Zoey Hodge on the 'Mutual Relationship' of a Mentor

She was a high school student who wanted to make a positive impact on children in her community, and little has changed since Zoey Hodge graduated to university life. The 19-year-old junior at University of California, Berkeley shares with us that her time spent volunteering at Los Angeles’ CJ’s Dollhouse, then a daycare and foster home center, still influences how she lives life and wins today.

Previously Hodge appeared on LLW to showcase her involvement with local children—tutoring, growing vegetables and running arts and crafts programs. Though those years are behind her, the way she sees it, she’s still a role model to the children she severed.

“I feel that being with them is kind of what keeps me at UC Berkeley—It keeps me accountable to myself, too, because I wouldn’t want to let them down,” she explains to LLW. “I feel like it’s a mutual relationship.”

Community outreach work continues for Hodge while in Berkeley, Calif. The student says she has participated in national public health programs and performed service for her university. And after she finishes her four-year degree, she plans on continuing her education in graduate school. Thereafter, she wants to devote her career to improving communities full-time.

“I think that I will most likely work for a non-profit organization or doing community relationships,” she says. “I like working with people and mentoring them.”