Apr 27 2009
Helping Out and Having Fun
In my last post, I discussed how busy the springtime always is for me. So, I was really glad I was able to carve out some time this past weekend to volunteer, once again, at the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina. ABI employees, including myself and Janet Evans, volunteered there a few months ago following our Food Drive.
I showed up on Saturday morning at 9:00, and I was so impressed by the turnout. There must have been 75 people there– mostly adolescent kids– volunteering their time for a three-hour shift. This time, I worked in the salvage room, meaning I sorted through goods that grocery stores are not able to sell because the cans are dented or the packaging is otherwise damaged. Sometimes we had to throw away things that were most likely okay for consumption, but that the Food Bank wasn’t technically allowed to distribute because of the packaging’s condition. This was a little disheartening. But seeing the amount of food that we did salvage– about 8 pallets’ worth!– couldn’t help but cheer me.
This experience made me think about the huge, often exponential, impact that volunteering can have on a community. You see, I didn’t volunteer on Saturday alone. After my first time volunteering for the Food Bank, with the ABI, I joined the NC Food Bank’s Facebook page. One of my Facebook friends noticed that I had joined and recently volunteered there. She had never volunteered there herself, but when she saw that I had, she asked if we could do it together sometime. So, not only did I return to volunteer on Saturday, but I brought a new person with me. Imagine if every person around the world who volunteered could recruit just one person. The magnitude of that strikes me in a very poignant way.
And to top it all off, it was great to see my friend and spend time with her, which I probably wouldn’t have done otherwise. Doing that hard work with her wasn’t at all painful or grueling. Quite the opposite; it was fulfilling to help out, and we chatted with each other the whole time. And we certainly felt like we had earned the big lunch we enjoyed afterwards!
About The Author: Anna Howland
Anna Howland is the Associate Director of Marketing at the American Biographical Institute. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2003 with a degree in English Literature. Anna enjoys using the power of the written word to reach people in meaningful ways. Through her knowledge of language, her skill of communicating important messages through writing, and her ability to connect with people on a personal level, she has played an integral role in developing the content of Women That Network. Her insight on communicating effectively helps WTN members to make the important connections that are so vital to reaching their career potential. Anna can be reached at ahowland@abiworldwide.com.
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