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SeventySomethings Give Back
Thousands, perhaps millions, of American SeventySomethings contribute and volunteer their services to assist needy people in their local communitiies and around the world. Their beneficiaries range from small hungry children in foreign lands to elderly Americans who need meals brought to their homes each day.
Here are some of the organizations with which they work. More volunteers are always needed.
The American Legion focuses on helping communites through fundraising programs, educational activities, patriotic observances, library and museum services, veterans' programs and other projects. For a list of local posts and more membership information, visit the American Legion web site.
Cross-Cultural Solutions--Want to do volunteer work in a needy nation during your retirement? Cross-Cultural Solutions is a not-for-profit international volunteer organization that operates 3-to-12 week volunteer programs in Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Ghana, India, Peru, Russia, Tanzania, and Thailand. Like most not-for-profit organizations that run international volunteer programs, Cross-Cultural Solutions' programs are driven entirely by volunteer contributions, which means that you pay to be a volunteer. The tax-deductible fees start at $2315 for three weeks--plus travel costs--and increase about $220 per week for longer programs. Duties vary from taking care of small children in day care centers to helping mental patients and needy elderly persons.The experience, the New York Times said, is "akin to a mini-stint with the Peace Corps." For more informaton, visit the Cross-Cultural Solutions web site.
Global Volunteer Network, a non profit organisation which places volunteers in community projects in China, Ecuador, Ghana, Nepal, New Zealand, Romania, Russia, Thailand, and Uganda. Volunteers have the
opportunity to participate in a variety of educational, environmental and community aid programs. However, you must be ready to pay some significant fees to participate. Examples of the activities available to volunteers include teaching English, environmental work, AIDS education, and assisting in an orphanage.To find out more about us, visit the website at http://www.volunteer.org.nz/.
Kiwanis Clubs around the world are open to senior citizens who want to assist the elderly, handicapped and needy children throughout the world. Though Kiwanis International focuses on providing assistance to needy children in many nations, its many local clubs concentrate on providing hands-on assistance and contributions to people in their own communities. Each club selects and develops its own projects for assisting youth groups, special persons, battered women, handicapped persons, and elderly and support for such programs as United Way, Meals on Wheels, Shots for Tots and Special Olympics. In addition to volunteer work, Kiwanis members enjoy lots of fun and a strong camaradie built through regular club meetings and volunteer work.Membership dues vary from club to club. For a list of clubs and more membership information, visit the Kiwanis International web site.
Make-A-Wish: This national foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to give them hope, strength, and joy. Its 25,000 volunteers are the backbone of the foundation and its local chapters are always looking for volunteers to help in several areas, including wish granting, development and fund raising, special events, marketing, public relations, advertising, translation services, medical outreach, web site design, general administration and other functions.For more information and a list of local chapters, click on Make-A-Wish Foundation.
The Meals On Wheels Association of America (MOWAA) helps its chapters to provide meal services to those who are elderly, homebound, disabled, frail or at risk.the elderly. Nearly 900 meal programs in communities throughout the United States are members of MOWAA. These programs rely on more than 300,000 volunteers to help prepare, serve, or deliver the more than 1 million meals each day that the elderly nutrition programs provide. Over 40% of all elderly nutrition programs have waiting lists. Also, when you click on ads featured on the GiveMeals.com site, its advertising sponsors make a donation to Meals On Wheels,
The National Retiree Volunteer Coalition, sponsored by Volunteers of America, promotes partnerships between retirees, their former employers and their communities. The organization says the program gives retirees opportunities to put their career skills to good use, to experience a sense of purpose and responsibility and to maintain relations with their former employers, while helping their communities to get a fresh perspective on solving problems. For more information, click on The National Retiree Volunteer Coalition
Salvation Army USA. Increasing numbers of older Americans face special challenges in their housing, employment, and recreation. The Salvation Army's community programs are designed to give seniors renewed interest in life. Approximately 1.5 million volunteers extend The Salvation Army's ability to serve the needy by providing assistance in a variety of areas from social services to office work to character building activities. For more information visit the Salvation Army.
Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) --This is a national nonprofit network of local chapters dedicated to encouraging the establishment and growth of small businesses around the nation. Its volunteer retirees use their business skills to provide counseling and mentor programs. The Corps is in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administraton. For more information visit SCORE:
Special Olympics--This program provides year-round sports training and competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for people eight years of age and older with mental retardation. An estimated 500,000 volunteers--including many senior citizens- fill a wide variety of roles for programs at the local, state, national and international levels, from the role of coach, to fund-raiser, to timer and scorer. For more information visit the Special Olympics web site.
Volunteer Match is a nonprofit, online service that helps volunteers get involved with community service organizations throughout the United States. Just enter your ZIP code on the VolunteerMatch web site (http://www.volunteermatch.org) to find local volunteer opportunities matching individual interests and schedules. The service has already generated hundreds of thousands of volunteer referrals nationwide.
Copyright 2005-07 by Carroll P. Trosclair |
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