Delivery

5 Unexpected Benefits of Volunteering

Why do people volunteer? The obvious answer: people volunteer because they want to help other people from the bottom of their hearts. The not-so-obvious answer: the volunteers themselves experience a wealth of personal benefits. Here are five surprising things benefits volunteers gain from their service:

1. New friends
Making friends is even easier for volunteers because they already have something in common: their passion for the same cause! People who consistently volunteer at the same organizations start interacting with the same people and form a community. Volunteering is also a great way to get connected to a new area after moving.

2. Career experience
Employers love well-rounded job applicants who are involved in organizations outside of their workplace. Volunteering is a great way to show off your versatility and learn resume-worthy skills. On top of all the friends that volunteers make (see benefit 1), people who volunteer regularly are more likely to meet valuable career contacts who can help them land new jobs. Nonprofits are the perfect place to start networking, especially for those looking to enter a new career field.

3. Exercise
Manual labor is always in high demand at nonprofits. Even though it isn’t the most glamorous job, it is mutually beneficial. Organizations couldn’t run without it, and it serves as a thorough workout. Not convinced? Volunteers have lower mortality rates, blood pressure, and heart disease risk than non-volunteers.

4. Happiness
Studies have shown that being helpful to others releases endorphins that make people feel happy. Recipients of volunteer work often praise the volunteers for their generosity and selflessness, which makes them feel great about themselves. Everyone can use a self-esteem boost every once in a while!

5. A sense of purpose
The feeling of appreciation from recipients make volunteers feel needed by others. This motivation to get out of bed in the morning is especially for people who are going through hard times. If people feel like their work is genuinely important, they will do whatever it takes to complete it.

Maot Chitim has a uniquely heartwarming volunteer environment that, in addition to the listed benefits, keeps our volunteers coming back year after year. To hear the stories of some of our volunteers, check out our Instagram and Facebook every Monday for a “Humans of Maot Chitim” post. Sunday, September 22nd is our 2019 Delivery Day and we would love to see you there.

What is Your Legacy?

There was a time in my youth where the phrase “community service” only signified some kind of mandated punishment. To me, there was no benefit that I would experience from doing volunteer work. I felt that the only people benefiting from this activity were either the people who would receive the fruits of my labor, or the organization itself. I was immature and wrong.

After I graduated from high school and had the opportunity to leave the sheltered suburbs of my childhood, my perspective on community service slowly began to shift. This was an important period of time where I could redefine my identity. I took specific moments to reflect on who I was, how I impact those around me, and who I wanted to be.

My honest reflection revealed that I was pretty darn selfish for the first 18 years of my life. My parents were supporting me financially and I really only focused on baseball, school, and my friendships. I spent virtually all of my time focused on myself. After my period of reflection I felt that I needed to change my contribution to those around me. I had time that didn’t need to be devoted to myself. Initially, I tried spending more time with family and doing more work around the house when I was home, though, these attempts at filling the “selfish” void felt unfulfilling. My “ah-ha moment” came during the first semester of my sophomore year at Denison University. As a member of the baseball team I was granted the opportunity to read to kindergartners of the Newark Ohio school district that winter. To give some context, the Newark area has experienced a bought of poverty over the last 30 years, and most of these students were from disadvantaged families.

On a cold February morning, 2 teammates and I read a short story to two different groups of students in the Newark library basement. After finishing the story, we were told to stress how smart the students were and that a college education is a worthy goal. I was blown away with the impressionability of the children and how much I felt that afternoon had positively impacted their psyches. Not only did I feel that the students benefited from our volunteer work, but this feeling itself made ME feel good. I had never volunteered in a way where my actions directly helped someone sitting next to me. This experience made me want to continue giving back to the communities in which I’m a member, and even to those that I am not.

The moral of this story is that community service can be a mutually beneficial endeavour. Volunteer work isn’t a punishment, it is awesome. Not only does it help those who are in need, but it also creates a positive legacy for you. Ask yourself the question “how will I be remembered”? Was I a selfish guy who never lent a hand, or was I someone who improved the lives of others? This specific time was important to my development as a person, yet it can take place at any time for any person who chooses to reflect honestly. Organizations desperately need volunteers and those who volunteer benefit as much, if not more than those they are serving.

How to Involve Children in Volunteering

The concept of volunteering is difficult to explain to a small child, but they appreciate that helping others is a good thing. By the age of 4, most children understand, “I need help with dusting furniture,” and many can say, “I need a volunteer…”

Tips to Involve Children in Volunteering
Our friends at PBSparents offer the following tips to help you teach your child the value of volunteering:

First, be a role model.
Children copy their parents; when they see you helping others, they will want to do it as well. Two-thirds of children who volunteer become active volunteers as adults.
Choose an activity that offers immediate results.
Children get the most out of volunteering when they can see positive results. A littered park that is clean as the result of their efforts is a good example.
Find a fun, engaging volunteer activity.
Remember to choose volunteering for children that is age-appropriate and more like fun than work. Most children love animals, so walking dogs or taking a dog to a nursing home to visit patients might be a good idea. One pre-k teacher says the formula is 2x their age + one. That means 8-year-olds’ activity focus is solid for about 20 minutes; change their tasks as often as necessary.
Make volunteering as a family a regular activity.
Annual or more frequent volunteering as a family makes a huge impact on youngsters.
Pick a volunteer effort they choose and include it in the family calendar.
Children will be more excited if they can “see” their activity is just as important as the rest of the family’s.
Volunteering can be simple.
Choosing a toy from their toybox or shopping for a toy to donate is easy, especially when children physically place it among other donations.

Charity Begins at Home (Chicago)
We need volunteers to package and deliver food to those who are unable to afford sometimes-expensive foods need to worship in a traditional, Jewish manner at home. Our Passover Delivery Day is March 25th, 2018. It’s a wonderful experience for the entire family. Contact Maot Chitim of Greater Chicago to learn more.

4 Best Ways to Prepare for a Volunteer Event

Volunteer Chima Madu said, “The fact that I am not paid does not mean that I am worthless. It means that I am priceless.” The joy – and blessing – of being a volunteer is that it’s a 2-way street. Serving others can change your life for the good.

Volunteers are needed to offset a charity’s overworked personnel and often, a lack of resources that means administrative staff does more hands-on work. In our case, that would be packing and delivering food boxes for our volunteer events, and we do so gladly and eagerly! But we need help for our volunteer events, and we need our volunteers to prepare themselves, physically and emotionally.

1. Safety

Volunteers are the lifeblood of Maot Chitim, but we don’t want our volunteers to bleed for us by any means! In order to serve as a packing/delivery volunteer, your vehicle and your body should be in good shape and adequately insured. Do not risk injury or illness as a result of any physical activity, no matter how worthy. Remember: You are priceless!

2. Plan for your needs

If you will be volunteering for 1 hour or 6 hours, the night before the event put out your water bottle(s), energy bars, raincoat, sack lunch and anything else you anticipate that will make your day go easily and comfortably.

3. Network with experienced volunteers

You want to be an asset; not someone other volunteers have to “deal with.” Before the volunteer event, discuss procedures that experienced volunteers follow in order to best help the activity flow.

4. Don’t worry, be happy!

Charity is an option for many; for us, it is tzedakah. Even the best coordinated and organized volunteer event can hit some snags. Keep your sense of humor and remember our focus is to serve with a joyful heart! Your bumps in the road will hardly matter.

The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something . . .
If you go out and make some good things happen,
you will fill the world with hope. You will fill yourself with hope.
-Barack Obama