer organization. A place created by so much giving - of time, appreciation, care, and of course donations - is rarely a bad place to be. Why ACR? A thrift-type store for craft supplies?! I was hooked as a shopper immediately. After shopping for a bit, I noticed that there might be some need for organizing help, which is something I love to do! How long have you volunteered with ACR? I started volunteering in early 2019, so just over a year. Are you more into the arts aspect of ACR or the conservation aspect and why?I came in primarily for the arts aspect, though I’ve always enjoyed finding reuse through art and creativity. I grew up surrounded by artists and creatives of all sorts and I’d gotten out of the creative mindset somewhat because life happens. Through ACR I’ve found that spirit again, as well as a newfound appreciation for conservation and reuse beyond the usual recycling programs. Where else have/do you volunteer? I currently don’t volunteer anywhere else but I spent a lot of time in college volunteering for Autism Speaks. What do you enjoy the most out of volunteering at ACR? Sorting and organizing mainly - seeing all the donations that come in also exposes me to so many things I’ve never seen before and allows me to learn about new types of craft and new uses for ordinary things. Do you have any interesting or funny stories about something that happened while you were volunteering at ACR?I started volunteering shortly after I got engaged. Many things I found at ACR showed up as decorations at our wedding, most importantly the majority of the ribbon for our 5’ by 7’ ceremony backdrop. A lot of the things we used either have been or will be re-donated, but I’m keeping that backdrop! Thank you, Eleanor, for all that you do to help Austin Creative Reuse continue to grow! Interested in joining our volunteer community? Visit the Get Involved section of our website today!