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Volunteer Spotlight: Dr. Arthur Lebowitz (2)

Arthur Lebowitz with his wife, Rebecca, accepts the Blue Ridge Literacy Council’s Outstanding Volunteer Award.

By Lightning Reports, Published: November 27, 2021

Arthur Lebowitz

Blue Ridge Literacy Council

What do you do in your volunteer job?

I’m a tutor. I volunteered a year and a half ago. This was around the time Covid started. I did double duty. I helped them and advised them as to protocols. (Lebowitz is a retired medical doctor. He gave suggestion to prevent the spread of Covid and tutored over Zoom calls after the pandemic began). They hooked m up with a young engineer. He had passing fluency with English. In the year and a half we have been working, he now thinks in English and is very fluent. I also managed to recruit four people to be tutors.

How long have you been volunteering?

A little more than a year and a half.

Why do you volunteer?

I had a brush with illiteracy when I was in practice in New York City. I was impressed with how devastating illiteracy is to the individual and the society. It seemed like a natural idea. I think it’s just giving a little bit back. We happen to be of the Jewish faith. The emphasis in Judaism is the relationship with your fellow man and the repair of the world or Tikkun Olam.

What’s the best thing about volunteering?

The satisfaction you get from helping somebody. That’s what it’s all about. It’s become more than tutoring. It’s mentoring. He’s a young fellow (the engineer Lebowitz tutors). We’ve become friends in a sense.

If someone is interested in volunteering, what advice would you give based on your own experience?

There was a promotional video they showed me and my student. It emphasized that someone should not be intimidated in the role of tutor. My catch phrase is just do it. It is gratifying and quite easy. The literacy council has a workbook and set of tools that are so easy. The staff is experienced and very helpful.