Giving Back - The importance of volunteering

Hi everyone, no not Tom today. Rick Bella here... Tom has asked me to fill in a bit and especially today as he is out helping at the polls in his home town community. I thought it might be a nice change of pace for us to think about that topic today as many campaigns and elections are getting underway, or at least we have certainly been inundated with that in the media for weeks now; I see that continuing for sure.

Volunteering to help your favorite candidate by far is giving the most that you can offer, even more so than writing a check to assist with their campaign. I can speak to this issue as I have served three terms in public office in my home town. There never seems to be enough physical bodies to help, period! There are so many different aspects to running a campaign meaning that there is a large variety of people needed to carryout the game plan for success.

Giving of your-self, physically devoting time will always mean much more to any candidate or really any cause then just writing a check. Not that cash donations are not important to the overall success, but it is only one ingredient in the whole campaign cake!

The whole topic of volunteering is even taught in colleges around the country. Here’s one example from a professor at Ohio State named Herb Asher.

Asher, an Ohio State professor emeritus of political science and an often-quoted source on Ohio politics, has taught a class on campaign politics for about 25 years. Over the years, he's required about 2,000 students to spend time volunteering for a political candidate.
"I have a number of former students who work in politics," he says. (One example: Congressman Pat Tiberi, a Republican who's currently fighting for re-election against Democratic challenger Bob Shamansky.)

Asher says most students spend their volunteer hours stuffing envelopes, making phone calls, knocking on doors. Sometimes, though, students volunteering for a lower-level campaign--a first-time candidate, say, or someone seeking an often overlooked office--get to do more substantial work, from scheduling the candidate's events to putting out press releases.
The focus of his class is simple: Asher tries to teach students how candidates win.
"It's very pragmatic," he says.

RB: Here’s a little benefit that you’ll get by volunteering. You will feel great! Yes, a lot better than just that quick instant gratification you’ll get taking two minutes writing that check. To spend time helping someone, anyone will pay you back ten-fold. I know you already know this... so what’s keeping you from helping? Time, sure we all only have 168 hours in the week... make some adjustments. You’ll be glad you did. And speaking of volunteering, there are many charity agencies across the country that can use your help. Our department here at America’s Second Harvest makes it a point to volunteer at a local Chicago charity. You wouldn’t believe how much help a group of life experienced folks can do in just one afternoon.

What a feeling it was coming home on that day. Think about it, no inventory worries, no gross profit percentages, no payroll concerns... just an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment and gratification knowing that we had all made a difference in many lives that afternoon. And I cannot even begin to mention what a feeling it was to receive the genuine thank you from those at the charity. Ever think about having an entire department at your business volunteer? Please consider it if you have not already done so. It can really be a wonderful team-building experience. And if you have done it in the past; what’s keeping you from doing it on a regular basis? My hat goes off to Tom today for giving of his time to assist someone, a group or whoever it is. I know they appreciate his help. What’s your passion? Perhaps assist PMA or United with a letter writing campaign to assist with the farm bill. There is a multitude of things you can do to assist. It’s just a little time! If you are interesting in assisting hunger related charities, you can find out more by visiting our website http://www.secondharvest.org. There is a section about volunteering. I’ll have more posts later today and in the coming couple of weeks. Your feedback is welcome.