Volunteering Locally

Previously, I posted about volunteering outside of the United States. I learned a lot from that and I do believe it is a noble and worthy way to spend time. I also believe in helping those people closer to home. Here, I do not have to spend a thousand dollars to travel someplace else, and then I do not have to worry about the language barriers, and most importantly, it can be accomplished immediately. The thing is, people everywhere need help -- whether it is the people down the street or those across the pond -- many, many people need help.

It is one thing to volunteer to be a committee member to a club or organization you belong to, and another thing to volunteer to a community member that you have no connections with. Although I will volunteer to the club or organization, I believe that is simply being an active member of the group. Volunteering, to me, is giving my time in helping someone I do not know. And there are a thousand ways to volunteer

There are former alcoholics or drug addicts who volunteer to help another person break the habit. There are former people of ill repute who counsel people to change a way of life.
There are people who have a mental illness who help educate the public on ways to understand.

There are people who have lofty goals of saving humanity from human trafficking, or medicare fraud or poverty or or the homeless or hunger or biases or unjustices or...the list is endless, and the goal will never be met in a lifetime. But you gotta start somewhere.

But, I believe, through one act with one person, things do change. Here are 10 ways to help locally:

1. Volunteer in a food pantry. There are many jobs to be filled, from contacting businesses to give, to stocking shelves to handing out the food to those in need. Also, sometimes those pantries serve a hot meal, so you could work the food line or be on clean up. Food pantries are everywhere. Open your phone book or contact a church or chamber of commerce to see where you could help.

2. Collect clothing -- Slightly used items for a child to wear to school or a woman or man to wear on a job interview. Better yet, here, guide the person who is going to have a job interview on what to say during the interview and how to act to have a favorable impression. If you have the skills, help someone pull together a resume so they will be able to compete in the job search.

3. Big ticket items -- Have an old car, or a working refrigerator or stove, or a sofa, or an air conditioner that is used but still good -- talk around with people you know or from a church or an organization, and see if anyone is in dire need of a big ticket item but does not have the money for it. You will bring a smile and a sigh of relief to another.

4. Money Cards --  Usually, this is good if there is a fire and you want to help the person who had a great loss because of the fire or other disaster. This is also nice at Christmas or a holiday when you want to help but you do not know if the gift is going for young or old, male or female.

5. Help with an organization such as Habitat for Humanity. Many, many people are in need of adequate housing or to make their house up to code. Whether if you are helping people build a house from the ground up, or are giving a new coat of paint to a house, it is going to not only help that receiving person, but will also help the community look better. Also, be a handy man or woman for a day. There are many people who can not physically maintain a home, but it is theirs, and they want to stay at home. So, clean the house, put in new light bulbs, trim the bushes, paint the cabinets, repair a screen...

6. Mentoring -- So, so many people need a bit of guidance. As people age, we gain experience, and I believe that experience should be passed to the next generation. We, in America, also have many people who migrate here from other countries, but they have no clue how we go about our business of living. When you help someone assimilate into our culture, America has gained because someday that person will be a citizen of our United States.

7. Schools -- Oh, how they need help. Whether tutoring a child who needs extra help in reading or math, or filing records, or helping a teacher prepare for the day or the week, someone is always needed in our schools. There is no money to educate any longer, and any help, I am sure, is always appreciated.

8. Hospitals -- There are all kinds of volunteer groups at hospitals, from those people who push a person in a wheelchair from one place to another to working in the gift shop to working at the information center, you could find a place here. Also, I knew someone who had permission from the hospital to read stories to the children on a unit. Great idea. That idea could also be extended to a library or a school or a daycare center.

9. Visit the elderly in a nursing home. You would be surprised by how many elderly do not have frequent visitors. Simply taking a few minutes to say hello to someone who is lonely is monumental. A smile and a kind word goes a long way. Also, still thinking of reading to someone, stay an extra minute and read a story or newspaper to the resident.

10. Be a driver for the day -- Here, if you were transporting someone (let's say to a doctor's office) I would first check with the insurance company to see if it okay, but I would assume it would be as long as there is no money exchanged, and that is what volunteering is about -- not being paid with money. There are so many people who need groceries, a visit to the doctor, a stop at the local Walmart or Dollar Store, and do not have a way to get there. Offer to take that person.

There are so many ways to help your neighbor in need. And most of us, at some point in our life, need a little help from a friend....or a stranger.

What are other ways to volunteer?

Until tomorrow...have a great day...