Volunteerism
Last weekend the St. Francis Civic Association (SFCA) held their annual Membership meeting. As a member of the Board of Directors, I was excited as we decided to have the meeting as a pancake breakfast. A mailing as well as several emails were sent out to the membership inviting them to come, to hear what the SFCA was proposing in By-Law changes as well as some changes as to how they will benefit the community as dictated by their Mission Statement.
The Board members shopped, planned, cooked and prepared for this meeting hoping that with it being a breakfast on a Saturday, instead of a weeknight meeting, there would be more in attendance. Boy, were we wrong. We had two members who attended.
That got me thinking about service and community involvement. Rather, it got me thinking of the lack of involvement. The SFCA has given out over $300,000 in college scholarships over the years. That money is raised by having an annual Spaghetti Dinner (and the homemade sauce is absolutely amazing) as well as having a food booth at the annual St. Francis Days celebration. Both of those fundraisers are labor intensive, and also a lot of fun. Sadly, the amount of members who volunteer to help is non-existent.
What has happened to the spirit of giving back to your community? Where is our commitment to serve others? I know it isn’t due to the current state of the pandemic as this has been an issue for several years. Is our society too self-focused to want to give time to help others or has volunteerism gone the way of the dinosaur and become extinct?
How can we change that mindset? More importantly, how can we advocate those around us the benefits of serving on committees or bellowing to organizations and being active? The camaraderie and connects made while volunteering are priceless. Being able to help out also has the benefit of making you feel good about what you are doing.
Stop and think. Do you serve on a Board or are a member of an organization and your total contribution is paying your annual dues? If it is, consider what you are missing by not being an active participant. While some times the work is hard, the laughter and fellowship with others makes it all worthwhile.
Be active, be involved. Share your talents with the organizations you belong to. Lead by example so that your children understand the importance of being a servant leader. In the end, think of the impact it will have on the world around you.
