As the holidays come upon us, certain words and phrases come to mind—“giving,” “sharing,” “weight gain,” “debt,” “rampant consumerism.” We each do our best to focus our thoughts on others—on loved ones and family, those less fortunate than ourselves. Yet I think I can safely say that many of us can’t help but wonder how we’ll be able to afford our holiday gift-giving this year. Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to cut costs, like making or baking creative gifts. I’ve heard of some families volunteering together, helping those less fortunate as a way to combat consumerism and remember that the holidays are a time to think of others.
Pittsburgh has its share of need and organizations who are trying to meet needs. These organizations are always looking for volunteers. Pittsburgh Cares supports 229 nonprofits and specializes in connecting people with causes they are already passionate about. There are a number of holiday-related projects, like wrapping presents for children or serving holiday meals to residents of senior care facilities, but other projects can be selected by various criteria–including location, “impact areas” like literacy, homelessness/hunger, animal support, children and youth, the environment, and whether the projects are good for first-timers, families or teams. There is even a calendar that can be browsed–and it is dense with fascinating possibilities. Each entry describes the type of work that will be done, what skills are needed for the project (usually none), how many people are needed and how many people have signed up already.
If you live outside of Pittsburgh (poor you!) don’t despair. There are national organizations who serve to connect volunteers with those who need their help. ServeNet.org is one such organization. Prospective volunteers can search organizations by location, and then causes served, population served, skills, special events and age range. VolunteerMatch.org is connected to over 61,000 member organizations. One can search by keyword and distance to a specific zip code. Results are separated according to date, interest area, and location. There are even organizations that help people volunteer virtually if they are have constraints that make other types of service difficult.
Volunteering isn’t for everyone. But if you would like to give back to your community, get out there and remember “It is more blessed to give than to receive”–any time of year.
–Bonnie
1 Comment
November 30, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Thanks, B! That’s real helpful.