Perks of Volunteering
By: Emily Roofner
Have you ever considered volunteering some of your time to something outside of your normal activities?
A great way to step out of your comfort zone and expand your circle is to volunteer.
It doesn’t have to be something that requires a ton of hours. It doesn’t even have to be on a regular basis. Just the occasional experience of helping out somewhere can be eye opening.
Something incredible about volunteering and helping others is that you assume going in it’s to help others but it ends up helping you as well. Whether it’s serving at a food bank, cleaning up after school, mentoring someone younger than you… There are so many ways to get involved.
Through these experiences you may learn more about yourself than you ever thought you would. It also gives you the opportunity to interact with people outside of your normal circle. When we start to share experiences with people and build relationships it can help decrease bullying in schools as well. We start to see others outside of the labels that might be placed in the school environment.
As someone who moves around a lot now, it’s not always easy to make friends and meet new people. I’m learning that by getting involved in different activities or volunteering opportunities I naturally start to build a support system and meet people I may have never talked to otherwise. So, if you are new to your school or maybe just feeling lonely, getting involved in something could be just the self care step you need. Don’t be afraid of stepping out of your comfort zone. Start small, try a volunteer position out or even a few until you find the right fit. Remember it’s not meant to burn you out or be stressful. Take the first step today and make a list of things that you might enjoy helping with and do some research in your area.