Sophia Kokofski

Interacted with customers, offering them menus and assisting their dining choices. As a waitress, I also managed seating arrangements of guests at tables and booths. Here, it was imperative that I help customers in a timely manner in order to maximize their experience at our restaurant. While working as a waitress, I have learned plenty of valuable life skills, such as patience, kindness, taking criticism, and communication, to a greater extent than I had before. Being in such a place of responsibility while working at a restaurant has taught me great attention skills to make sure that everyone is taken care of, as well as the necessity of teamwork when others are in a pinch.

While volunteering at Windham Hospital, a partner of Hartford Healthcare, I learned the gravity that a pleasant mood and attitude can have on someone's day. Clearly, anybody walking into a hospital, visitor or patient, is not having their best day. My position was simply to be that person with a pleasant mood and attitude. I greeted and welcomed guests to the front desk, while checking them in accordingly, helping with registration, and any further inquiries. I also took it upon myself to walk the visitors wherever they needed to go. Later into my time volunteering, I learned how to act as the operator and answer phones in a professional manner whenever necessary. This skill allowed me to present information about hospital events, activities, services, and facilities in such a way that people wanted to go.

I did math tutoring at my high school for volunteer hours, and I would help students understand mathematical concepts to help boost their grades. I aided in enhancing their math skills by creating individualized plans to promote problem-solving skills. Each student reported back with higher grades and a better understanding of math.