The first part of this series highlighted the skills that one can acquire from volunteering via the real-life experience of a volunteer. However, it has come to my notice that not everyone knows all that volunteering entails and some of us may be misinformed about it so we would be discussing that here.
- Scene #1: Amina, 57 years old, spends two hours a day, three days a week, at a local school, helping to teach extra-moral (evening) classes.
- Scene #2: John, a 15 year old, goes roller skating at his estate park on a Saturday only to find that the park is a wreck. He could wait for the local cleaners to clean it up but instead texts some friends who show up with their boots and some garbage bags.
- Scene #3: Titi is a 43 year old lawyer who spends her days (and most evenings) as a partner at a high profile corporate law firm. One of her family's favorite weekend activities is gardening so they occasionally spend a Saturday afternoon at a community garden that provides fresh fruits and vegetables to local schools.
- Scene #4: Tanko is a 62 year old retired accountant. In addition to travel and other personal pursuits, he gives professional advice on the financial plans of a handful of nonprofit organizations. This is mostly done by email so he's found that he can get feedback to them whether he is at home or around the globe.
- Scene #5: Chinedu is a 24 year old recent University graduate who is in the process of looking for paid work in the nonprofit sector, preferably with an organization that focuses on public health. While he spends much of his time researching and applying for jobs, he also serves on the board of a local free clinic in Lagos.
From the above cases, we have an idea
what volunteering is about. Common to all cases are; the people cut across
different genders, ages and career stages. The time commitments range from
impromptu to regularly scheduled work and it may include office-like work.
So volunteering means an interest, desire, or willingness to
do good while contributing time, skills, and energy towards something that is
not of direct benefit only to one's self, friends, or family and in the
process, not expecting any sort of reimbursement or payment in return for one's
efforts however with the option of choosing how, where, why, and when to get
involved.
The United Nations has a volunteer programme called the
United Nations Volunteers and has December 5 set aside every year for the International
Volunteer Day. Volunteerism has evolved with society hence there are now
virtual or online volunteers who can volunteer across the online space.
The many benefits of volunteering include meeting people whether
for professional networking (in addition to making invaluable contacts,
volunteering with a nonprofit is a great way to learn more about potentially
working in the sector or a particular field), to make new friends, or to just understand
a little more about others' ways of life. As stated in the previous post, volunteering
also provides opportunities to gain new
skills, practice existing skills in new ways, and learn more about complex issues like
hunger, health care, and the environment especially when you volunteer for the
United Nations and other international organizations.
So, get online and look for the next comfortable
volunteering opportunity next to you! You can start here!
[photo source: www.facebook.com]
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Cool! Insightful.
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