Eve Osbakken

Eve Osbakken has been volunteering with Arlington Charities for about six years. Arlington Charities is always evolving and over her six years, Eve has witnessed some of the changes herself. The most impactful change for her is the attitude towards the diverse populations of clients. She admitted that some of the volunteers were rude to different populations when she started, but they were swiftly removed. Now, there is a zero-tolerance policy for discrimination and Eve is very happy how accepting and multicultural of an environment Arlington Charities has become. Her favorite part of volunteering is meeting clients from all over the world who come for help and hearing their stories. Eve recounted a story to me of a Russian lady who came to Arlington Charities who spoke no English. She had an interpreter with her but was very anxious and overwhelmed during her first visit. However, the welcoming environment at Arlington Charities soothed her anxiety. Now, when the Russian woman comes in, she wears a huge smile and is always grateful for the help. Being originally from Germany herself, Eve has a huge empathy with the immigrant plight.

When not volunteering at Arlington Charities, Eve stays very active with other nonprofits and charitable services. With the Presbyterian Night Shelter, she helps older adults get out and go on trips to museums and cultural spaces around Dallas and Fort Worth. They have even been on a trip to Europe. She also helps people in prison deal with stress and develop themselves.

Eve would definitely recommend volunteering at Arlington Charities to others and to live their lives by the words of St. Francis, “for it is in giving that we receive.” She also advises that new volunteers take advantage of the wisdom of other volunteers and our new volunteer coordinator. Volunteers did not used to be trained as well as they are now.