I remember the first time I talked to Madi Louis, ’13. It was before the “Getting to the Greek” Loudness last year. Madi and I were in a mutual friend’s room with a bunch of other girls. She came up to me and said, “Charlotte, right? You donated to ASB and I am so grateful for that.” My first thought was, “wow, she is so polite!” Out of the hundreds of students who donate to Colby organizations, she remembered me? As I’ve gotten to know Madi better, it comes as no surprise that she remembered me. In fact, I’m sure she would remember anyone who donated to ASB, came to a Hillel dinner, attended a CVC one time event, or asked for her help with a paper. I’m sure that plenty of people would agree with me that Madi is one of the most thoughtful students on campus.
Madi, who hails from Wellesley, Massachusetts, is a double major in Global Studies and French with a minor in Anthropology. Sounds like a lot, right? Well Madi is also an Assistant Director of the Colby Volunteer Center (CVC), a COOT leader, a tutor at the Writer’s Center, and a board member of Hillel. Oh yeah, and she also organized the Alternative Spring Break (ASB) trip to New York City last year. As an Assistant Director of the CVC, Madi works with Dana Roberts and Amanda Lavigueur to schedule “One Time Events” and to make sure programming is running smoothly. Madi volunteered in high school and always thought volunteering was something good to do. “At Colby, it’s a great way to get to know Waterville better and it’s a great way to get off campus,” she said. During her first year, Madi coached Waterville Youth Soccer and volunteered at a homeless shelter with her roommate and a friend. Madi also got involved with the Waterville community through Hillel. She found that Hillel was an interesting way to meet people, both at Colby and in Waterville. “I joined Hillel to meet more people and to have people to celebrate with on the High Holidays. But one of my favorite things that we do is going down to Beth Israel. Now we are regulars at the synagogue and we say hi to the same people each time,” she said.
In addition to being a friendly face at the synagogue, Madi is a COOT (Colby Outdoor Orientation Trips) leader. Some of her closest friends at Colby are from her COOT trip. “It is powerful to be a role model when someone arrives on campus and to be a friendly face is a role I wanted to fill,” she said. During COOT (Colby Outdoor Orientation Trips) leader training last year, Madi talked to classmate Kelsey Naruse who went on the ASB trip with her in 2010. They thought it would be cool to lead a trip so they talked to another friend, Larissa Lee, who was on the trip with them and started organizing a trip for 2011. As Madi said, “it was very time intensive, but very rewarding. We planned housing, transportation, food, activities, and funding.” Madi learned more about how far money goes and the importance of being responsible for 11 students for a whole week, from beginning to end. While organizing the ASB trip last year, Madi, Kelsey, and Larissa met with Professor Howard to talk about the educational component of the trip. “Meeting with Professor Howard changed the way I think about volunteering. The biggest thing I’ve learned is that volunteering is as much about helping those in need as it is about learning about yourself. You learn from the clients as you are helping them, it’s a very mutual relationship,” Madi said. This year, Madi’s big question is whether the ASB programs will continue. She (along with Kelsey and Larissa) will study abroad in the spring. So this means that they are looking for some new leaders. As ASB is such a developing program, “everyone really counts. It’s exciting to see something new take off,” she said. Here at Colby, Madi appreciates the close-knit community. “I love being able to walk across campus and say hi to multiple people,” she said.
Madi also appreciates that Colby is not in a big city because she loves running on the trails around here. “I love that I can get a great education and appreciate the outdoors,” she added. ? When she’s not running or volunteering, Madi loves trying new foods and going out to breakfast. Her favorite places are Bonnie’s, Grand Central Café, and Kennebec Café. When it comes to food, Madi loves bread products. “Anyone who can make muffins, pumpkin bread, or anything else can win my heart,” she said. Even if you can’t bring her bread, I highly recommend getting to know Madi. She lives in West Quad in a two-room double with a fireplace. What a perfect s’mores buddy!