Members You Need to Meet
Sushila Cherian
Cooper Street Recreation Center
Every Tuesday afternoon for almost nine years, Sushila Cherian clears her busy schedule to volunteer at Cooper Street Recreation Center. She belongs to many civic boards and civic organizations but always finds time for the Cooper Street Kids because of her strong passion to give back to the community. One could feel goose bumps with the excitement that she emanated when she spoke about her work with the Cooper Street children. Miss Marie is her mentor at the center, who trained Sushila to run a very disciplined but loving study partner program. Math and reading skills are emphasized at Cooper Street, so after school students must read orally at least five pages. Their oral reading pages are recorded by Sushila and so are their behavior and cooperation skills.
Sushila concentrates on “good citizenship skills.” She gives them disciplined but loving guidance to make good choices in life. Sometimes the students try to manipulate the volunteers into doing things other than what was assigned, and Sushila gently steers them back to the proper path. “Early intervention invested in a child’s behavior does make a difference,” said Sushila. She enjoys “the rug rat room” where small children (those whose feet do not touch the floor) work on computer games to enhance math and reading skills, and these skills have had positive results as they go through their elementary school years. Enhancing their lives in conjunction with the Visual Arts Center and plays and performances are other projects Sushila feels that these students need in order to thrive .
Miss Marie told her that these children are “street smart.” They know volunteers are not paid. They know volunteers want to be there because they care! Sushila tells her students that she will come to their graduations, high school and/or college, even if she has to be there with a walker!!!