Do Something: Volunteering

Volunteers are important to our society. Social causes, community events, and a vast variety of nonprofits rely on volunteers to get the word out, lead tours, tutor children, and feed the homeless. Nearly fifty percent of the US population volunteers, but this number could be higher. Some times, you are needed just for a few hours or you can join Americorps, Teach for America, or the Peace Corps.  Many of these opportunities appeal to twenty-somethings, but they are open to volunteers of all ages.  Recently I found a UK website called Gap Year for Grown Ups, that provides international volunteering opportunities for people a little further removed from their college years.

Chances to volunteer abound in your local area, even though they might be a little harder to find. The traditional method for getting involved in your community is to find a group or organization that you feel passionate about and knock on their door. Local libraries usually have a directory of local nonprofits and the librarians often know of area organizations looking for help. Websites have recently started helping to match up volunteers with the organizations that need them. I recently signed up with Volunteer Match, a search engine that lets you type in your city and it populates a list of opportunities in your area. Some of the needs don’t ring quite true–if you type in several cities and the same volunteer need comes up sponsored by the same organization, do some independent searching before you sign up. I quickly found volunteering needs with the Indianapolis Zoo and the Indiana Arthritis organization. 

Another similar service is Serve.gov. It searches Volunteer Match along with other sites like Craigslist for organizations looking for people. It also has quite a few more capabilities, but I haven’t had the chance to explore it thoroughly.

 So get out there and do something!