Guest post from kidshealth.org
(abridged)
(Nektarina note: this post was written for US youth primarily but since it shares so many universal values and ideas, we are sure that young people across the world will find it useful. Enjoy reading!)
Volunteering gives you an opportunity to change lives, including your
own. If you're feeling frustrated or overwhelmed by the news of a
disaster, volunteering to help can be a great way to cope. If you'd like
to support a cause but can't afford to donate money, you can donate
your time instead.
So how do you go about it?
Find what's right for you
Unlike school, with volunteering you get to pick what really
interests you and who (or what) is most deserving of your time. Need
some ideas to get you started? Here are just a few:
Help kids learn and grow. Become a Big Brother or
Big Sister, camp counselor, or volunteer for an after-school sports
program. Special Olympics games and events are great ways to get to know
special-needs kids.
Give back over the holidays. Serve Thanksgiving
dinner to the homeless, volunteer at your local food bank, or distribute
toys to kids. Your church, temple, mosque, or other place of worship
also may be able to use your help.
Play with pets at a local animal shelter. Most
shelters depend on volunteers to keep the cats and dogs happy and well
exercised. (And when you're walking rescued dogs, you get a workout
too.)
Volunteer for a political campaign. If you're
interested in politics, it's a great way to find out how things work on
the inside. Even if you can't vote, you can still work to get your
candidate elected.
Help the environment. Join a conservation group and
help out with river preservation. Take part in a local park cleanup day.
You don't have to be an outdoorsy type — if you can't picture yourself
hauling trees up a hill, you could help out in a park office or
education center.
Support a health-related cause. Lots of us are close
to people who have a medical problem (like cancer, HIV, or diabetes,
for example). It can feel good to donate your time to an organization
that raises money for research, delivers meals, or offers other help to
people with an illness.
If you have more than one thing you love, find a way to combine the
two. For example, if you love kids and are great at arts and crafts,
visit your local children's hospital and offer to lead art activities
for young patients.
Find What Fits Your Schedule
Once you've found something that inspires you, decide how much time
you want to spend. Local organizations (like hospitals or shelters)
often like volunteers to give them a set amount of time every week or
two.
But what if school, sports, or other commitments prevent you from
devoting time every week? Many large organizations (especially those
related to the environment or finding cures for diseases) have daylong
activities. These include walkathons, bike rides, cleanup days, or
building homes for those in need.
You can also spend a week, month, or even a whole summer volunteering
through a structured internship or "alternative spring break" program.
The advantage of these is you get to immerse yourself in the activities
and feel a real sense of achievement when you see the results. Because
you spend a lot of time together, most people who work on long-term
volunteer projects form close friendships. Sometimes you get to travel,
and the organization may pay your travel and living costs.
Expand Your Mind
Volunteering is a great way to learn new skills — from working as
part of a team to setting and reaching goals. It gives you a chance to
discover what kinds of things you're best at and enjoy the most. A
volunteer job that you love can even help shape your ideas about your
career goals.
Volunteering also can provide you with a sense of responsibility
because people really depend on you. And it can help you develop a new
understanding of people who are different from you — people with
disabilities, people in financial distress, sick kids, or the elderly.
Feel Good
Donating your time is a great way to feel like you have the power to
change things for the better. When people depend on you, it can change
the way you look at yourself. You can feel proud of the goals that
you've achieved for an organization — whether it's helping to organize raising money for breast cancer or running the race itself.
Volunteering is also a great way to get a perspective on your own
life. Sometimes it's easy to get consumed by worries about your grades
or the fight you had with your friend or parent. And although these
things are very important in their own way, sometimes it can be helpful
to get some distance and think about other things. Volunteering allows
you to do this. It lets you focus on others and see that your
involvement in the world can be meaningful.
Finally, volunteering can help save you from being bored — it gives
you a place to be where you can have a good time and keep busy.
Look Good
When you donate your time to a cause you care about, it looks
impressive on college or job applications. That's not the main reason
for volunteering, of course — if you do it just to please other people
or to look good you may not enjoy it. But volunteering does show others
(and yourself!) that you are reliable enough to make a commitment and
show up on schedule.
Volunteering also shows employers and colleges that you believe in
making the world a better place — and that you're willing to sacrifice
your time and energy to do it.
Where Do I Sign Up?
After you've decided what you're interested in and how much time you can devote, it's time to find out where you can volunteer.
You have several choices. You can search the Internet or look in your
local phone book under "volunteer." You can call an organization
directly and ask if they need volunteers in your area. You can ask
friends or relatives for ideas and contacts or look on bulletin boards
in your library or in bookstores. It's worth spending the time up front
to identify a job that's a good fit for you.
When you're calling an organization to offer your time, it's best to
ask for a volunteer coordinator. Be ready to answer some questions,
like:
- Why do you want to volunteer for our organization?
- What do you know about our organization?
- How many hours a week will you be able to volunteer?
- What are your interests?
- Do you have any special skills?
- Do you have a way to get here?
Most places will ask you to come for an interview, which is usually
pretty casual. They want to talk to you face to face and if they haven't
yet asked the questions above, they will do it at the interview.
Whether your interview is on the phone or in person, don't forget to ask questions of your own. For example:
- What will be expected of me if I volunteer here?
- What kind of training will I receive?
- How many other volunteers are there?
- How many hours do you expect me to volunteer each week/month?
You might even want to ask if you can observe some other volunteers in action to get a feel for the work before you commit.
If it's a good fit — meaning you like the organization, they like
you, and you like the work — volunteering can be an incredible
experience.
