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"Why I
Volunteer"
Jeff and Cricket Have your own story to tell? Click here and send it to us.
Jeff & Cricket Haake Why We Volunteer?
As we thought about this question …it was
difficult not to spend too much time analyzing: “why do we volunteer”?
Actually, I think we did spend too much time pondering the question,
simply because we wanted to make a statement that might make a
difference in how our community , our country and our world looks at
those facing HIV and AIDS .
Tyrone Greenlee I volunteer with the Western North Carolina AIDS Project because I gained, as a member of the Board of Directors of WNCAP for many years, a deep respect for the hard working, dedicated staff and volunteers of the AIDS Project. I was then and continue to be inspired by everyone connected to WNCAP- inspiration that led me to become a member of the volunteer committee again after being off the board for several years. I volunteer because the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS is no longer a part of the national and community consciousness in the way that it once was –although there continues to be many in our community living with HIV who are in need of help, healing, education, and compassion. I volunteer because people continue to be infected with the HIV virus. I am concerned about the rates of infection for young people and men and women of color in our community, who are becoming infected at an alarming rate. I volunteer because there are bridges to be built and inroads to be made around education and awareness into the African American Community on this subject. I volunteer because as a person of faith, I am called to display the healing love, compassion and acceptance of Christ in all that I do. I volunteer because of the pain I feel for those that not only live with this disease, but also live with the societal stigma that can often accompany life with HIV. I volunteer with the hope of inspiring others in our community to become involved in the fight. I volunteer because I believe in the capacity each of us has to heal each other through creating communities of acceptance and compassion. I volunteer because I hope that one day there will be no need for an AIDS Project…..I volunteer because I have hope.
Jonathan Greene When I was asked to write a short story on “Why I Volunteer” I was a little unsure of what I could say to explain so in a concise manner. I’ve volunteered since the early 1990’s with WNCAP and started off working with some really great people, some of which are unfortunately no longer with us. I was in my early 20’s and just coming out so all of it was very new to a guy that grew up sheltered in a local rural town. Although I am not a religious person, I do consider myself a spiritual one and felt that it was not only spiritually reaffirming, but also part of being socially conscious. At first, I volunteered by doing office work during the day which consisted of answering phones; greeting clients; folding, licking, stuffing and stamping envelopes for mass mailings; and filing. I was then approached for attending a “Buddy Training” and was introduced to a much closer picture of another form of volunteering. I served as a buddy for several clients from varying backgrounds. It was something as simple as calling and just being an ear for someone to talk to when they didn’t have anyone else that they could…to taking a client to their doctor’s appointments and/or helping them by doing some of their daily duties such as cooking or cleaning. My last buddy during that time was someone that I had a chance to become close friends with while I helped by driving him to Duke for doctor’s appointments, local appointments or just by spending time with him. Some days were great and it was nice to see a smile on his face. Some days were not so great and he would ask me to just hold his hand and pray with him. Some days were both and could change momentarily without warning. I was extremely lucky that my buddy and his partner were not only people that I volunteered for, but they became my friends. Unfortunately, that friend passed and I was humbled by being asked to be a pallbearer at his funeral. His family and his partner all told me how much he spoke of our friendship and that they appreciated having someone to help be there for him. I still have a picture of my friend and consider him to be a guardian angel that always watches out for me. You would think that I had known him for years, but I had only known him for a couple of weeks. The point I suppose I am trying to make is that while volunteering may not provide monetary gain it most definitely provides something of so much more value. It may be something as simple as answering a phone to provide a caseworker more time to manage their clients and provide more service; holding the hand of a person in need of human compassion so they don’t feel alone; or allowing someone have a much needed laugh and seeing a smile on their face. Volunteering changes lives and almost without realizing it can change yours forever as well.
Nan Williamson I have been volunteering for WNCAP for over 20 years now. I originally got involved with the Buddy Program because of anger – anger over the death of so many friends, anger at the community at large for its hate and apathy toward people with HIV/AIDS. Although that anger still exists in my heart, I can’t say that the anger is now my prime motivator for continuing to volunteer. After all these years, being a volunteer for the HIV/AIDS community has simply become a part of who I am. Being such a volunteer for such a cause has become, in part, how define myself. After the death of my last Buddy, I was looking for a way to still be actively involved in helping the HIV/AIDS community when Michael Harney put out a call for volunteer drivers for LFR. So, for the past 4 1/2 years I have been driving LFR clients home from the LFR food bank on an average of every other Saturday. Obviously, being a volunteer driver is not as emotionally or spiritually challenging as being a Buddy, but it is still a very fulfilling experience. Many clients arrive by bus. The food boxes are very large and very unwieldy and would be, at least to me, impossible to transport by bus. Drivers for LFR fill a very immediate, tangible need and the clients greatly appreciate the help. If you could help a few people in a such direct way by simply spending a couple of hours twice a month driving them home, why on earth wouldn’t you?
Mark Doucet
Ken Wilson Why do I volunteer for WNCAP? Why wouldn’t I? Why don’t you? The rewards of being able to give back to our community are numberless as are the ways that you can help. Like many of you, I remember vividly the newscast of 1981…”the gay cancer”. It changed us forever. Several years later, I found out for the first time that someone I knew had AIDS. The realization of that hit me hard. It was something that was going on “there” up until then. Being the hypochondriac that I was then, I immediately thought that I had AIDS too. I panicked. There was no one that I could talk to, and I fell into a deep depression that would last for months. By living through this, I gained a new perspective, though minute, as to what it is like to be alone and have no idea what to do or where to go. I was one of the lucky ones, but there are many out there who are not, except in the fact that there is WNCAP; a place to go for answers, help and some comfort. I was first connected to WNCAP as a volunteer by writing my name on a piece of paper at a Bele Chere booth. I was called to help with the upcoming auction, and 11 years later I’m still here…and will be for years to come. I had no idea what talents I had that would be useful, so I just showed up and helped set up items for the auction that was held in the old S&W Cafeteria building. The next year, the person in charge of set up that I was supposed to help didn’t show up, so I was in charge all of a sudden; that year setting up the auction on foosball and ping pong tables in the Lee Edwards school. As frustrating as the first few years were, I’ve been able to watch the auction grow into an event that only the Grove Park Inn Grand Ballroom will accommodate! I have since donated time as webmaster for the website which has become my primary volunteer activity other than the auction. I say this to illustrate, that you may not know how you can fit in, but just show up, stick it out, and you’ll find your place. What are you doing now? Watching TV? Surfing the net? Trying to figure out what you can do to make a difference? Well, there are people out there whose family and friends have deserted them and need a “Buddy” that they can lean on when they need someone to talk to or just to go out and have a good time; there are people who need food, and though its available, they have no way to get it home, there are kids who have no idea of how HIV is transmitted and need someone to educate them. The Raise Your Hand auction doesn’t just happen; it takes lots of people with different talents to pull it off. Know of ways it could be better?-come share those ideas. Dining Out for Life is currently our largest fundraiser, but it could not happen without ambassadors and restaurants volunteering their time, resources and energy. Click here now to go to the Volunteer page and find some way you can help. Don’t see anything there? Email Chris and tell him what you have to offer and he’ll find a place for you. You’d be surprised at all the different talents it takes to pull this agency together.
Its
made a difference in me, and it will for you as well. - Volunteer page - |
