36 JULY 2023 By Rachael Bouley Arcadian Christi Cielens was born with zero vision, and despite the challenges of growing up blind, she learned to adapt, thrive and eventually give back to the community she loves. The passionate volunteer was one of three recognized at the 2023 Duet: Partners in Health & Aging Volunteer Appreciation Bash. Founded in 1981, Duet is a nonprofit that offers free-of-charge services to aging adults and family caregivers. The organization relies on volunteers to make a bigger difference, which is why they also host a volunteer appreciation event each year. Cielens started working with Duet in February 2019, and said that receiving the Full Circle Award was a welcome surprise. “I almost started crying; it was so unexpected. I thought the other two volunteers were just as deserving, and I felt honored because it’s been my pleasure to serve,” Cielens said. “If I could do anything to help the organization and bring more awareness to their work, I would.” Cielens was selected thanks to her help in translating staff extensions and phone instructions into braille. “When I first started at Duet, it was a little bit of a challenge to learn the extensions and titles,” Cielens recalled. “I had to create By Jennifer Marshall After the awards assemblies, the school-wide prayer and the graduation ceremony, St. Theresa students, teachers and faculty headed to the gymnasium for their last hurrah: the annual eighth-grade versus teacher volleyball tournament. Held every spring for over twenty years, the tournament has become a favored tradition at the school, between students and teachers alike. “This year’s tournament had 34 students, teachers and a few other brave administrators participate, and each team had a theme they dressed up in,” parent Beth Wand said. According to Wand, the annual event started as part of Catholic School’s Week and has since evolved into a regular celebratory activity for the graduating eighth- grade class. “The entire school is involved as they cheer on the teams,” Wand said. “Each group keeps their team theme everything in braille to transfer calls easily. Luckily, an employee recorded everything for me, and then I created the braille.” She works 4.5 hours at the Duet office each week, where she answers the phone and offers warm welcomes at the front desk. She also handles mail and works on projects for special events and meetings. Cielens was introduced to Duet by Arizona closely guarded until it’s time to debut them to the school. The teams race into the crowded gym to booming music and fanfare from their fellow students. Each team gives some sort of ‘performance’ as they showcase their costumes, and then the game is on!” The themes for this year’s participants included basketball all-stars, The Incredibles, farm animals, M&Ms, Taylor Swifties and Adam Sandlers. “The volleyball game is always a great event for our departing eighth graders,” Teaching Assistant Anita Shanberger said. “It’s a very special and joyful STCS tradition. The teachers and staff enjoy the game as much as the students, and they love helping to create wonderful memories for the students and their families.” After several hours battling it out on the court for three games, the eighth graders prevailed as the winners, and Center for the Blind, where she previously volunteered and taught braille classes. “I have always enjoyed volunteering and helping our community. It’s really nice to be with Duet, as they have helped me so much,” Cielens said. “I am paired with a volunteer, and they help me read mail, fill out paperwork and sometimes take me grocery shopping.” With her firsthand experience of Duet excitement was held not only for the win – but for who their opponents happened to be: “The volleyball game was so fun,” eighth grader Logan Wagner said. “From the costumes to getting to play against our teachers and having the whole school cheering us on was great. We got to be creative and come up with funny costumes to show off. It was definitely the best experience.” “In life, you will take Ws or Ls,” Logan’s teammate Cooper Fitzgerald said. “The L represents learning; the W represents winning. In one of our last days at St. Theresa, it was great to take the W over the teachers!” Parents had a blast at the end-of-the-year game, as well: “The game is such a fun tradition,” parent Meghan Wagner said. “It’s great to see the kids get creative and have fun with their teachers during their last days at St. Theresa. It’s one of our favorite events!” services, she’s passionate about their programs and encourages more people to get involved. “I know they need more volunteers to be paired with neighbors. There are currently 100 people on the waitlist,” Cielens said. “I want the community to know about all the amazing programs they offer, like grandparents raising grandchildren, caregiver services, and the volunteer program for homebound individuals.” Cielens’ community service doesn’t stop at Duet, as she spends five hours a week volunteering with the Foundation for Blind Children while working part-time at a local bakery preparing pastry boxes. She hopes to continue raising awareness of the blind community and how, despite challenges, they can still live happy lives, especially with improved technology and employment opportunities. “When I was newly out of college, I remember companies saying it was too hard to hire someone that was blind. They didn’t have accommodations or adaptive technology, but that is changing,” Cielens said. “We still have work to do, but it is getting better. Duet is a great organization with wonderful people. I can’t say enough good things about all the programs they offer to people in our community.” duetaz.org Local volunteer celebrated for her efforts in giving back St. Theresa had a ball to finish off the school year Christi Cielens was recognized for her outstanding volunteerism with Duet: Partners in Health & Aging. PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRISTI CIELENS Kamryn Reeg, Scarlette Shapiro, Maeve Shanahan, Gia Catton, Gabby Russo and Reese Brown. St. Theresa teachers with Bucky, the school mascot (worn by Morgan Dehaven). PHOTOS COURTESY OF ST. THERESA

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