EL PASO, Texas -- A 402nd Field Artillery single Soldier and mother of three children spends most of her personal time away from home serving others.
Between local homeless shelters, elementary schools and Circle K stores in Northeast El Paso, Sgt. 1st Class Heather West, a 402nd operations noncommissioned officer, manages not to miss a beat in all she has going on in her life.
While some Saturdays she works at Operation Santa Claus at Fort Bliss, Texas, other days she's at one of the local convenience stores chatting with a person for whom she bought a soda and a bag of potato chips.
But every first Sunday she can be found at the Opportunity Center of El Paso feeding the homeless.
"I really just get an idea about wanting to volunteer, and I just go and do it," said West.
For West, her time is far more valuable than what she attributes monetarily, and having people alongside her with a like-minded approach is a win-win for all involved.
West said she gets calls from people all around El Paso, but Councilman Carl Robinson is the one person who can get her to do almost anything and has helped fuel her efforts.
"Heather's very cooperative and responsive," said Robinson. "It's always good to know when you have a civic-minded person on your team."
With a packed work schedule as an Ops NCO and a single parent, it's a wonder West finds time for all of her volunteer work.
"Sometimes people sacrifice family to help out," said Robinson.
West doesn't look at it as a sacrifice. In fact, the 13-year veteran just so happens to be the president of the Fort Bliss Sgt. Audie Murphy Club, which is also known for its volunteer efforts.
"You make time for what you want to make time for," said West. "You just really have to take advantage."
West isn't out in the community going at it alone. Her daughter is a huge part of her efforts.
Eleven year-old Dasanah West, received the Fort Bliss Volunteer Youth of the Year award. Her receipt of the award is evidence of her community involvement, but West and Dasanah are not the only ones in the family who have made community service a lifestyle.
Her two teenage boys, C.J. West, 16, and Aaron West, 15, volunteer just as much as their sister, Dasanah, and they all do it together as a family.
While C.J. wasn't too thrilled about volunteering initially, he took a liking to it and it truly has become a family affair.
"When she first introduced us to feeding the homeless, I wasn't really skeptical and I wasn't really up for it either because I wanted to stay home," said C.J.
Aaron felt the same way. He said he wanted to stay home and sleep the whole day.
"I'm glad she got me out the bed that day," said Aaron.
For the past three years, the Wests have made a life out of community service. While the people receiving the help reap the immediate benefit, the bond of the West family has been strengthened by these acts of kindness.
"Before we started volunteering, everybody was pretty spaced out," said West.
That space has dwindled to almost nothing, said Dasanah.
"It's brought us pretty close," she said. "The more we get to know one another, it's actually pretty
special."
With everything West keeps her hand in, from the 10- and 12-hour workdays to the countless hours she spends helping others, her efforts and impact on her own family is not lost. They value what she does in the community for the less fortunate just as much as what she does at home.
Dasanah hopes to be there for her mom like her mom is there for everyone else.
"Never in my life have I met a woman so persistent for the happiness of others to where she will go out of her way for the smallest things to make people happy," said Aaron.
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