
Elzora Douglas
St. Louis, MO
My life has been enriched by individuals who took special notice of me. This attention was not always warranted by anything special I did, but by the kindness of the individuals’ hearts.
I’ve always been motivated in life, but someone always seemed to be in the right place at the right time to assist me on my journey.
I am the product of a single parent home with an extremely hard working mother. So working hard was not foreign idea to me. I worked my way through undergraduate and graduate schools and then worked my way up the ranks of a job I eventually retired from after 38 years. I never forgot my journey and always found a way to help others even as I was ‘living life.’
Once retired – and after a period of much needed rest – I began looking around for something ‘meaningful’ to fill my extra time. And I found the perfect answer through Oasis – a national education and service organization that brings people together to enrich lives. And that’s exactly what it did for me and the children with whom I interacted.
My particular interest was tutoring children. As kids grow and mature they face all kinds of issues. The better equipped for life they are the better able they are to handle these issues. Considering what’s going on in many of our communities, what better contribution than to help ‘enrich’ a child’s life by being personally available.
The solutions to many of the nation’s problems are complicated, but properly preparing our children for life has to be one of the best answers to some of these problems. There is such a great need that it should not take much to convince those with time on their hands to commit. I’ve spent the past seven years volunteering in my community. I like being part of a solution.
I also work as a CASA volunteer which advocates for children who have been neglected or abused. We have to make sure our resources are protected and given the opportunity to thrive! I’m also actively involved in my church…doing what else….teaching young adults.