“We finished the volunteer booklets today at work,” I told my wife on our car ride home. Later this month we’ll be celebrating the hundreds of volunteers that engage in United Way’s work to improve lives in our community in recognition of April being National Volunteer Month. It’s always a time where I remember the incredible impact anyone can have on a community if they’re willing to give a little bit of their time and talent.

The booklet we’re making as a thank you to these volunteers contains several inspirational quotes — demonstrating the need for volunteers as well as the progress a community can make with their help. People across the world with vastly different life experience have all shared how much good a single person can accomplish. Sometimes my head hurts from joy when I think of what a community could do if more people were to lend a hand.

Last year, Minnesota ranked fourth in the states who volunteer the most, with 34.9 percent of Minnesotans giving back, and our state led the nation in seniors who volunteer. Only Kansas, Wisconsin and Utah had higher rates of overall volunteerism. It’s certainly something we should take pride in, but we can always engage volunteers more. In 2004, Minnesota’s volunteer rate peaked at 41.1 percent.

I’m sure I’ve encouraged you in my column to get involved in your community by volunteering before, but I’m going to do it again. You really can make a difference in the life of someone else, and you might be surprised about what you learn in the process. I’ve heard so many stories from our volunteers. Some people don’t realize the true needs of those most vulnerable in our communities until they volunteer. Other volunteers are people in need right now or experienced how a volunteer changed their life in the past, and now want to give back. So many of the volunteers I encounter share that they’re convinced they are getting more out of the experience than the people they are helping. If you’re searching for your purpose, feeling unfufilled in what you’re doing, spend an hour a week volunteering and you just might find everything a little more worthwhile.

Something I think most people don’t realize is that they can volunteer using their particular talents. Nonprofit organizations certainly have volunteer opportunities that anyone at any skill level can step into, but they also might need your help using a particular skill you have. Do you work with finances? Maybe a nonprofit needs that expertise. Perhaps you’re interested in marketing and can lend your talent toward promotion a particular initiative. Do you like to write? You’d be amazed at how many seminars nonprofit workers get invited to where they tell us how important storytelling is to their success, maybe you can help with that. Think outside the box and reach out to a nonprofit you care about. I’m sure they’d be interested in brainstorming with you how you can apply your talent to improving their effectiveness in the community.

One of my favorite quotes that we included in the thank you volunteer booklet this year was from Anne Frank. She wrote, “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” How incredibly true. Do what you can with what you have to make your community great. It takes only a moment to start, and it takes only a few moments for powerful change to begin.

Thank you to everyone reading this column who has volunteered in the last year. Without a doubt, your community would be less desireable if you weren’t in it. Keep being the change you wish to see in the world, and keep inspiring others to join in. Though I may not live in Albert Lea, I know we’re connected in wanting a better community for our family, friends and co-workers to live. You’re making that possible, and you deserve more recognition than we can possibly give in this valuable newspaper space. Celebrate you this National Volunteer Month, and if you aren’t a volunteer yet, there is no better time to start than now.

 

Rochester resident Matt Knutson is the communications and events director for United Way of Olmsted County.