Most teenagers have to be persuaded to volunteer on the weekend. Olivia Hazzard, a sophomore at Marquette Catholic High School and lifelong Portage resident, gives back because she wants to, not because she has to.
Hazzard’s earliest memory of getting involved in Portage is picking up trash along McCool Road on Earth Day with her father, who knows his daughter does the right thing because she believes in giving back to the community. It’s through his heavy involvement on many boards when Hazzard was younger that she was exposed to the community.
“My dad instilled in me from a young age that, whatever I do, I need to do it with my whole heart and I always need to work hard,” Hazzard said. “He's told me that I can always do something to help make another person's day better and always help other people out.”
Work ethic flourished in a young Hazzard beyond volunteer work. She founded her soap business, Olivia and Simon, when she was 11 years old. It led to Hazzard speaking with kids her age in Gary at STARBASE Indiana, a program exposing at-risk youth to STEM activities, about how she started her business. Her creation, which is no longer running, still inspires her.
“I definitely do want to have my own business in the future,” Hazzard said. “Right now, I want to be a dermatologist after college, and hopefully I can start my own business with that or become my own entity.”
Marquette has helped fuel Hazzard’s desire to volunteer by fostering the need to treat others as Jesus would. The school requires students to have 15 volunteer hours every semester. Teachers post volunteer opportunities around the area on a circulating Google Classroom.
The school also offers awards as incentives to complete more than the required yearly hours. Hazzard received the school’s award for completing at least 50 hours of service last year. She wants to receive the Presidential Award at the end of her four years, which will require her to complete 200 volunteer hours.
Hazzard is grateful Marquette recognizes the potential for burnout in its students by offering them study halls. Teachers and coaches encourage students and reassure them of their abilities. Hazzard also focuses on self-care when she realizes she’s not reaching her full potential.
“Everybody has their different lives and different experiences, but I just love how everybody puts their differences aside sometimes and is one group,” Hazzard said. “We're just a really tight knit community at Marquette, and I love that so much about us.”
Volunteering is only one part of who Hazzard is. She’s also a high-achieving student athlete that wants to improve her leadership skills when she returns to the court for varsity basketball and volleyball this year.
Playing college basketball is already on Hazzard’s mind, but she’s not using her hefty resume to get accepted into a good school. She doesn’t want accolades — she wants to be prepared for life.
“Working hard now is going to make things a lot easier, in my opinion, when I'm on my own,” Hazzard said. “Taking responsibility and being a leader and independent is very important to me.”
Community support can start at any age. Hazzard believes people should want to help out, even with supporting small businesses at Market on the Square at Founders Square. She wants to give back to the community that raised her and wants to inspire others to do the same, especially the youth. Hazzard knows she wouldn’t be the hardworking person she is today without her parents instilling selflessness in her at a young age.
“My dad has always told me that even though it’s bad now, it's going to be better in the future,” Hazzard said. “He told me how important it is to have discipline and always work as hard as you can because people will take notice of that and people will respect you and value you because of how hard you work.”