Ponderings

A volunteer is someone who intentionally and willingly provides a service without benefit to themself but has an impact on another person’s life or community. Volunteering allows me to connect with other people, it gives me an opportunity to support, uplift, provide dignity and empower others to have some control over their lives. When those interactions happen, it allows me the privilege to learn about some of their stories as I walk alongside them.

My first experience with volunteering was 40 years ago providing eyecare services in a very rural community of South Africa. I became aware of the extreme poverty in my own country. The absolute joy on people’s faces from restored sight left a marked impression that has always stayed with me. Opportunities to make a difference do not just happen internationally, but if you just watch and listen, they are all around you. My volunteer work takes place in my hometown, the surrounding communities, within my province and internationally.

Providing someone with new eyeglasses who has lost everything they own as a result of a house fire or typhoon; finding glasses for a student teacher who studies from a book held two inches from his nose because he is profoundly nearsighted, and has no access to glasses; providing a local service in a rural village where transport is challenging; these are some of the opportunities where I have had the satisfaction of improving a person’s life. I am inspired everyday by others who reach out to marginalized groups of people, giving hope, dignity, showing compassion and care and allowing someone to feel that they are of value.