random thoughts on volunteering
These are things that have been bouncing around in my head for a while so feel free to read or not as you like.
Ive been having the fabulous feeling this week like I can actually do part of the meat of my job --which is really thinking critically about volunteer work and helping people connect to a project that works for them. It takes a lot of knowledge of the area, the community orgs, types of projects people can do and the logistics of such projects to start pecking at this sorta thing. Its a good feeling and fun to explore with people.
Ive also been learning the tedious balance of helping people find a way to work in communities without either them feeling like theyve magically fixed all the community's problems in their few hours of service (or that they suddenly know what the community needs & are going to tell the community), and alternatively helping them feel less discouraged or overwhelmed by the needs of the community.
The problem that I keep gnawing on is how to make it all sustainable. How to get the volunteer to regularly volunteer and maybe even with the same org, and how, with these changing interests of volunteers, do we help the community in a consistent way. Otherwise its like random collisions that can result in positive outcomes of limited duration.
My current office could decide to focus on working with a few orgs and getting regular volunteers (even if not the same volunteers) to those orgs, but its tricky with student interests waxing and waning. This leaves me feeling like while I get to satisfy the generalist in me, who loves to learn about new ways to do this and with new projects and orgs, I dont get to feel like my personal work or that of the volunteers is actually making a steady difference. Its disjointed.
We slowly get to help students learn about the needs of their world, and sometimes that can be a life changing thing for them which is amazing to watch, but we continually run into the problem of people (staff as well as students) not wanting to directly get their hands dirty. They will do it once for the feel good, and consider it done. Or, more likely, they'll do charity til the end of time, like collecting donations and dropping off to the org without actually checking that these are what the org needs most. Actually interacting with those in need is really uncomfy for 90% of people--its much easier to keep the physical and emotional distance. I admit to being guilty of this --it gets back to being pulled outta your comfort zone and thrown into dealing with something you either arent ready to, dont know how to, or feel overwhelmed to deal with. And if you do manage to do it, the discomfort and even guilt you feel when you get to go home to your roof, food, electronics, car --its like a double image superimposed on your life for a while where everything looks different and a little ugly. Its a balance to resist the urge to give away all you have and continue to actually connect to those in need.
My work is also slightly disconnected because it is volunteer administration --I can get things rolling and help the volunteer and org connect in a meaningful way, but I dont always get to be directly involved with the actual service. My goal is to eventually have a job where Im doing both more closely, and with those of all ages so that its a continuum of where people are in their experience/feelings on volunteering. And also figure out how to make it all more sustainable.
Ive been having the fabulous feeling this week like I can actually do part of the meat of my job --which is really thinking critically about volunteer work and helping people connect to a project that works for them. It takes a lot of knowledge of the area, the community orgs, types of projects people can do and the logistics of such projects to start pecking at this sorta thing. Its a good feeling and fun to explore with people.
Ive also been learning the tedious balance of helping people find a way to work in communities without either them feeling like theyve magically fixed all the community's problems in their few hours of service (or that they suddenly know what the community needs & are going to tell the community), and alternatively helping them feel less discouraged or overwhelmed by the needs of the community.
The problem that I keep gnawing on is how to make it all sustainable. How to get the volunteer to regularly volunteer and maybe even with the same org, and how, with these changing interests of volunteers, do we help the community in a consistent way. Otherwise its like random collisions that can result in positive outcomes of limited duration.
My current office could decide to focus on working with a few orgs and getting regular volunteers (even if not the same volunteers) to those orgs, but its tricky with student interests waxing and waning. This leaves me feeling like while I get to satisfy the generalist in me, who loves to learn about new ways to do this and with new projects and orgs, I dont get to feel like my personal work or that of the volunteers is actually making a steady difference. Its disjointed.
We slowly get to help students learn about the needs of their world, and sometimes that can be a life changing thing for them which is amazing to watch, but we continually run into the problem of people (staff as well as students) not wanting to directly get their hands dirty. They will do it once for the feel good, and consider it done. Or, more likely, they'll do charity til the end of time, like collecting donations and dropping off to the org without actually checking that these are what the org needs most. Actually interacting with those in need is really uncomfy for 90% of people--its much easier to keep the physical and emotional distance. I admit to being guilty of this --it gets back to being pulled outta your comfort zone and thrown into dealing with something you either arent ready to, dont know how to, or feel overwhelmed to deal with. And if you do manage to do it, the discomfort and even guilt you feel when you get to go home to your roof, food, electronics, car --its like a double image superimposed on your life for a while where everything looks different and a little ugly. Its a balance to resist the urge to give away all you have and continue to actually connect to those in need.
My work is also slightly disconnected because it is volunteer administration --I can get things rolling and help the volunteer and org connect in a meaningful way, but I dont always get to be directly involved with the actual service. My goal is to eventually have a job where Im doing both more closely, and with those of all ages so that its a continuum of where people are in their experience/feelings on volunteering. And also figure out how to make it all more sustainable.