Blood, Sweat & Volunteers
The dizzying plethora of volunteer options grows exponientially, I swear! This year I 'm creating the school directory with a new database. It was an experience just getting the data all entered & proofed. Then came creating the book itself, the formatting, the ads were solicited & next the sacred document will be printed. Upon it's completion I'll camp at school with whomever I can draft to sort, label & dispense the finished products. Our directories are free, so one goes home with the youngest child in each family. That requires noting multiple kid families of the 600+ students & dividing the books by classes for distribution. Some moms bought extras, so we add that to their delivery. Then we'll hear from everyone who didn't like something or whose information was inadvertently erroneous. In January, we'll publish corrections & new student additions. The project will easily exceed 60 hours of manual labor.
I believe in the value of volunteer work. We have benefits that come simply because of kind souls willing to give up chunks of their private lives or dip into their own resources to bless the kids. From the Fall Festival to helping in Math class so a teacher can work with small groups to lending a pickup truck, I feel fortunate to live in a community that values the quality of school years.
There are those who never contribute time or resources. It puzzles me. I try not see it as laziness or a brand of gluttony. I value hard work, sharing & civic responsibility. I don't want to impose my values on those whose circumstances I don't know. Sure, working folks may have less time to give. And I respect financial variances from family to family. But sometimes it's the downright stinginess of spirit that gets me. Folks who want the benefits, yet feel no sense of obligation to step up to the plate on any level. We live in an area of predominant upper middle class families. We do not have the issues of impoverished rural or urban inner cities. I don't get not having any need to give from that place of such blessing. (As I write this, I envision some wonderful woman whose child has cancer & is totally maxed out feeling she should do more....oh please know this is not an issue of quantity.)
When I was adopting my first child, I was really into it. When ya really face the number of dirt poor kids around the globe who'll never get a forever family, whose artwork will never hang on anyone's fridge, it kinda kills ya. I knew some who thought couples who made babies instead of took ones who needed families were selfish. I learned through that experience the complexities of creating families & to respect each couple must make their own choices. It's not simple math to create a family. I want to extend that understanding to volunteer service. I also want my daughters to see an example of what it means to give back. I want them not to take this bounty for granted. I don't want them to think that they're better than anyone for their service. I don't want them to define themselves by what they do either. I want to explain what we do only reflects who we are inside. Wouldn't it be amazing to help this generation understand good things generally result from someone's efforts & it's important to be grateful? Lastly, I want them to be nice to the lady who did the Directory because it was a lot of work & she surely did her best.
Comments
What day do you need help with the directory? :)xoxo Love your Blogs!
Posted by: Cheryl | September 19, 2006 01:22 PM
Good words! I agree that volunteering is a great outward extension of who we are on the inside. Despite having a large family and not so large budget, I've always tried to make time for volunteering. Really, how can we not give back when we have been so blessed? The best return on my volunteering investment as been seeing my own children happily volunteer to teach a children's bible class, work in the church nursery, scoop snow for people they have never met and even repair a neighbor's car...for free! As parents, we lead by example and you have done a great job of reminding us how important that example is.
BTW...I think there is a typo on page 17, column 2 of that school directory. ha! kidding.
Posted by: Jeel | September 19, 2006 06:39 PM