Does anyone here volunteer in their spare time?

[STORMS]

Its so good to hear there are such wonderful people (I'm talking about ya'll) making life better for those who need it whether it be for kids, elderly or animals!

[Ginevive]

I used to volunteer at a friend's horse farm as a kid and teen. This was how I got my foot into the door of the horse world, being a city kid myself. I took away experiences to last a lifetime! Now if only I could find a youngster to volunteer here to cleanup manure!
Kudos to you who volunteer. Volunteerism is really what makes the good in this world, go around. Nowadays I work too much to volunteer on a steady basis, but I do enjoy helping out at my friend's beef/horse farm now and again.

[Jenn]

Special Olympics Coach. I was surprised to see that the stands are pretty much empty at most of these events until one of the seasoned coaches explained to me that the parents of these kids are full time care-givers, 24-7, for life!!! These kids don't turn 18 and move out. They need care forever from their parents, and the Special Olympics is the only day of the entire year that many of these parents have off.

[STORMS]

I used to volunteer at a friend's horse farm as a kid and teen. This was how I got my foot into the door of the horse world, being a city kid myself. I took away experiences to last a lifetime! Now if only I could find a youngster to volunteer here to cleanup manure!

I'll send my 2 kids your way - a little manure might be good for them

[rabernet]

I currently volunteer with http://www.canineassistants.org every month with at least one home visit a month (the dog comes home with me to learn proper home manners and also goes everywhere with me on my errands).

I volunteered when I lived in NC at Duke Hospital in the pediatric AIDS clinic for four years by escorting them and their family to different areas of the hospital for testing and sometimes staying overnight in a child's room if their parent had to travel home overnight for some reason.

I'm not now, but I've also been a "buddy" to a person with HIV/AIDS through AIDSAtlanta, but you can only lose so many buddies before you need to take a break from it.

And I'm a volunteer with HandsOnAtlanta and I used to help carpool family members to visit their family members in distant locals in prison through a church group. We'd leave at 6 am to travel 5 hours, we'd be hosted at a local church that fixed meals for us while the families were visiting at the prison, then we'd go back, pick them up and bring them back to Atlanta. Many children going to see their fathers who had no transportation of their own.

Just a few ways that I volunteer today and have volunteered in the past.

I love being involved with the community!

[starmom]

I mentor a small group of Latino high school students in my area.
I love it!

[STORMS]

Kudos to all of you!!!!

[frankykeno]

In the past I've done volunteer work with mentally challenged kids in a respite care facility, with victims of domestic violence, with reading/literacy programs and with Scouts. Currently I volunteer two full days a week at my youngest child's elementary school in their library (the school board cannot afford librarians so one oversees 5 schools full of volunteer library staff). I also volunteer for special events through the school PTO.

[twh]

for the past 10 years i've volunteered with the salvation army,locally and with disaster services nationally.

i also volunteer with the american red cross with disaster services and locally with fire victums and emergency planning.

before it's closing i was inviolved with habitat for humanity.

i thing i've discovered is that the best way to help yuoeself is to help somebody else,it's a principle that always works.taking is short lived,giving last forever.have fun !

[moonfire]

I start my volunteer work on June 20th! I will be volunteering at Sarvey Wildlife Center, here in WA. www.sarveywildlife.org
I can' wait! I should have started in April but a torn calf muscle sidelined me for a little bit.