I am a strongly committed volunteer. Anybody who knows me quickly learns that. At different times, I have been active with my church, the Boy Scouts of America, my homeowner’s association, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and Toastmasters. Each time I jump in with both feet and give of my time and effort as well as money.

The question is Why?

I volunteer for many reasons. The first is that as I grew up, it was simply a part of being a good citizen. My parents gave me that example, and it still feels completely normal. I was taught you need to contribute. The way you contribute will vary from person to person. In a healthy community, most people will volunteer some of their time and money to help the community in some way.

My biggest contribution is to the Boy Scouts of America. I volunteer there because the program was good to me growing up. Even though I do not have any kids yet, I am able to give back to the program. To the best of my ability, I am not contributing to 35 boys’ lives on a regular basis and interacting with many more several times a year. I can see them learning things I struggled with and enjoy seeing them grow and master new skills and gain more confidence.

For that program, it is the idea of giving back to an organization that helped me coupled with the reward of seeing the impact I have. Your reasons can, and should vary. Serviceleader.org has its own article on reasons to volunteer.

To be honest, I cannot picture what my life would be like if I did not volunteer. It is not only a part of how I define myself, it is an important part of how I live.

Long live volunteering, and I hope each of you has found or finds soon your reason and place to volunteer.

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