Volunteers: Give and get

lsproule@thereview.ca
As we counted down to the Victorian Christmas Home tour, the busy-ness and tension at our offices in Vankleek Hill mounted. As the final 48 hours ticked away, and little glitches surfaced and had to be dealt with in short order, I wondered why, oh, why do we do all of this?
Fast forward to tour day, when hundreds of happy people were here, raving about Vankleek Hill, our organization and adding that they have been dreaming about moving here . . .  and I was already planning new elements for next year’s event
I say “I” but of course, that word includes the home-owners, five dozen-or-so volunteers and all the business-owners and participants who make the event what it is. It includes everyone who inspires us to try new things, who gives us new ideas and who gives us words of encouragement when they are most needed.
Maybe I lead the charge, in a manner of speaking, but there were many captains leading their own parades to make our event work.
As I toured around town and answered questions and saw all of the volunteers and community members in action, one thing struck me: volunteers are happy people, I reflected. They know lots of people, talk to strangers, adore their community and perhaps best of all, they love to laugh.
And indeed, so say the experts. If you want to feel good, relieve stress and find joy, volunteer.
Of course, my best advice is to find your passion when you volunteer. Find something you love and chances are, you will meet like-minded people and have a blast!
A second piece of advice is: know your limits. If you take on too many projects, even if you love them all, life won’t be the same when your volunteer commitments overtake your personal life. I know this because I have made this mistake more than once. The good news is: I seem to keep on learning!
We hear about volunteer burnout all the time, but the truth is, you can choose the time you wish to commit to something. I respect those who say with honesty, “Sorry, my dance card is full” when they have to take a pass on volunteering. There will always be other opportunities and they understand that.
Someone who covers all the bases that I cannot get to and extends her personal goodwill to the limit during this event is unofficial home tour co-chair Lisa Henderson. I don’t often name names in this space, but I do so this week with good reason.
A key element to volunteering is that cliché: community involvement. And for those who are “new” to our community, the involvement and connectedness that comes automatically to those of us who have lived here all of our lives is enviable.
Lisa Henderson and her husband, Mark, are examples of people who chose our community and made it their own. I won’t even try to list all of the ways they have become involved in our community.  
Yet about 20 years ago, the Henderson family was new here and unknown. You can’t say the same of them today. They belong.
So if you want to join the ranks of those who feel that enviable and comfortable sense of belonging, you must first take a small risk and volunteer, whether it is for the food bank, meals on wheels, coaching hockey, leading 4-H or organizing the cow-milking contest at the Vankleek Hill Fair. Remember: find something you like and just do it.
A feeling of being connected to a community is linked to living a long and happy life. When you volunteer, you will meet others who are doing their part to make a difference and you will have fun along the way.
I am proud that so many people step forward to show our community off in its best light.  From this desk, I see various examples of this time after time.
People laugh when I say this, but in my mind’s eye, it seems as if the sun is always shining here.
Isn’t it?