The Lifeblood of a Community

Did you hear about the knife thrower who started using volunteers as a part of his show? Yea, they're a part of his target audience.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of a community. It can be said that volunteers keep the lights on in a community. They enable organizations to deliver vital programs and services to help keep all doors open. They lend their expertise to fundraising campaigns and special events. They cement the community together.

Volunteering for a good cause changes lives and doesn’t just benefit the people you’re helping. Beyond the obvious benefits of helping out in the community and making a difference, volunteering can further a career and improve your life. Everybody wins.

Volunteering can provide a healthy boost to your self-confidence, self-esteem, and life satisfaction. You are doing good for others and the community, which provides a sense of accomplishment. Your role as a volunteer can give you a sense of pride and identity.

By volunteering, you’ll meet people you otherwise never would have met. The bonds formed between volunteers often are strong. These friendships expand your network of contacts. It’s a nice side effect.

What do you call an elderly person who volunteers their time? A dentured servant.

Unemployed volunteers are more likely to find work than non-volunteers. Volunteers have a 27 percent better chance of being hired than people who don’t volunteer, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service.

A LinkedIn survey found 41 percent of hiring managers view volunteer work as equal to a paid job. This is especially beneficial to anyone who has been unemployed but volunteered while searching for a job.

What do you call a volunteer bricklayer? A freemason.

Volunteering makes most people happier and improves their mental health. Being happier has a huge impact in your “real” job and help ensures you don’t get burned out. Happiness makes the day-to-day work more enjoyable. A study found volunteers have a 20 percent lower risk of death than people who don’t volunteer.

Self-confidence goes a long way in furthering your career and volunteering provides the outlet to improve this valuable quality. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing as long as it provides you with a sense of purpose and satisfaction in your life.

A man buys a paint factory in a small town. He visits the local volunteer fire department to see for himself if they'd be able to handle a fire at his plant. What he finds convinces him they could not...the whole fire department consists of one old pumper truck and a bunch of volunteers he finds less than reliable. He tells them "Boys, I'm sorry to tell you this but I'm not confident you could handle a fire at my plant. I'm going to contract with the nearby big-city fire department".

A few months later the unthinkable happens and the plant catches fire. The owner calls the big-city fire department, and when they show up the fire chief decides that it's just too dangerous to approach the plant. He decides to set up a roadblock to prevent anyone from going near it, and they begin to wait it out. Just then the local boys come barreling down the road, fire bell clanging and siren blaring. The driver is waving his arms to get the big-city firemen to move out of the way, and crashes right through the barricades. They smash through an overhead door into the plant, set up a few hoses and start fighting the fire. The guys without hoses grab shovels and start flinging dirt onto the fire.

The big-city fire chief sees this and shouts "C'mon boys, let's get in there and help 'em out!" After a few hours their efforts pay off, and they manage to save a large portion of the plant. The owner is happy as he can be, and tells the local fire chief "That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen! Thank you! I'm going to write you a check and donate $10,000 to your fire department! Do you have any idea how you're going to spend it?" The local chief thinks for a moment and says:

"Well, I don't know what we're going to do with the rest, but first thing tomorrow morning that fire engine is getting new brakes!"

One in four Americans volunteer. People in the States spend an average of 52 hours a year volunteering. Women are more likely than men to volunteer. And Baby Boomers are more likely to be volunteers than any other generation. Most volunteers are between 35 and 44 years old.

Covid caused 11% of volunteer organizations in the US to cease operations. Almost 75% of Americans think that volunteering will be more important after the pandemic. In the US, 15% of people support hunger and homelessness causes.

My wife volunteers every week as a school crossing guard. I tell everyone she's into human trafficking. Don't ever question the value of volunteers. Noah's Ark was built by volunteers; the Titanic was built by professionals." ~Dave Gynn.

Around 30.3% of Americans volunteer. Moreover, 35.97% of the time spent volunteering is dedicated to fundraising. Finally, 34.22% of volunteering activity goes to collecting, prepping, or distributing food (34.22%).

Volunteer time in the States is currently valued at $28.54 per hour. This calculation is based on hourly earnings released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. It’s estimated that volunteers contribute nearly $200 billion in value to US communities. The value of volunteer time in 2020 was up 4.9% from 2019. Volunteers are important in today’s world.

"There are three kinds of people: Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who say, 'what happened?'" ~ Casey Stengel.