Trentman enjoys volunteering

Published:  Saturday, October 17, 2009 (3 months, 3 weeks ago)
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BY STACY TAFF
The Delphos Herald
staff@delphosherald.com

Delphos native Matt Trentman traveled to Alaska this summer.DELPHOS — People sacrifice their time to volunteer causes for many reasons, ranging from repentance and compassion to something as simple as a cure for boredom. For 20 year-old Matt Trentman, an environmental studies major at Manchester College in Indiana, it’s just what he likes to do.
“Every year during spring break, I go to different places to help with Habitat for Humanity. I got involved with it through the Habitat for Humanity group at my school. Last year, I went to Mississippi and the destruction there was horrible,” said Trentman. “This next year, I’m going to be going to Georgia to help with what’s happened because of the flooding.”
Trentman’s love of working for a good cause has shaped his plans for the future.
“I love doing it and that’s why I’m in environmental studies. I went on a trip to Seward and Homer, Alaska, on the Kenai Peninsula this summer for course credit and we were there for two weeks, camping the whole time. It was pretty cold. We got to do a lot of things like sea kayaking and fishing for Halibut but we also got a chance to talk to a lot of people about what they do in their field,” Trentman said. “One of the people we talked to was a climate change researcher and he took us out to see a lot of the different things he was researching, which was really cool,” he said.
“I got a chance to talk to a lot of others as well, mostly people with government biology careers.”
There was still time to enjoy the scenery and experience Alaska.
“We took an 8-hour tour where we got to look at glaciers and a lot of different kinds of wildlife. It was light pretty much 24 hours a day while we were there, which took some getting used to. One of the kids locked the keys in the car and we called the locksmith. It was pretty late at night and he answered and said he’d be right over after he was done watering his flowers,” Trentman said.
Besides building houses for people who have lost everything and learning about ways to make the environment better, Trentman has a number of other things on his volunteer resume.
“He’s been in Boy Scouts most of his life and he’s an Eagle Scout,” said Trentman’s mother, Laura Trentman. “He did a project for Waterworks Park and he volunteers for everything. He’s the secretary of the Christian Fellowship group at Manchester and when he was in high school he did a lot of missionary work and visited people who didn’t have anyone else. I’m so proud of what he does and I love it but I don’t love it when he’s gone all of the time. I miss him.”
While Trentman continues to move toward his future career and dedicate time to his volunteer commitments, it’s obvious that his mother will have many more opportunities to miss him.
“I loved the time I spent in Alaska,” he said. “I’m hoping to go back sometime and maybe bring some friends and family along. Except this time, I’ll stay in a hotel.”

1 Reader Response to “Trentman enjoys volunteering”

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  1. #1 — Added 3 months, 3 weeks ago

    We are very proud of Matt as well as he is second cousin to us. We too belong to several missions as well, It is very exciting and full of gratification, So glad Matt is enthused and will continue to do Gods work.. Job well done Matt, Your ENTIRE family is very proud of you..

    Posted on October 17, 2009 at 10:24 am by linda b