Teachable Tuesday: Missed Opportunities

We’re excited to spotlight Nissa Petrewski, who has been voted as National Runaway Safeline’s Volunteer of the Month for March 2024. This is Nissa’s second time receiving this acknowledgement from the NRS Team, initially being celebrated in April of 2022.

Nissa’s was introduced to NRS at the Chicago Volunteer Expo hosted at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. She was immediately drawn to the details of the organization’s training and preparation for volunteers. Inspired, she decided to complete training and take an active role on NRS’s front lines.

Debby Shen’s commitment to helping others shines brightly through her volunteer work at the National Runaway Safeline (NRS). Originally from Ohio and now residing in Chicago, Debby began volunteering in 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Luckily, Debby was able to complete training and spend around 6 months taking crisis contact. As mounting challenges with COVID-19 caused organizations around the world to move to a fully-remove model, NRS was forced to temporarily pause its volunteer program. As soon as the program returned, Debby was among the first volunteers to return!

The National Runaway Safeline is thrilled to announce Jackie Barron as the January 2024 volunteer of the month. Jackie’s path to volunteering with NRS was paved with empathy and a desire to make a positive impact. Growing up in a challenging family environment, Jackie often found herself in the “fixer” role (having a keen sense of responsibility, often prioritizing the needs of other before her own), even at a young age. This understanding of adversity and resilience led her to seek out opportunities to give back, ultimately leading her to NRS.