Rose Caplan is a regular volunteer with the Rotary Club of Atlanta West End, L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, and M. Agnes Jones Elementary School. She’s using her passion for service as a way to open the door to real connections, conversations and change.

Learn more about why Rose serves and where she’ll be volunteering next.

What impact areas or pressing needs facing Atlanta do you care about most? Why?

What I care most about is improving human equality in Atlanta, as our most vulnerable in Atlanta (our children and families) are affected by inequity, racism, including anti-Semitism, and discrimination - including against people with mental and physical disabilities and the LGBTQ community.

Researched and documented lower incomes and lack of proper resources for education, housing, and healthcare are results of inequity, racism and discrimination. Conversations about these matters, in my opinion, are many times too many put off or had in the most shallow fashion because they are hard and it take emotional energy that many people don't want to expend.

However, if we are to provide opportunities that empower all people to be able to choose a fulfilling life we must have frank and open discussions about racism, discrimination and inequity. There is no other way. One way to open the door is through community service where person to person connections can be made and mutual understanding can be initiated.

What do you love most about the organization you volunteer with? Why do you volunteer with them?

I love working with the people who make up the AWER membership. They are servant leaders, and take seriously Rotary’s Service Above Self mantra. I love member collaboration, resources available for community service, the opportunities to serve the community, and member support to come up with the best ways to meet the needs of the community through service to seeing them through the end.

I love L.E.A.D.’s mission to empower an at-risk generation to lead and transform their city of Atlanta by using the sport of baseball to teach Black boys how to overcome three curveballs that threaten their success: crime, poverty and racism. Moreover, I love the people that I work with to further its mission - Co-Founders CJ and Kelli Stewart, the Board and most importantly the young men that are working hard to create a life that they intend to have not one that is predetermined by society.

I love working with Lisa Colbert, STEAM instructor at M. Agnes Jones Elementary School and assisting her to fulfill her vision of "earth matters" and sustainability for the children. She has an executable plan that requires more hands than the two she has, and more time than there is in a day. I have the skills and time to help and it is satisfying at the end of the day to have done something good for the sustainability of our earth and youth. Lisa is probably the best volunteer manager I’ve worked with. She loves what she is doing and it filters down to those who spend time with her and her vision.

Can you share a memorable highlight or moment you've experienced that might motivate others to volunteer?

Memorable moments are made every time a young person smiles and a connection is made because of a new opportunity available to them through a volunteer effort. Additionally, every time I volunteer is an opportunity to learn something about people and the community that deepen my understanding of the need to work toward equality for everyone.

I volunteer with others to meet with high school students to discuss responses they have provided to survey questions over a specified period of time on a single topic. This is an opportunity for volunteers to go a little deeper and understand the student responses better so we can provide effective support. At each meeting, we learn a little bit more about each other, our respective families, and lives. For me, my effort is enhanced by their acceptance of someone like myself who couldn’t be more different from them in many ways. Their sincerity and genuine selves, together with their thoughtfulness, is heartwarming and enlightening. These meetings provide for impromptu yet-to-be-made memorable moments. You’ve got to put yourself in the situation, and let yourself be vulnerable.

Volunteering in April? Share where, when and if others can join you or how they can get involved.

L.E.A.D. Center for Youth and APIVEO are in the planning stages of the 8th Annual Safe at Home Game Program involving Atlanta’s youth and law enforcement. The program consists of a RoundTable discussion to provide an environment where youth and law enforcement can freely and candidly exchange their thoughts, beliefs and opinions regarding specific community and societal issues, and a baseball game between them where they find common ground to open lines of communication on and off the field. Anyone interested in volunteering can contact me.

Anything else you think our community should know about you, your volunteer service, or your commitment to Do Something Good!

Atlanta West End Rotary Club started a club project based on United Way Greater Atlanta 21 Day Racial Equity Challenge. Instead of taking the challenge over 21 Days we changed it to 21 Weeks. The challenge is turn-key and the material is focused on how racial inequity plagues Atlanta and the communities within. I recommend it for anyone who wants to start a conversation about racial equity in our own backyard. It will strengthen your volunteer resolve and enhance your experience for yourself and those you serve.

Inspired by Rose’s story?

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