It’s a difficult time to be looking for work. Melanie knows. She’s been doing it, and trying to keep a positive attitude. Some days it is not so easy, but Melanie’s found the perfect antidote: volunteering.
I was at the fair, too, watching the shy and not-so-shy students exploring potential futures with representatives from local businesses. I was curious. What types of volunteering would these 8th graders do? I waded into the crowd to find out.
When Nevada Volunteers formed a Student Group at the University of Nevada, Reno through their Higher Education Initiative, one of the projects the students decided to work on was a Volunteer Fair to promote volunteering in the community.
It wasn’t the reception Racheal expected. The children stared at her. When she reached out to give them a hug, they ran off.
Racheal was volunteering with her church in a remote village in Mexico. Growing up, she had traveled to rural areas of her native country, Nigeria, helping people as part of a Christian ministry. She thought this trip would be similar, but it was not.
I had meant to get there on Wednesday. I didn’t make it till Saturday. I missed all the action of volunteers stacking cans, building incredible CANstructions—a snake, a train, and the Empire State Building. I was sick in bed, and by the time I got there three days later, all I could photograph were the results. As incredible as they were, the results weren’t the story I was after.
Sandie and Donna wanted to talk about definitions. These two long-time friends were ready for a good discussion and they weren’t afraid to challenge my assumptions. I had come to ask them how they felt about volunteering, but their comments about the definition of volunteer proved far more valuable.
Joyce is a nuts and bolts kind of gal, literally. She volunteers at the Truckee Meadows Habitat for Humanity Discount Supply Store, and she sorts, among other things, nuts and bolts. She’s a real fun person to be around, but she also is very pragmatic. She has some great advice for those looking for the perfect place to volunteer—shop around.
Here are my heroes! Watch my Bon Jovi video! Click the above link to help me win a Flip Video Camera for this blog. The most views win, so watch it again and again. Share with family and friends through email, FaceBook, Twitter, MySpace. I could really use the camera to help tell these stories,…
Sometimes, when on a journey, it’s a good idea to ask for directions. And who better to ask than someone who has been on the road for a while and understands where it might lead?
Margaret is such a person. She is very well-traveled on the ‘volunteer road.’ It’s the sparkle in her eyes that lets you know what she’s gained from the journey. After all those years of serving others, Margaret can sum up the power of volunteering in a concise yet profound way—“To be really happy, you have to give.”
68th! That means I didn’t get the funding to head out on Nevada’s roads with my blog. My Pepsi Refresh idea came in at number 68 out of 180 in my category! I needed to finish in the top 10 to get the Refresh Grant.
Road closed? Not really.