Posted on: June 15, 2007
Summer of Service
Summer is the perfect time to engage in charitable activities that give back to your community and better the lives of those around you. Here’s how to get involved
By Anna T. Hirsh
CTW Features
Spending hour after hour lounging poolside or at the beach is certainly relaxing, but summer is about more than suntans and surfboards. If you’re looking to add a little fun and a lot of fulfillment to your life this sunny season, why not spend some of your summer giving back to your local community or helping those in need? Whether by your self, with a friend or with the whole family, volunteering is a great way to promote health, happiness and a spirit of giving.
If you’ve never volunteered before, summer is the perfect time to get going. Shawna K. Ross, the volunteer center coordinator for Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, Mich., says that human service agencies often need additional help during the summer months because this is the time when regular volunteers and those who help staff non-profits tend to take vacations. Additionally, programs that serve youth feel extra pressure because children are typically out of school. As a case in point, Jason Willett, director of communications for VolunteerMatch, San Francisco, Calif., which celebrated their 3 millionth match on June 5, says that June and July are typically the organization’s busiest months.
To get started, Ross suggests searching the Web using key words like “volunteer opportunities,” “United Way” or “Community Impact.” She also recommends Helping Hands, the Points of Light Foundation, Volunteer Match or the Corporation for National and Community Service.
Looking to better your immediate community? “Summer provides a wonderful opportunity to get outside and start a garden,” says Ross. “Think about areas in your community where a landowner might be willing to donate land that could be used for a community garden ... Food that is raised could be donated to a local food pantry. Check with your local American Red Cross office or the largest church in your area - chances are they provide emergency relief in the form of food for hungry families.”
Ross also suggests contacting your local City Hall about summer programming for festivals or children’s programs. Additionally, there may be summer community clean-ups, police agencies that need help removing graffiti, city murals to be touched up, fences to be painted, etc. City Hall could also connect you to Animal Control or the Humane Society, which often have pets that need walking, grooming or feeding. And you can call the Commission on Aging, says Ross, since every community has senior citizens that are in need of friendly visitors, meals on wheels or someone to transport them to appointments.
Aside from the benefits others reap, volunteering is even a great way to bolster your own mental health. “Psychologists have evidence that providing help promotes positive moods and can remediate negative moods,” says Margaret Clark, professor of psychology at Yale University. “In two studies (Williamson & Clark, 1989; 1992) in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, we found that people are in better moods after providing help. We don’t believe this is due to feeling competent. We do believe it comes from the providing care for those whose welfare we wish to support.”
When it comes to volunteering as a family, “The added benefit is obvious,” says Clark, “which is that the adults provide role models for their children. It also pulls attention toward matters of import and away from trivial quibbles that might otherwise take center stage.”
“Volunteering helps people feel good about themselves,” says Ross. “Their action is the opposite of inaction or helplessness; it feels that it may be a small thing for one person to take initiative to donate of their time or possessions, but when you see others who also want to help, it is a lot of individual people that add up to making a big difference in their corner of the world.”
