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Summer Service
Not very long after graduating and securing a job, I found myself in a bit of a lull. Work was steady and going well enough. I had made a few friends in my new city. But something was still missing. I felt as if I wasn’t using all the skills college had helped me develop. Further, I was bored with my home life. I had grown accustomed to enjoying organized activities on a lively campus. Now I was left to fend for myself. Frankly, it became all too easy to sit back on the futon and watch bad reality TV.
One day I finally grew weary of my self-pity. Instead of continuing to seek escape from my own humdrum existence, I decided it might prove more productive to focus my attention on helping others. I became a volunteer.
By volunteering, you can become an advocate for any number of worthy causes. My first volunteer experience out of college involved teaching adults who were new to the United States how to read and speak English. Unlike other writers who would insert a poignant story here, I’m not going to lie - it was awful. In theory, teaching elementary English sounded easy. In practice, I couldn’t even communicate clearly enough to provide simple directions. My assigned pupil never showed up at our meeting place - he may still be lost now! When my sister joked that I was a “bad volunteer,” I decided teaching ESL probably wasn’t my forte.
I learned an important lesson from my stint as an ESL volunteer. It’s like your mom always nags: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” There are a zillion volunteer opportunities out there - try them on for size and see how they fit. Choose the best experience for you.
The next avenue I wandered down was a bit closer to home. I started to write for my alma mater’s alumni magazine on a volunteer basis, and still do so today. It makes perfect sense. The work I do comes from love for an institution that I value and support. Through my involvement, I am able to reconnect to campus in an exciting and unique way. I’ve also met so many alums I never would have otherwise. The work is purposeful and rewarding to me.
Summer often brings about relaxed work and school schedules (not to mention great weather). It’s the perfect time to consider volunteering. If you are interested in learning more about service opportunities in your area, please check out the following links. There is something to fit everyone’s lifestyle, schedule, and interests.
• VolunteerMatch.org offers a variety of online services to support a community of nonprofit, volunteer, and business leaders committed to civic engagement. Simply type in your zip code to access volunteer opportunities from over 30,000 nonprofit organizations.
• United Way includes approximately 1,350 community-based organizations. Each is independent, separately incorporated and governed by volunteers like you!
• Volunteers of America is a national, nonprofit, spiritually based organization providing local human service programs and opportunities for individual and community involvement.
And of course you can always find unadvertised volunteer opportunities through your college/university, fraternity/sorority, or place of worship. They’ll always accept a helping hand!
Finally, I’m not sure who created this Top 10 Reasons to Volunteer site, but it has a picture of Bob Villa beside it, so that gives it mega clout, right? :) Read through it and you’ll see you have no excuses. Start your summer of service today! |
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