{"id":3637,"date":"2015-04-27T16:58:58","date_gmt":"2015-04-27T20:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=3637"},"modified":"2015-04-28T17:56:55","modified_gmt":"2015-04-28T21:56:55","slug":"volunteers-of-vbcps-russell-torrisi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/volunteers-of-vbcps-russell-torrisi\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteers of VBCPS: Russell Torrisi"},"content":{"rendered":"

Proudly wearing a Kemps Landing \u201cTiger Team\u201d t-shirt, Russell Torrisi greets his fellow Tigers as they enter the room. Though not officially a member of the school staff, the volunteer\u2019s weekly visits to review pre-algebra lessons with sixth-graders has earned him an honorary spot on the team \u2013 and a t-shirt.<\/p>\n

Talk will soon turn to the Pythagorean Theorem, but for now Torrisi is busy checking in with the half dozen students who are getting settled.<\/p>\n

How are the new glasses working for you? <\/em><\/p>\n

What\u2019s for lunch?<\/em><\/p>\n

How\u2019s that book? <\/em><\/p>\n

\"IMG_4389_check<\/a>One student asks Torrisi about riding a different bus home because he just moved into a new house. \u201cLet\u2019s go to the main office and find out,\u201d says Torrisi, recognizing that transportation rather than hypotenuses will be on the student\u2019s mind for the next 30 minutes if they don\u2019t resolve his concern.<\/p>\n

As for the sixth-graders who remain, ask them for one word to describe Torrisi and you hear:<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s fun!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s awesome!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other kids wish<\/em> they were us getting to work with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t think of one word to describe him,\u201d admits one student, \u201cbecause there are too many.\u201d<\/p>\n

Too many words to describe Torrisi. School staff as well as his fellow PTA board members, parents and school volunteers would concur. Their letters and emails about Torrisi\u2019s selection as the school\u2019s 2015 Volunteer of the Year feature words like: genuine asset, team player, workhorse, dependable, never-ending energy, enthusiasm, great attitude, always there, lifesaver <\/em>and selfless<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Also commonly cited are the \u201cdelicious\u201d chocolate chip cookies Torrisi makes for school events and fundraisers. Apparently the engineer can add \u201cbaker\u201d to his long list of talents.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_4383_Tiger<\/a>\u201cWhat amazes us about Mr. Torrisi,\u201d wrote principal Kelly Hedrick, \u201cis that he shows up for every single activity, every time help is needed \u2013 regardless of whether his own child is participating in the event or even in school at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Torrisi\u2019s son is an eighth-grader at the school, the same grade as Beverly Coose\u2019s child. \u201cHe seems to be at every event doing whatever needs to be done for hours and hours on end,\u201d Coose wrote. \u201cHe always has a great attitude, fun sense of humor, and is willing to step up and do anything anytime with a smile.\u201d<\/p>\n

Managing the PTA membership database, compiling the volunteer database, helping in the library, chaperoning dances, participating in spirit days, tutoring students and helping teachers with their needs are among the long list of contributions Anna Feliberti, the school\u2019s Volunteers in Education (VIE) coordinator, highlighted. \u201cHonestly, he contributes so much that most of it is overlooked,\u201d shared Feliberti. \u201cHe is an integral part of the PTA and has always been.\u201d<\/p>\n

Torrisi returns with the sixth-grader whose bus problem has been solved, and now it\u2019s time for the group to start solving math problems. \u201cOk, so we have a good half hour together,\u201d says Torrisi checking his watch. \u201cLet\u2019s get started. What is the \u2018c\u2019 is in the Pythagorean Theorem?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IMG_4399_hypotenuse\"<\/a>Thanks to a flexible work schedule as well as release time granted by his employer for STEM Outreach, Torrisi is able to spend most Fridays tutoring students at KLODS.<\/p>\n

\u201cI volunteer because I am interested in education and the education process,\u201d says Torrisi. \u201cI enjoy the interaction with the kids and the teachers. I enjoy math, and I like the challenge of trying to explain math in a way that the kids can understand it. I have learned that what works for one student will not necessarily work for another student.\u201d<\/p>\n

An engineer by trade who works as a U.S. Navy civilian employee at Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, Torrisi is considering becoming a math teacher once he retires from the government.<\/p>\n

The sixth-graders with whom he works think that would be a wise decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m shocked he\u2019s not a teacher,\u201d says one student. \u201cHe\u2019s good at getting people\u2019s attention.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he\u2019s great at explaining things,\u201d adds another.<\/p>\n

The Kempsville High School alumnus may one day have a classroom of his own, but, in the meantime, Torrisi is content to continue his service as a volunteer.<\/p>\n

\u201cVolunteering provides a way to meet other parents, teachers and students,\u201d he says. \u201cI like being around people and working with them to make Kemps Landing\/Old Donation School a great experience for all involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Proudly wearing a Kemps Landing \u201cTiger Team\u201d t-shirt, Russell Torrisi greets his fellow Tigers as they enter the room. Though not officially a member of the school staff, the volunteer\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[113,110],"class_list":["post-3637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community-connections","tag-kemps-landing-old-donation-school","tag-volunteers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3637"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3641,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637\/revisions\/3641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}