Stamford Student Awarded For Volunteer Efforts

STAMFORD, CT — Not many high school students would choose to spend their Saturday sweeping floors and stocking shelves, let alone for free, but that's exactly what 16-year-old Ethan Fleck wanted to do with his free time. A sophomore in the Carpentry Technology trade at J.M. Wright Technical High School, Fleck has volunteered at both The Food Bank of Lower Fairfield County and the Ferguson Library, helping out in any way he can on weekends and days off from school.

Fleck said his help mainly consisted of lending a hand wherever and whenever needed. He was recently recognized for those efforts with a President’s Volunteer Service Award, which he will be presented with during an after school Student of the Month event.

According to Wright Tech Principal Phyllis Bartoli, a few students at the school had applied for the award, however it was ultimately awarded to Fleck for all his hard work.

Fleck said his decision to get involved as a volunteer was inspired by an innate desire to help others in need. (To sign up for Stamford breaking news alerts and more, click here.)

"I wanted to do something that could help people," Fleck said. "I was looking for a soup kitchen or something like that, because I like to cook and make food, but I found the Food Bank. I ended up making a bunch of friends over there."

He also thought it was the best possible way to utilize any time he had not spent on school and other commitments.

"Laying on the couch and being a vegetable wasn’t helping anyone," Fleck said. "If I was going to have free time, I wanted to at least help someone."

Fleck ended up enjoying his time helping out at the Food Bank so much he sought out another volunteer opportunity in the city, stocking books and performing other tasks at the Ferguson Library.

"I love reading," Fleck said, "so I thought maybe volunteering at the library could help other people enjoy reading as much as I do."

Though he sought out these opportunities on his own, Fleck said the school also puts a lot of emphasis on volunteering, especially within students' specific trades.

"Some trades actually have volunteer and internship programs, which is embedded in their work," Bartoli said. "I think because we’re a small school, the teachers and the trades that students are in can make a bigger impact in these students' lives. The trades here become somewhat of a family...and they really can impact, shape and sometimes save students’ lives."

For Fleck, giving back to the community only seemed right due to the love he has for his city.

"Stamford has a nice diversity of people," Fleck said, "and it does have a lot of people that want to help others. I just wanted to grow that community of people and hopefully be a role model to other kids."