In Bed with a Mosquito—Insights on Volunteering

Each year Volunteer Month is celebrated in the U.S. in April. In Jacksonville, the Applegate and surrounding areas, we are blessed with a huge range of volunteer activity, which is the bedrock of the strong community spirit that permeates our area. 

I won’t catalogue all of them here, but our residents, young and old, serve in so many dimensions: the service and civic organizations that keep our towns functioning, the educational programs that help our students get a good start in life, the faith-based communities that provide spiritual and practical support, the health organizations that have been so critical during the past year of the pandemic, and the cultural organizations that promote understanding and enrichment of the human spirit. All have volunteers undergirding their efforts to make this area a good place to live.

I have spent most of my adult life deeply involved with volunteerism, both as a volunteer myself and supporting the volunteer efforts of others in organizations. I have been a volunteer in a variety of roles, from very intense crisis counseling to set-building for community theater to outdoor park cleanups to board leadership and fundraising. In my worklife I have led volunteers in many settings from small local projects to grand national programs with thousands of volunteers serving millions of people. It has been a wonderful trek—honestly not without its ups and downs at times on certain volunteer projects—but that’s what has kept it interesting and stretched my skills!

A sampler of what I’ve learned about volunteers:

• That there is always more to learn about how the human heart chooses to give to others and find meaning. Get an active volunteer talking about why they do it and be prepared to hear amazing stories about the origins of their volunteer impulse, and the sense of enrichment and fulfillment that volunteering brings.
• That the personal ask is the best way to interest others in volunteering—often I find that interests and skills emerge simply by learning more about that individual’s life journey.
• That volunteers can and will do anything, from simply directing traffic at an event, to building homes, to organizing national service or advocacy campaigns.
• That there’s a lot of reciprocity in volunteering—you are giving but you get back so much.
• That it is important to be respectful of others’ time and gifts by putting some organization around what you are asking them to do.

Most of all, that the gifts of volunteering are immense and soul-nurturing: a sense of purpose, an opportunity to use well-honed skills or to learn new ones, a chance to inspire and impact the next generation—or to have them inspire you, a means to build community.

Some of my favorite quotes about volunteering:

“What is the essence of life? To serve others and to do good.” — Aristotle

“It’s easy to make a buck.  It’s a lot tougher to make a difference. ” – Tom Brokaw

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.” – Sherry Anderson

“If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in bed with a mosquito.” – Betty Reese

Thanks to all of you who are volunteering to make the world a better place!

At the Jacksonville Community Center, we rely on volunteers to keep the Center operating smoothly. We have opportunities in a variety of areas; check the Volunteer section of our website for more information.