Teen Volunteer Voices

By Daniel Friedman and Logan Rouse,
Canoga Park Elementary School

Pictured here are Daniel Friedman and Logan Rouse, both of whom are 16-year-old juniors at Agoura High School, and teammates on the Agoura JV soccer team. Dan and Logan became best friends when they met in the ninth grade and have been KOREH L.A. volunteers at Canoga Park Elementary School since 2006.

Dan and Logan really enjoy reading with the students at Canoga Park Elementary School on a weekly basis. Here's how they feel about KOREH L.A., in their own words:

"When we arrive at the school, so many kids come running over to us because they want to read. They're always excited to see us. It's too bad we can't read with all of them. Sometimes we'll read to our students and other times, they'll read to us. Either way, it's rewarding for us to see the growth in their reading abilities and to be with kids who are so eager to learn. We like helping kids who are much younger than we are and feel that we're making a difference in their lives."

KOREH L.A. is a "win-win" literacy program for the volunteers (particularly for high schoolers like Dan & Logan who are students themselves) and for the elementary school students who are so receptive to this kind of cross-age mentoring.