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08-15-2002, 12:58 PM
St. Vincent volunteer gives back after injury
By Charles Kelly
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 05, 2002
Ken Marks, 27, helps other people as a volunteer at St. Vincent de Paul because other people once helped him.
"With my head injury, a lot of people came to my aid and helped me out," Marks says. "In a small way, this is just my way of paying it back."
In April 1991, Marks was a sophomore math whiz at Paradise Valley High School when a pickup hit Marks while he was riding his bicycle. Marks spent more than three months in a coma, and awakened with brain and other injuries.
He could still do some advanced math (he still does math problems for fun when he's bored), but was stumped by simple addition and subtraction.
His schoolwork was good enough so he was able to graduate with his class, but the hit-and-miss functioning of his brain made it difficult for him to keep a job.
He first volunteered at St. Vincent de Paul on March 31, 1998, and now he does many jobs at the organization's processing center at 420 W. Watkins Road. His mother, Sharon, volunteers there, too.
Marks checks donated appliances, sorts merchandise and shuttles items to St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores across the Valley.
He loves to wisecrack with other workers, and is teaching one of them to play the guitar, a skill Marks honed through hard practice after his injury.
"Probably Ken's greatest strength, apart from his ability to do everything, is his personality," says Aimee Eaton, communications manager for St. Vincent de Paul. "He's very personable and knows everyone."
Lucy McClure, the center's director, agrees.
"He makes us all laugh," McClure says.
Marks, a slim, bespectacled young man who would look studious if not for his wry smile, says he enjoys his work and his co-workers.
He started volunteering, he says, to build up work experience and get a job reference. Now he stays because he likes it.
He especially enjoys figuring out which stores will do better at selling certain items, such as pictures, and making sure the appropriate stores get those items.
In the future, he says, he might like to work in the restaurant industry, teach guitar, or even be a paid staffer at St. Vincent de Paul, though that would concern him a little.
"I wouldn't feel right taking money from this place," Marks says, "because they are here to help the poor."
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http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/articles/0805b2profile05.html
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By Charles Kelly
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 05, 2002
Ken Marks, 27, helps other people as a volunteer at St. Vincent de Paul because other people once helped him.
"With my head injury, a lot of people came to my aid and helped me out," Marks says. "In a small way, this is just my way of paying it back."
In April 1991, Marks was a sophomore math whiz at Paradise Valley High School when a pickup hit Marks while he was riding his bicycle. Marks spent more than three months in a coma, and awakened with brain and other injuries.
He could still do some advanced math (he still does math problems for fun when he's bored), but was stumped by simple addition and subtraction.
His schoolwork was good enough so he was able to graduate with his class, but the hit-and-miss functioning of his brain made it difficult for him to keep a job.
He first volunteered at St. Vincent de Paul on March 31, 1998, and now he does many jobs at the organization's processing center at 420 W. Watkins Road. His mother, Sharon, volunteers there, too.
Marks checks donated appliances, sorts merchandise and shuttles items to St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores across the Valley.
He loves to wisecrack with other workers, and is teaching one of them to play the guitar, a skill Marks honed through hard practice after his injury.
"Probably Ken's greatest strength, apart from his ability to do everything, is his personality," says Aimee Eaton, communications manager for St. Vincent de Paul. "He's very personable and knows everyone."
Lucy McClure, the center's director, agrees.
"He makes us all laugh," McClure says.
Marks, a slim, bespectacled young man who would look studious if not for his wry smile, says he enjoys his work and his co-workers.
He started volunteering, he says, to build up work experience and get a job reference. Now he stays because he likes it.
He especially enjoys figuring out which stores will do better at selling certain items, such as pictures, and making sure the appropriate stores get those items.
In the future, he says, he might like to work in the restaurant industry, teach guitar, or even be a paid staffer at St. Vincent de Paul, though that would concern him a little.
"I wouldn't feel right taking money from this place," Marks says, "because they are here to help the poor."
Find this article at:
http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/articles/0805b2profile05.html
SAVE THIS | EMAIL THIS | Close