If you ask Nikita Sharma what she loves most about her volunteer work at Broadview Shelter and Transitional Housing, she’ll tell you it’s something that would stress most adults out: when kids get rowdy.

“They get loud, they make a mess, but I get really excited because it means they finally feel safe enough to behave like a kid,” she says. “It’s really gratifying.” 

Nikita is one of the more than 1,100 volunteers who made moments like this possible last year by donating their skills and time – nearly 23,000 hours total – toward our vision of a future beyond poverty. Whether they’re harvesting turnips at Marra Farm or tutoring high school students at Sand Point, every volunteer plays a critical role in helping our neighbors live happier, healthier, and more fulfilling lives.

At Broadview, a safe haven for parents and children escaping the dual traumas of domestic violence and homelessness, Nikita does a little bit of everything, from answering phones and passing out lunches to chaperoning field trips and keeping kids cool in the summer heat. Nikita says she loves it all, but especially her work with children. 

“They get loud, they make a mess, but I get really excited because it means they finally feel safe enough to behave like a kid.”

~Nikita Sharma, volunteer

Kim S., a Children’s Advocate at Broadview, says the feeling is mutual. “The kids just love her,” she says. “She’s always running around, flying kites with them outside, playing Simon Says on the playground, doing crafts in the playroom, playing dress up, playing Uno – anything and everything. She just connects with them so well, it’s incredible.” 

Nikita started volunteering at Broadview about a year and a half ago, when she had just moved to Seattle for a new software engineering job and was looking for ways to connect with her new community. When she later had to leave her job because of health issues, the hours spent at Broadview became even more important to her. 

“It gave me some structure to my time and gave me some meaning,” she says. “When a lot of things in my life were difficult, this was a source of stability.” 

Nikita helped provide stability for dozens of children and parents as well. She started out packing and passing out sack lunches for kids in the summer, then switched to helping them with homework when they went back to school in the fall. She provided childcare so mothers could focus on rebuilding their lives, and helped lead fun activities for children to help them experience healthy relationships and build social-emotional skills for life. 

“She’s able to pick up on different needs so quickly – she knows where to step in. She’ll just pop right into whatever we’re doing,” says Kim. “She’s one of those people that you know when they’re coming in, it’s going make the day a lot easier.” 

Nikita says she loves being part of the Broadview team as well. “I’ve loved getting to know the people who work here too,” she says. “I showed up so often that I’ve built wonderful relationships with them, and they’ve all been so welcoming of me.”  

“She’s one of those people that you know when they’re coming in, it’s going make the day a lot easier.”

~Kim S., Children’s Advocate

But Nikita, who’s now back at work but still volunteers her time at Broadview, says it’s the relationships she built with kids that she cherishes most.  

“A lot of the kids – especially when they’ve just arrived – are scared and they don’t want to engage,” she says. “And I just love when they start to feel safe and you can see the change. They’ll open up a lot about what’s going on in their life. 

“And those are some of the hardest conversations, when they’ll come up to me and are like, ‘Hey, can we talk?’ I have immense gratitude for the parts of their story these children choose to share with me, and I deeply value knowing that I can be a safe place for them.” 

Want to share your time and skills with the Solid Ground community? Volunteer with us!

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Image at top: Nikita Sharma, Broadview children’s program volunteer (photo by Clarissa Magdich)