Meet Sue Erbes, Online English Tutor
After Sue retired as Operations Manager at TrueNorth at the end of 2019, she wanted to volunteer. She came across a newspaper ad for CMC’s volunteer orientation and went to one of the sessions. Though she always worked in business, she holds a BA in English and Social Studies as well as a teaching certificate.
Sue began tutoring in 2020, originally meeting in-person with her student every week. “Her name is Richa, she is from India, and we have actually become good friends,” Sue shares. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic that same year, tutoring transitioned online. Richa and Sue started meeting for virtual lessons and continue to do so today.
During the pandemic, Sue earned her TESOL certificate (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), a journey that began with volunteering to teach classes, and led to her becoming an ESL teacher at Kirkwood Community College. “Catherine McAuley did spark the inspiration. Once I started doing it, I really enjoyed it,” she says. “I really enjoyed visiting with the students and communicating, and trying to help them understand language, culture, and it was really gratifying.”
Sue cherishes the connections she makes while tutoring and finds the experience incredibly rewarding. She says, “It personally feels good and I also feel like I am making a little bit of a difference in somebody else’s life in helping them to learn the language. I don’t know any other languages so I have a great respect for people who come to the United States and learn a whole new language. It is very difficult.”
Patience, empathy, and understanding are qualities Sue says are necessary in tutors. “Understand that it does take time. Doing it once a week, you are packing a lot in one hour, but you are making a difference.”
Sue is especially appreciative of CMC Kids, the free, on-site childcare program that allows parents to study and attend appointments without interruption. “I think that is very, very important because that allows them at least an hour of their own time away from the other worries they have.”
“I think Catherine McAuley has done a great deal for the community,” she says. “Even some of the students I have at Kirkwood, most of them have had some kind of contact with Catherine McAuley, either through refugee services or [other programs] and they are just so happy. So happy. They talk so nicely about it.”
Welcoming newcomers to the country and city are priorities that Sue finds important for a stronger, more diverse community. Looking ahead, she sees herself continuing to volunteer and making friendships along the way.
Thank you, Sue!
