Our 2022 Volunteers of the Year

826 Boston volunteers are treasured Assistant Researchers here at the Greater Boston Bigfoot Research Institute. They fearlessly guide and care for Student Researchers who’ve been at the helm of all our extraordinary discoveries. Their tireless dedication proves just how much this work means to them. It’s been a rough year for cryptozoology. Unexpected procedure changes, new strategies to try, and constantly updated formulas made this year especially different and prone to change. Research can sometimes take unexpected turns, but volunteers’ consistency and adaptability gave way for our team to continue to innovate programs that reflect the needs of students and educators we work with.

Thanks to their support, the 2021-2022 school year has been filled with many new programs and publications, including:

• Releasing 19 student publications and counting, including the digital and physical publication I Was Meant for This, and Burke Writers’ Room’s first publication in partnership with Becoming a Man (BAM), Lift Ev’ry Voice: Narratives and Poems on Manhood.
• Volunteers continue to be endlessly flexible when best accommodating individual student needs, no matter what subject students brought to the sessions, by adapting to various learning styles and incorporating student interests when choosing meaningful activities to work on.
• A series of Supplemental Volunteer Trainings focused on honing skills surrounding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion used during tutoring sessions.

We continue with our virtual celebration of all the incredible work volunteers have done this school year. Especially highlighting the 4,237.49 total volunteer hours this school year!

While every single volunteer contributed to our success this year,the following volunteers have held several roles across several teams. Even during challenging times like this. They continue to be reliable and have returned to tutor year after year.

Drum roll, please!

We are excited to announce 826 Boston’s two 2022 Volunteer of the Year recipients and 826 Boston’s 2022 Volunteer Superlative Winners (in alphabetical order):

826 Boston’s 2022 Volunteers of The Year:

• Jane Ann Drill: Jane Ann has volunteered for 826 Boston and Boston International Newcomers Academy (BINcA) since 2020, and we have always been so impressed by her rapport with students and tutoring skills. She is currently interning at the BINcA Writers’ Room and is a wonderful team member. If you want an interesting conversation, ask Jane Ann about how many books she read over quarantine, or how many languages she speaks. Jane Ann goes above and beyond for students while also finishing her senior year at UMass Boston AND working multiple jobs. We appreciate her so much and can’t wait to see the amazing career she will have after graduation! We thank her so much for her dedication and amazing skills!
• Bill Stephenson: Bill started volunteering November 2018. He immediately became one of those tutors we could always count on. When we think about dedication and consistency Bill is that definition, he is someone who, when we struggled to find volunteers during a school break, tutored every single day for two weeks when we called.Since then he has continued to tutor twice a week and often will pick up extra shifts when we need a hand. Bill isn’t just filling a chair. His calm, kind, and thoughtful approach to tutoring has made him a favorite with students and staff alike. He has built strong relationships with many of our students over the years, and has contributed to our work in multitudes of ways, including attending book releases and participating in focus groups for the strategic planning committee. We really appreciate the work he has done and are so excited to honor him this way.

826 Boston’s 2022 Volunteer Superlative Winners

• Brendan Alam is Most Likely to be Complimented by a 4th Grader: The student Brendan works with absolutely adores working with him. Brendan’s care and compassion for his students is incredibly evident when not only the student but the mother requests him as well!
• Davis Brothers is Most Likely to be Complimented by a 4th Grader: The student he worked with really looks up to Davis because not only is Davis endlessly caring, but also created a space so comfortable and safe, that the student would share personal school experiences with, and consistently request to working with him.
• Libby Trimble is Most Likely to be Complimented by a 4th Grader: The student Libby worked with’s face would LIGHT UP and she would dance every time she got paired with Libby. She explicitly said and made it very clear that Libby is her favorite tutor.