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Community Corner

Whiz Kid Ally Hickey Racks Up 210 Hours of Volunteer Time All in One Summer

Elmhurst Park District Leader in Training program highlights her "go-for-it" attitude.

Name: Ally Hickey

Age: 12

School: Seventh-grader at Sandburg Middle School

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Achievement: This summer, Ally volunteered 210 hours with Elmhurst Park District, the most of any Park District volunteer this year.

Key to Awesomeness: At the Aug. 18 volunteer recognition ceremony, Ally was caught off-guard. Megan McNamara, marketing specialist at the Park District, announced that Ally had far and away the most volunteer time of any Park District volunteer from the past year—210 hours.

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"When I called her name, she had this look on her face, like 'Why are you doing this to me?' " McNamara says. "I don’t think Ally knew she was the volunteer with the most hours. She invested a lot of her summer in helping kids in camp. It’s huge.”

Since age 6, Ally has attended the summer programs and camps offered by the Elmhurst Park District. But this year, at age 12, she was eligible to apply for the Leaders in Training program. As a leader in training, Ally worked alongside camp counselors and the campers themselves, building the skills needed to be a camp counselor some day.

Amanda Schimel, a Park District employee and Ally’s supervisor for the Leaders in Training program, was ecstatic to work alongside Ally. Schimel has known Ally since she was 7 years old.

“Ally isn’t afraid of anything,” Schimel says. “She has that ‘go-for-it’ attitude.”

Ally volunteered for the Funseekers Day Camp and worked with 7- and 8-year-olds, helping with skits, artwork, games and assisting counselors with set-up.

“I liked that I got to spend time with the kids and hang out and play games all the time,” Ally says.

Except for two weeks out of the summer, Ally spent each weekday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. working with the campers.

“[Ally] came in and got right down to business and understood what was expected of her as a leader,” Schimel says. “All of my leaders, not just Ally, were absolutely fantastic. I explain to [the leaders in training] that they’re half-way between a camper and a counselor. And she knew exactly where that happy medium was.”

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