This month's special volunteer is:
Well, I am not really a volunteer. I am being paid as the recently employed new Executive Director for RSVP. However, I decided to come to RSVP because it offered an opportunity to provide a vital community service. I’ve worked with seniors in the past. In 1982, I became the Assistant Director for the “Over-60 Health Clinic” in Berkeley. Several of my mentors at that time, and board members, were close friends of the late Maggie Kuhn, founder of the “Grey Panthers.” They taught me a lot about activism, and about relationships. I enjoyed the work. When I heard about the job at RSVP I thought to myself, “O.K, I’ve worked with both youth and seniors, and enjoyed both experiences. This would be an opportunity to get back into the senior community and to continue the movement.” I don’t really see RSVP as a social program – I see it as a movement. It is an opportunity for seniors like us to give their wisdom and discovery back to the community. We have the experience, the insight and the knowledge to make a difference. I believe that building good relationships is the key to healthy families and healthy communities. I am coming to RSVP from that perspective. I would like to promote and be a part of that kind of healing movement.
2. What does volunteering do for you?
It gives me a sense of purpose. It is too easy to lose sight of what we are attempting to accomplish as human beings. When I look at America through the eyes of an African American who grew up in the South, I see an America that is still “becoming.” Working with programs like RSVP that encourage ethnically and culturally diverse, intergenerational communities, allow me to engage in and celebrate that “becoming.”
3. How long have you been a volunteer?
I have only been with RSVP for a week, but I have given my time and energy to many causes in the past – in particular those that nurture children and youth. I have been an administrator and for more than 20 years. For the better part of those years I developed and operated programs for at-risk youth and families. I always tried to give something back to the community.
4. Have you made any good friends from this job?
I can’t say that I have made good friends at RSVP yet, but I can say that I appreciate most of the people that I have met so far, and they have made me feel at home.
- How has this changed your life?
For one thing, I don’t have a long commute any more! I don’t have to drive the 710 every morning. I can actually get to work in 15 minutes. The job is “hands on,” and I have rediscovered that “small community” feeling.
5. What would you say to anyone who thinks they are too busy to volunteer?
We are all equal in one way. Everyone has the same 24 hours, and the same 365 days each year. There are a lot of different opportunities and levels of volunteerism. No one is so busy that they cannot find one hour a week, or one day a month to give some of their time to helping others. It is just a matter of priorities. If we are conscious of activities that go on around us daily, we are always presented with opportunities to share. We have made volunteerism a “big” word, but it simply means to share without asking for something in return.