Meet our 2024/25 Volunteer of the Year: Ronak Nisher
July 29, 2025
SAL is delighted to celebrate our 2024/25 Volunteer of the Year, Ronak Nisher!
If you’ve been to an event recently you’ll surely recognize Ronak’s signature smile and helpful nature. We asked him a few questions about volunteering at SAL and his advice on the best ways to experience events.
Tell the SAL community a little about yourself!
Hello, My name is Ronak Nisher. I was born in Mumbai, India and I moved to the USA around 11 years ago. I work as a Senior Software Engineering Manager at Microsoft. I love hiking, reading, listening to music and traveling.
Why did you start volunteering with SAL?
I’ve always liked reading & volunteering so the events hosted at SAL were a perfect combination for me to sign up. I also wanted to give back to the community and do something polar opposite of what I do every day at work. I still remember my first day volunteering at SAL and I was amazed by how organized everything was, and how kind the people were.
What’s your favorite thing about SAL events?
If I were to pick just one thing, it would be the people who come to see these events. I love seeing the diversity in the people who come in, both in a single event as well as between different events. There is something magical about seeing all these people from different walks of life seemingly united by the love for the speaker or the topic. I’ve seen spouses, parents with their teenage kids, older couples, a group of friends and people by themselves all making their way to the hall waiting to hear the speaker. I also love seeing them engaged with the speakers’ stories and talking to their seat neighbors before the events. I think having a place where you can connect with your fellow people, especially in today’s world, is important and a place like SAL is a great place to see that happen indeed! Lately, I’ve loved seeing young people show up to some of these events and it makes me happy seeing them be a part of places like SAL where hopefully listening to the ideas and stories of these artists and authors would leave a mark in their life.
What do you look forward to when you’re volunteering?
I would be lying if I didn’t start by saying it’s seeing the SAL staff as well as the other volunteers. They’re all such nice and kind people that you want to keep coming back. Depending on what role I am doing that day, I also look forward to having these small passing conversations with the audience. If I am in the hall ushering, I get an early sneak peek to the WITS poem and maybe see the speakers doing soundcheck, mainly so I can tell people which side the speaker will be sitting on, if they ask me. As volunteers, we are also allowed as well as encouraged to join the audience after our shift ends, which is a very thoughtful thing that SAL does and I know many volunteers appreciate having the ability to do that.
In your opinion, what makes a great volunteer?
I think (and I might be wrong here, who knows), the key to being a great volunteer is to be “present”, be kind and be helpful. By being “present”, I mean that you should be aware of what’s going around you, maybe interact with the person you are scanning a ticket for, maybe make small talk while you are ushering people, or keep an eye out for those coveted seats hidden in the crowd when someone is looking for a place to sit. I think if you are enjoying what you are doing, it shows on your face and the guests feel it too.
If you were to give someone advice on attending their first SAL event, what would you say?
This is a great question, and I have so many things running through my mind for this, some of them are logistical (top one being “Go find that red table for any questions you would have”), but I’ll spare that spiel for when I do see you at your first event. In general terms though, here is the advice I have
1) Come a little early: There are SO many advantages to this! We always have our local bookstore partners whom you can check out, there are sometimes other booths as well that might pique your interest. You’ll find more time to talk to your seat neighbors, and not to forget, snag a better seat!
2) Explore the venue: both the SAL venues are unique and interesting in their own way. If you’ve never been to Benaroya Hall, you will be filled with a sense of grandeur the first time you enter the main hall. At Town Hall, the stained glass windows are one of my favorite parts. Take some time to walk around and I hope you find something that catches your eye and makes you happy.
3) Socialize: Come talk to the staff, the volunteers, and most of all, the other people attending the same event. You already have something in common with them! With the new SAL activity of “talk to your neighbors” right before the event, we’ll give you an easy way to do just that.
4) Look at the question of the day (and maybe fill it out?): At each event, right by the red info table, you will see a board with a question of the day, and some post it notes to jot down your answer. The question always relates to the event and I enjoy reading what other people have written (more than writing one myself).
Thank you to Ronak and all our volunteers who make our events happen, we could not do this without you!