Maddie Norris is heading into her senior year of high school, but she has already spent years learning what it means to show up for her neighbors in Jones County. As a longtime volunteer with The Filling Station, Maddie serves at the food pantry every Tuesday morning, a role that has taught her the community runs less like a service and more like a family, where everybody knows everybody and needs get met quickly.
In this conversation with host Mary Ann LeRay, Maddie talks about the volunteer projects that have meant the most to her: delivering art supplies to assisted living and senior service centers around the county at Christmastime, and passing out water to volunteer firefighters during a training exercise. Both experiences, she says, opened her eyes to the different lives and needs tucked throughout Jones County, and to the quiet dedication of the people who serve it.
Maddie also shares her personal goal of logging 100 volunteer hours this year, far beyond the 12 hour minimum often cited for students. Mary Ann puts that commitment in context, explaining that a volunteer hour in 2026 is valued at $36.49, and that The Filling Station needs roughly 6,000 volunteer hours a year to keep its programs running. For Maddie, though, the real reward isn't a number. It's the compassion she's learned along the way, and the reminder that a handful of people working together can change someone's life.
Looking ahead, Maddie is weighing her college options, with UNC Wilmington at the top of her list, and says her volunteer work has pointed her toward a career in nursing or ultrasound technology, something hands on and people focused. Listen in to hear her advice for other students considering service, and learn more about volunteering in North Carolina at volunteernc.org.