Thrive Global
  • Product
  • Stories
  • Careers
  • About
  • Log In
  • Get Started
Thrive Global
  • Product
  • Stories
  • Careers
  • About
  • Log In
  • Get Started
  • Latest
  • Well-Being
  • Wisdom
  • Wonder
  • Purpose
  • Sleep

Categories

  • Latest
  • Well-Being
  • Wisdom
  • Wonder
  • Purpose
  • Sleep

Special Sections

  • Challenge Winners
  • Social Impact and Purpose
  • First Responders First
  • How Small Businesses Thrive
  • Meditative Story
  • Mental Health
  • Mental Health at Work
  • Never Stop Learning
  • Resilience on the Front Lines
  • Shabbat: A Day of Rest
  • Sleep Well
  • Thrive XM Index
  • Thrive Podcasts
  • The Thrive Questionnaire
  • Wellbeing and Social Change
  • Life-Work Integration
  • You Are Not Alone

Social Impact and Purpose

Medical Reserve Corps Phone Bank Volunteer Lives and Breathes Service Throughout the Global Pandemic

Daily Point of Light honoree Jessika Kennedy has volunteered over 1,600 hours with the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps, part of a nation-wide network of more than 200,000 volunteers who are organized at the local level to improve the health and safety of their communities.
Diane Quest

Diane Quest

4 Min Read

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Jessika Kennedy. Read her story and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.  

Jessika Kennedy joined the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps when she was 20 years old, first through an emergency medical training course. The now 34-year-old became more and more active in the volunteer program, but in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic shook the medical community at its core.   

Jessika spent most of her pandemic time volunteering and answering OKMRC telephones to respond to the community’s public health and COVID-19 questions. Prior to the pandemic, Jessika received basic life support training and gained experience in the field of teaching and education.  

“In the beginning, there was so much fear. We wanted to be the calm in the middle of our community’s storm,” Jessika said. “From usually around 7:15 a.m. in the morning to sometimes 6 p.m. in the evening, we’d be working or getting prepared for the next day.” 

Jessika’s COVID-19 response group at OKMRC opened during the very beginning of March 2020. She helped lead the team’s phone bank, which was created for people to call in, ask questions, gain reassurance on vaccinations or even vent their frustrations or anger, according to Jessika.

Jessika Kennedy volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic at the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps, primarily by answering telephones to respond to the community’s public health and COVID-19 questions./Courtesy Jessika Kennedy

“Giving back to your community makes you feel a part of your community, and when you realize that you’re not the most important person in the world, it’s healthy to see that you’re a part of something bigger and it’s a blessing,” Jessika said.  

“We all went through our own personal crises during COVID-19, but whenever you pause and say ‘wait a second, I can give back,’ then we all benefit,” she added.  

The Medical Reserve Corps is a nation-wide network of more than 200,000 volunteers who are organized at the local level to improve the health and safety of their communities. Jessika is among the Oklahoma corps network in Tulsa — which traditionally helps in community emergency response, flu vaccinations and more — and she’s given more than 1,600 hours to the volunteer organization.  

From the time Jessika was young, she’d always volunteered. She’d volunteer with her relatives at Toys for Tots and at local charities during the holidays. Jessika’s family was made up of public servants, military members, fire fighters, teachers and police officers, and became adamant about giving back to the community and being a driving force for good. Now, Jessika wants to continue their legacy. 

“I was surprised during a time of crisis, the majority of people want to find a way to give back, so being able to help people understand how many different ways there are within our own community to help with was super important to me,” Jessika said.  

Jessika not only grew her volunteerism during the COVID-19 pandemic, but also her leadership skills. Jessika became the unit leader of the phone bank because of her calm demeanor and confidence in her ability to correct COVID-19 misinformation. She also learned from the medical staff around her and grew to anticipate the needs of her team and her volunteers.  

Jessika Kennedy helps the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps phone bank, which was created for people to call in, ask questions and gain reassurance on vaccinations and information./Courtesy Jessika Kennedy

Although she’s gotten used to service through the phones, Jessika’s favorite volunteerism opportunities are the smaller and more local events in her community. Through her volunteerism at events around the city, Jessika’s presence throughout Tulsa, Oklahoma is consistently felt and always appreciated. 

“If you find little ways to give back, even every other month, those little things are what our community needs too and we can come out of the pandemic stronger than we were before,” Jessika said.  

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Jessika? Find local volunteer opportunities. 

This post was written by Madi Donham. Points of Light collaborates with voices from various writers to help tell inspirational stories of leadership, volunteerism and civic engagement. We recognize that there are many ways to be civically engaged, as outlined in Points of Light’s Civic Circle, and we are grateful to our writers for helping us illustrate the impact of how everyday actions can change the world. 

  • civic engagement
  • Community
  • Inspiration
  • volunteering
Published June 1, 2022

Share this post

Author(s)

  • Diane Quest

    Diane Quest

    Chief Operating Officer

    Points of Light

    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Personal Website
    Diane Quest is the chief operating officer at Points of Light and has served as an executive leader with the organization since 2016. The Points of Light Board of Directors has appointed her interim President and CEO, beginning December 1.   An accomplished nonprofit executive, she brings 20 years of experience in management, strategy, and external affairs, including marketing and communications, event production and experience, and partnerships. In her tenure at Points of Light, she has served in a variety of roles as a member of the executive leadership team responsible for enterprise strategy, and most recently she served as chief external affairs officer, where she was responsible for brand strategy, the annual Points of Light Conference, The George H.W. Bush Points of Light Awards and Celebration, and The Daily Point of Light Award.   Diane has an extensive background in strategic and crisis communications. In her previous role at MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership she successfully led a rebranding effort, a strategy that resulted in increased visibility in earned media and social media, and the doubling of registration at the organization’s annual national conference. Prior to MENTOR, she was a consultant with Camino Public Relations, a boutique firm with a focus on social justice nonprofit clients.   She served at The Pew Charitable Trusts as the communications manager for a jointly sponsored advocacy project with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Prior to her work at Pew, Diane was the national media director at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. She managed the development and implementation of media relations campaigns to advance the mission of the $1 billion reproductive health care and advocacy organization.   In addition to her nonprofit work, Diane also has experience working within the federal government. She was the media and legislative affairs liaison for the inspector general at the U.S. Department of State. Before entering the field of communications and public relations, she was a television journalist. She has a Master of Arts in political science from American University in Washington, D.C., and a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin.
Thrive Global
  • Product
  • Stories
  • Careers
  • About
  • Community
  • Press
  • Code of Ethics
  • Terms of Service
  • Contributor Login
  • Security
  • Privacy
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

Onward. Upward. Inward.

Thrive Global © 2023