Finally, Spring is here!!!  And if you didn't know it already, April is National Volunteer Month and who better to convey the value of volunteers than ME,  The Chamber Lady and a Pastor's Wife.  I know what it's like to be a volunteer and what it's like to recruit volunteers.  And to be honest, Volunteering is easy compared to recruiting volunteers.

But, first how does dictionary.com define a volunteer, "a person who voluntarily offers himself or herself for a service or undertaking.  A person who performs a service willingly and without pay."  Yeah, that makes sense and certainly describes it well but there is most definitely something missing, a part that dictionary.com isn't taking into account in defining what a Volunteer is as well.  What might that be, you ask?  Well, the connection one has with the job or place they are volunteering for.  Such as, is it their church, is it their child's school or is it their hometown or is it charity like those that raise funds for Cancer or SIDS research?  When you are asking someone to volunteer, there's almost always needs to be a connection  for an individual to give of their time so freely.  Very rarely will you see someone just call up a place and say, Hey, I'd like to volunteer for your church or your school and not have a reason behind it.  I'm not trying to diminish one's offer to volunteer but let's be honest if you're about to give up your free time, you probably what it to be for something that is near and dear to your heart.

On  Maundy Thursday  I sat in church and listened to my husband preach about what it means to give of oneself and how not every volunteer opportunity is going to be fun, I thought "how did he know I had I already started writing about volunteering".  He didn't and he didn't know it was National Volunteer Month.  Apparently, we're being used by a GREATER being to get this message out.  So, without knowing, I was volunteered and I'm ok with that.

In his sermon, he gave a great example of how Leonard Bernstein had a tough time trying to recruit second violin players, you see he always had plenty of volunteers for first violin.  And why not, first violin gets all the glory but without second violin there is no harmony.  In this day and age, where anyone can be the next American Idol, we're always looking for those glorious jobs.  But, it's second violin or exactly those type of jobs that we need volunteers for.  

I, for one, know that it's easier to recruit people when they have a connection to the cause or event and I always keep this in mind when approaching a potential volunteer.  But, I ask that each of you remember that not every opportunity will be glorious or fun or exciting instead I hope that you will remember the harmony you bring to the whole event, whether it be for the Chamber or Kans for Kids or the School your child attends.  And you might want to know that "the  Greek philosopher Aristotle once surmised that the essence of life is "To serve others and do good."  I guess volunteering does the body good!