You can Count On Them

Threading beads on a stick, matching words with pictures, and collecting artificial Christmas trees are all activities Roberta Harris and Kaela Rae Larson are familiar with.

One has worked with an autistic child, and one has volunteered for every cause she has seen on TV. Most recently, each has won a First Lady Volunteer Award.

The award, given to 29 of the 150 Alaskans nominated, is considered the states highest honor for volunteer service.

Harris, of Palmer, earned the award for the two years she spent working with an autistic boy in Palmer. Autism is a developmental disorder that prevents children from learning and interacting in a normal way.

It is usually characterized by impaired communication, excessive rigidity, and emotional detachment.

They dont learn like normal children, Harris said. They stay in their own little world if you let them. They dont do basic things like wave or smile because they dont see the importance of it.

Harris met the boys family when she worked at Matanuska Electric Association. When she learned they needed volunteers to work with their son, she decided to give it a try. She stayed two years and gave between four and 24 hours a week of her time.

Its one of the most worthwhile things Ive ever done, she said.

Harris and the other volunteers used applied behavioral analysis to modify Kavans behavior.

You take real small steps, Harris said. Hes more sociable now. Hes coming out of it. The whole family went out to dinner when I got the award and he interacted with everybody very well.

Kavan requires between 30 and 40 hours a week, one-on-one, with a volunteer. Volunteers do activities with him that increase his coordination and attention.

Placing beads on a stick, putting words to pictures, and swimming lessons are some of the things they help with.

I noticed the other day that people dont realize all the stuff they can learn by volunteering, Harris said. The people you volunteer for are always very appreciative and you learn more about yourself.

Working with Kavan opened a whole new area of interest for Harris. I wasnt particularly interested in children with disabilities before, she said, but now Im going back to college to earn my bachelors in human services.

Harris attends Mat-Su Community College and plans to graduate next spring. She currently works part time at the Resource Room helping people write rsums and do job searches, but plans to return to her work with Kavan in the fall. She tends a flower garden in her spare time.

I was really honored by the award, she said. Its sort of humbling.

Kavans family, the Longenecker-Mangus family, needs 10-12 volunteers to work with their son. The initial commitment is five hours a week for three months.

Anyone interested may contact Jill Longenecker at 376-7048.

Kaela Rae Larson, of Willow, who just turned 10 last week, won the award for her work in starting a program called Trees for Tots.

She collected artificial trees donated by grocery stores and individuals, decorated them with donated decorations, then gave them to families who didnt have them.

If they need a dinner and they need toys to give their kids, dont they need a tree, too? she asked.

This was the first year Larson worked on Trees for Tots. She devoted more than 50 hours to the project and distributed seven trees.

Larson acted as director for the project and visited stores asking for donations. She spent many hours in the Fred Meyer parking lot collecting trees people donated.

Larson has also volunteered for Blood Bank of Alaskas Bike-A-Thon, the Light the Night Walk for Leukemia, and Project Linus, among others.

It makes me feel good on the inside, she said. I saw women on TV with breast cancer and children with cancer and terminal illnesses and I wanted to help.

Shes the type of kid that will run to help if another child falls on the playground, said her mother, Kelly Larson. Shes always been a compassionate child, always.

Kaela Larson is home schooled through IDEA home school and has been volunteering her time to others since she was 6 years old.

In her spare time, she bikes, jumps on her trampoline, swims, and competes in pageants.

She would eventually like to perform country music.

All applicants were reviewed by five independent judges around the state, and announced by First Lady Susan Knowles in early July.

The awards included a certificate, wooden plaque, and lapel pin.Ten-year-old Kaela Larson was one of the two Valley residents who earned a First Lady Volunteer Award from Susan Knowles. She has volunteered for a number of organizations, but has been most involved with an organization of her own called Trees for Tots. She spent many hours this past winter collecting and decorating artificial Christmas trees to give to needy families.Roberta Harris, of Palmer, recently earned a First Lady Volunteer Award for her work with an autistic boy. She spent two years giving between four and 20 hours per week to help Kavan Mangus learn to communicate.Photo by Clare Baldwin/Frontiersman.