A Volunteer's Perspective on Volunteering

Volunteer: to offer of one's own accord to do something*
By Siobhan E. McCormick

A number of years ago, I was approached by a neighbour and asked if I would be on the Neighbourhood Small Grants Program Committee. As a member of the committee I would have to donate of my time in order to review grant proposals and decide which projects would qualify for a $500 grant from the Vancouver Foundation's Neighbourhood Small Grants Program. I agreed and with that embarked on a journey brought me unexpected rewards.

Up to that point I had not done much volunteer work. I had been on the board of a theatre company when I first arrived in Vancouver but that was short-lived and was made up of mostly friends. So I really didn't know what to expect of this committee in terms of its make up and its functions.

The committee was made up of residents associated with 3 community centres in the downtown eastside: the Carnegie, Strathcona, and RayCam Community Centres. These three community centres service a varied public of diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds and the committee attempts to mimic this in its membership.

It was in the members of the committee that I found my first reward. When I started on the committee I was acquainted with only 2 other members. Three years later due to what we have shared on this committee, they are now good friends. I am also now friends with other committee members who I may never have had the opportunity to meet let alone get to know. What a bonus to make friends with others from outside your own circle and form this bond while fulfilling a commitment!

While making friends was one serendipitous benefit of my time spent volunteering, another was surely the inspiration I gleaned from reviewing the grant proposals. It has been really uplifting to read about the ideas that people in these 3 communities have put forward for enhancing the lives of those living in them. Over the past three years we have reviewed and supported proposals for such diverse activities as block parties, healing ceremonies, cooking classes for the elderly, canning workshops, supplying instruments for a homeless band, buying uniforms for a homeless soccer team, and a soccer ball give-away for underprivileged children.

Given the communities served by this particular committee, it was perhaps not surprising that many asked for funds to create events around food. However it was not just providing a meal that was the focus of these proposals. Food became a means of gathering people together in order to strengthen community by making participants feel a part of something bigger than themselves. The events allowed participants a respite from their struggles and the opportunity to connect with others in situations similar to their own.

The care and concern for others that I have seen expressed in the grant applications has given me a renewed conviction in the good of humanity. Also I have been thrilled with the imagination evident in the ideas presented for grants whether these proposals were funded or not.

Lastly and perhaps most importantly the biggest gain I have found through volunteering is the desire to do more of it. To this end I am continuing my work on the Neighbourhood Small Grants Program Committee and now lead a pace-group in my running clinic. In addition, I have joined several new organizations such as the CMHA Vancouver/Burnaby Branch where I will be volunteering over the next year.

* on line Oxford English Dictionary