By Francis McGowin
My family, particularly my mother, was a great believer in helping people in need, all people in need, and volunteering everyone else to help them too. For our family and Mom’s close friends, there were endless projects requiring food preparation, events organization, and time spent with strangers.
My mother also volunteered with hospice for almost 20 years, a fact I found out while home during Christmas just before her cancer diagnosis. My father did not know either for the first five years she was visiting and caring for people from all walks of life who were dying. Even in her own death, she asked us to care for those who needed us.
I believe my mother knew the grace and peace that came with helping others. Volunteering was as much a self-ish act as it was a self-less act for her.
Volunteering has many advantages, like belonging to an elite group of people working to improve the world. Volunteering also establishes a bond with like-minded individuals who are connected by their mission to serve. It is work that reflects an inward commitment to a purpose, and this unites us no matter our political or religious convictions or our socioeconomic standing.
We always have choices… choosing happiness and fulfillment means making many daily choices that guide us to that outcome. Knowing what purpose will achieve that outcome is individual. Nothing is off limits, so start experimenting to find your own mission.
I love my dogs. I have always understood the unique connection that a dog has with a human and the effect of this connection. Choosing to get my dogs certified as therapy dogs to visit patients in hospitals, students in schools, and the elderly in nursing homes was an obvious choice for me. https://www.therapydogsofsouthalabama.org/
For everyone, there are almost limitless opportunities, as simple as writing letters or sending cards to people experiencing traumas or loneliness to leading humanitarian efforts in third-world counties. I suggest starting in your own community.
Do your homework:
1. Identify what is meaningful in your life- dogs, horses, children, cooking, organizing, visiting people, writing, teaching, etc.
2. Match your talents with your desire to serve. Share something that is meaningful to you.
3. Observe before you commit. If what you observe pulls at your heartstrings, sign up!
Your choice has to be something you love, sending you home with a full heart and a feeling of peace—anything less, and you need to keep looking.
Volunteering is about sharing the love, which you will need to feel first in order to share. “Sharing the love” has an unmistakable effect on you and on the person or animal with whom you choose to share your time and efforts. The purpose is never about getting someone to agree with your ideologies. It is about unconditional kindness and support, a universal language.
Since we are now retired, it’s a perfect time to connect with the part of ourselves that reaches others on this universal level. I highly recommend it!
When researching Volunteer opportunities in cities along Scenic 98, I found 100s of opportunities in every imaginable field of interest. Volunteer Match has a long list (websites below). However, there are still many more not listed, for example, outreach programs in churches, all hospitals everywhere, and all animal shelters. There are also clubs to join that raise money for charities, such as the Kiwanis Clubs or Rotary Clubs.
Keep searching until you find where you belong, and experience the joy of giving. Love what you do, and it will be returned to you tenfold!
Volunteer Match websites may help you find just what you are looking for:
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