Volunteering can be as simple as spending time with children while their parents run errands or as big as creating a philanthropic event to support cancer research. But why do we volunteer?
Logically, it doesn't make sense. Why give your time and expect no monetary or other compensation? Is it because we have to? Because our job or school requires us to? Or do we truley feel the need to make a difference?
Why do you Volunteer? What inspires you to go out of your way to make a difference?
For me, volunteering is a way to connect with others and learn more about them. I volunteer at homeless shelters, women's shelters and with low-income families so that I can better understand the causes behind poverty and abuse and help end the cycle.
This summer I am interning at the Volunteer Center of Story County not just for my college degree but so I can help inspire those in the community to volunteer. I've found my passion is
1. Helping those in need
2. Inspiring others to do the same
'Volunteer to Change the World' was created to inspire, inform and educate on 'why we volunteer'. So drop us a line...why do you volunteer and what inspires you?
Hope to hear from you soon!
1 comment:
I have never really labeled myself as "patriotic." Like the many AmeriCorps volunteers in the state of Iowa, I think it's hard to argue that I am not patriotic for offering a year (2 in my case) of my life to bring change to my community. I wouldn't say my initial motivation had anything to do with political leadership, but instead a fundamental interest in the betterment of whatever community I was serving. But in the last year I have been inspired. I have found myself feeling less an individual serving my nation and more a part of a national movement of change, hope, and service that surpasses any political lines or administrative rhetoric. And with the support of such legislation as the Serve America Act and the Iowa Senate File 482 (which gives all AmeriCorps members a state-tax-free education award, as well as creates other Iowa-specific AmeriCorps projects), I believe volunteering in Iowa will continue to expand as a patriotic act and will serve as a significant piece of a national movement toward a healthy and vibrant country as a whole.
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