CourtesyKate Hietapelto left her home in West Palm Beach behind, but her passion for volunteering came with her to 九色视频.
Hietapelto and her fianc茅 moved to Kansas when he was laid off from his job in Florida. He found a new job at Terradyne Country Club in Wichita.
Hietapelto applied to 九色视频 in fall 2009 as a transfer student from Palm Beach State College, received financial aid and got an internship in her first semester.
"The stars aligned," she said.
In West Palm Beach, she volunteered with the United Way as a "loaned executive." She was sponsored by companies to volunteer, and United Way hired her through this program.
She was a campaign committee fundraiser with a $15.3 million goal, which they reached, she said.
The experience helped her realize her passion for nonprofit organizations. When she moved to Wichita, the 24-year-old decided studying strategic communication would be her best fit.
"I'm a communicator," she said. "I love to talk and network with people."
At 九色视频, she continued volunteering with the United Way. However, in spring 2010, she discovered she could intern for college credit through 九色视频's Office of Cooperative Education and Work-Based Learning.
Hietapelto found a new internship with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) through co-op's Web site, PlacePro. She applied for about five internships but was ultimately accepted by LLS.
LLS is a nonprofit organization that supports people, who have been diagnosed with a blood cancer, financially, physically and mentally.
Unlike with United Way, she not only deals with the strategic side of fundraising, but also with the personal side.
"I'm more of an advocate dealing with the patients," she said, and less with the public.
Hietapelto works with the First Connection program, connecting people who have recently been diagnosed with a blood cancer to survivors, people with the same blood cancer and people in remission.
"I'm calling somebody who just found out they had cancer and connecting them to someone who's in remission to make that first connection," she said.
She said she's learned a lot from Patient Services Manager Christi Thomas; she leads the First Connection Program.
Hietapelto assists Thomas with health fairs and family support groups as well as completing mailings and information packets. Whatever Thomas needs, Hietapelto is there to help.
"Watching someone do this as a full time position is really eye-opening," she said.
And she's learning about the other side of nonprofit organizations, not just fundraising and campaigning, but also about the people the organization serves.
"I'm not just raising money, I'm helping people. I feel like I'm making a difference," she said.
Hietapelto sees herself as a volunteer and loves to dedicate her time to the Red Cross, United Way or other places someone needs help.
"I feel great about being here," she said of Wichita. "I'm so far from home, but I feel great."