The First Step Starts Small: Teaching Our Youth the Power of Community Service

One cup of water. One moment. And my son has never stopped giving back since.

My name is David Laguerre. I am a writer, chief content organizer, and technology manager here at Utica Phoenix. And I want to tell you about a moment from over 30 years ago that I still think about today.

But first, I need to confess something.

I am a veteran. And if you have ever served in the military, you already know the first rule they teach you, usually within about 48 hours of arriving at your duty station: whatever you do, do not volunteer for anything.

Seriously. You learn this fast. A sergeant asks the room, “Who knows how to drive a truck?” and three guys raise their hands. Those three guys spend the next six hours moving furniture in the rain. The rest of us? We stared straight ahead and discovered a sudden, deep interest in the ceiling tiles. You did not volunteer. Not for anything. Ever. That was the code.

So it is more than a little ironic that I am sitting here writing an article about why volunteering is one of the most important things you can teach a child.

My old unit would have a field day with this.

But here is the thing: civilian volunteering and military “volunteering” are two entirely different animals. In the military, volunteering meant you were about to get a job nobody else wanted, usually in bad weather, with no explanation and no end time. In the community, volunteering means showing up for your neighbors, building something together, and going home feeling like you actually did something that mattered.

I made my peace with that distinction a long time ago. And a bike race in New York City more than 30 years ago helped me understand why.

From “Don’t Volunteer” to “Always Volunteer”: How My Son Changed My Thinking

We were living in New York City. My wife Dawn was working for the Mayor’s office at the time, and she came home one day with news about a volunteer opportunity at what I believe was Bike NY, one of the city’s signature cycling events. They needed volunteers along the route, and she thought it would be a great experience for the family.

Now, my military instincts kicked in for just a moment. Volunteer? On a weekend? Without being ordered to?

But Dawn had that look. You veterans know the one. It is scarier than any sergeant I ever had. So we signed up David Jr., who was around eight or nine years old at the time, for one of the most basic jobs on the volunteer list: standing at a checkpoint and handing cups of cold water to cyclists as they slowed down and then sped back up.

That was it. No special training. No complicated role. No moving furniture in the rain. Just a boy, a table, and a stack of water cups.

But I watched something happen that afternoon that I have never forgotten. David Jr. stood out there with his chest out and his eyes locked on every rider coming around that bend. When a cyclist grabbed a cup from his hand and shouted “Thank you!” over their shoulder without breaking stride, my son’s face lit up like I had never quite seen before. He was doing something real. He was part of something bigger than himself. And he knew it.

That was the seed. And it grew into a lifetime of service.

No furniture moving in the rain required.

Why I Believe You Have to Start Them Young

I am not a child psychologist. I am a father, a veteran, a community journalist, and someone who has watched what volunteering does to a young person up close. And what I will tell you from experience is this: the earlier you show a child that their effort matters to someone outside their own home, the more likely they are to carry that belief with them for the rest of their lives.

Researchers back this up. Studies have shown that children who engage in community service between the ages of five and twelve are significantly more likely to volunteer as adults, more likely to vote, and more likely to contribute to causes larger than themselves. But I did not need a study to know that. I watched it happen with David Jr. right there on a New York City street more than three decades ago.

What that bike event taught my son was not a formal lesson in civic duty. It taught him that he was capable. That he was needed. That showing up and doing something simple could make a real difference to a real person. That lesson stuck with him. It shaped the man he became.

“When young people are given real responsibility, even something as small as handing out water, they rise to meet it,” said Dr. Susan Ginsburg, a child development specialist affiliated with national volunteer organizations. “That sense of contribution is deeply tied to self-worth. It says: you have something this community needs.”

She is right. And I think about that every time I see a child in Utica who has not yet been given the chance to discover what they are capable of.

Simple Starting Points for Every Age

One thing I learned as a parent is that you cannot drop a seven-year-old into an abstract volunteer role and expect them to connect with it. The task has to be concrete. It has to be something they can see and feel and point to and say, “I did that.” Here is how I think about it by age:

Ages 5 to 7

Keep it physical and immediate. Kids this age want to do something with their hands and see the result right away.

• Picking up litter in a neighborhood park as a family
• Packing snack bags or supply kits at a community event
• Drawing cards or pictures for residents at a senior center
• Joining a neighborhood clean-up day alongside mom or dad

Ages 8 to 11

This is the sweet spot. This is exactly where David Jr. was when he handed out that water at Bike NY. Kids this age are developing a real sense of fairness and a hunger to feel capable and useful.

• Volunteering at community events as a water station helper, greeter, or runner
• Assisting at food drives or food pantries with adult supervision
• Reading to younger children at library programs
• Helping to plant or tend a community garden
• Participating in charity walks or fun runs as a volunteer

Ages 12 to 15

Teenagers are figuring out who they are. Volunteering at this age can become a genuine part of their identity rather than just an activity on a checklist.

• Leading younger children in service projects
• Taking on regular volunteer shifts with nonprofits
• Assisting at animal shelters, nature preserves, or after-school programs
• Participating in community meetings or youth advisory boards

Ages 16 to 18

Older teens are ready to lead. Give them that chance and get out of the way.

• Organizing service projects through school clubs or faith communities
• Serving on nonprofit committees or youth councils
• Interning with community organizations that align with their interests
• Getting involved in civic and political organizations in real, substantive ways

Where to Start Right Here in the Mohawk Valley

One of the things I appreciate about this region is that for all the challenges Utica and the Mohawk Valley face, we have people and organizations that genuinely care. You do not have to look far to find a place where your child’s time and effort will be welcomed and put to good use.

And I promise: none of these involve moving furniture in the rain.

Here are some places I would point any CNY family toward:

For The Good, Inc. is a Utica-based nonprofit that I have had the privilege of working alongside. From community events like the Juneteenth Soul Food Banquet to year-round outreach work, they offer families and young volunteers real ways to plug into something meaningful. Their work is rooted in the needs of Utica’s Black community and is always welcoming to anyone who wants to contribute.

The Food Bank of Central New York is one of the most accessible volunteer experiences you will find anywhere in the region. Sorting and packing food is tangible, immediate, and something children of almost any age can participate in with a parent present. And the lesson it delivers, that hunger is real and that your hands can do something about it, is one that does not leave you.

Utica Parks and Recreation hosts clean-up days, tree plantings, and beautification events throughout the year. These are perfect for families with younger children because the time commitment is short, the work is visible, and kids go home knowing they made their neighborhood a little better. Because they did.

The Salvation Army of the Mohawk Valley coordinates holiday toy drives, food distributions, and community assistance programs that welcome youth volunteers. Helping sort donations or prepare holiday gift collections alongside a parent is a powerful and uncomplicated first experience for a child.

Mohawk Valley Community College and MVILR — the Mohawk Valley Institute for Learning in Retirement — offer something genuinely unique: the chance for younger volunteers to connect with older members of this community in a meaningful way. Intergenerational service is underrated. When a teenager helps facilitate a program at MVILR and ends up in conversation with someone who has lived through decades of Utica history, both of them walk away with something they did not have before.

Local faith communities across Utica, from Black churches on the east side to parishes throughout Oneida County, run food pantries, clothing drives, tutoring programs, and neighborhood projects that regularly need young hands and willing hearts.

Animal shelters like the Humane Society of Rome offer youth-friendly programs where children can care for shelter animals, assist at adoption events, and learn responsibility through one of the most immediate and rewarding relationships there is.

A Veteran Who Learned to Raise His Hand

I want to circle back to where I started, because I think it matters.

In the military, we had a culture around volunteering that was built on self-preservation. You did not raise your hand. You did not make eye contact. You found something very important to look at on the floor until the sergeant moved on. That was survival.

But here is what I know now, on the other side of service, on the other side of fatherhood, and on the other side of more than 30 years of watching my son become someone I am genuinely proud of: the bravest thing you can teach a child is to raise their hand.

Not because someone ordered them to. Not because there is a consequence if they do not. But because someone needs help and they have something to give.

That is a different kind of courage than what the military asked of me. And in some ways, it is harder. It requires you to choose it freely, every time, with no drill sergeant standing over you making sure you show up.

David Jr. learned to choose it freely. Dawn put us in the right place at the right time to give him that lesson. And a cyclist who grabbed a cup of water and shouted “Thank you!” without ever slowing down was the one who sealed the deal.

So yes. I am a veteran who spent years perfecting the art of not volunteering. And I am also a father who will spend the rest of his life telling every family in this community to do exactly that.

Some contradictions are worth living with.

What That Afternoon in New York City Still Teaches Me

Start small. Start simple. Start this weekend.

Find a clean-up day, a food drive, a community event in your neighborhood. Bring your child. Let them do something real. Then ask them how it felt.

You might be surprised at what they say. I know I was.

And unlike the military version of volunteering, I can promise you this: nobody is going to make you move furniture in the rain.

Probably.

I want to hear your stories. If your child or grandchild has had a first volunteer experience that stayed with them, or if you know of an organization in the Mohawk Valley doing great work with young people, reach out to Utica Phoenix. We want to spotlight the families and organizations building this community from the ground up.