How do you volunteer in your Community?

[Straight Arrow]

US Army ROTC 4 yrs
US Army actuve duty 4 yrs (two tours Vietnam)
Montana Army National Guard 25 yrs
School Board 6 yrs (4 yrs chair)
Volunteer instructor school archery program 8 yrs
Volunteer classroom teaching assistant 8 yrs
Volunteer school maintenance and facilities 10 yrs
Chaperone Expedition Yellowstone 4 yrs
Gateway Youth Group President 20 yrs
Community Growth Plan Committee co-chair 4 yrs
Red Cross blood donor 13 gallons

'Was always there for kids and grandkids in whatever they were doing ... but especially sports, hunting and fishing. Sometimes with not enough hours in the day and not enough days in the week. Now retired ... I don't know how all that got done when working fulltime also!

 

[Talk2elk]

I mostly volunteer at my church.

 

[WanderWoman]

I’ve always wished I could do more but my job requires way too many extra hours to actually get things done. I’m also a working mom in the public sector. It’s not that I only do things that benefit me and I get paid for, I just don’t have time to do more.

I do think being active and staying engaged in natural resource or other issues people care about (engaging with staff from F&G, land management agencies, politicians) whether it be on plans, initiatives, legislation, seasons, etc. is very important extra work that benefits communities and people. Those are hours and hours people spend here and there that never get tallied or where credit is seldom given.

Thanks to everyone who does take the time to serve others.

 

[HighDesertSage]

I donate a lot of my time to my church and their outreach programs. I also am a board member for Wyoming disabled hunters, and I guide hunters for them in the fall.

 

[sccritterkiller]

I used to but the county government is so disorganized and embarrassing I quit. It appears I wasn't the only one...Park and rec dept is no longer offering half the kids sports they used to. No peewee football this fall just adult kickball league, they just extended registration due to lack of interest.

 

[Elky Welky]

Really cool topic, lots of positivity here and its cool to learn what others are doing and have done! I think this list is missing a few things, like other school programs such as speech and debate, theater, etc. The biggest thing I see missing though is volunteer involvement in local politics, which I'm sure many of us do as well.

-So speaking of politics, I've volunteered for various nonpartisan judicial campaigns in Billings and statewide before.
-I helped organize the high school mock trial program in Billings a few years ago and volunteer to judge for it each year. Covid and lack of teacher participation has knocked the program out in Billings specifically, but the program overall is going strong.
-I also have volunteered with the Montana Trial Lawyer's Association and organized/emceed their spring 2020 conference.
-My music-teacher sister volunteers me for her school events sometimes haha, and I have played guitar at some weddings and funerals. Lots of music in church growing up.
-When I was in private practice I had multiple pro-bono cases going most of the time, representing indigent Montanans in court. Since I do that full-time now as a PD, I can't do that anymore.
-I've also done some new-hunter mentorship, etc. but I think that might be what you would consider conservation?
-And I cannot wait to get involved in my nieces and nephew's school, sports, music, etc.as they get older!

I know you aren't interested in conservation work, but I would definitely say as someone serving as an officer on the board of a very active conservation org; the legislative sessions in particular leave little room for doing much else.

 

[MNElkNut]

* I founded and run, with a great half a dozen team members, a youth event called Youth Outdoor Activity Day. The event is totally free, has over 50 outdoor activities for kids to do and draws about 2,800 kids per year. It is this Sunday. It is described in Randy's podcast EP 129.
* I am the chapter President of conservation org which does events every year
* On the board of directors of a local conservation org which does events every year
* Founded our community's Outdoor Gear Library which provides sporting equipment for anyone in our area at very little cost to use. Example: snowshoes, ice fishing gear, fat tire bikes, duck hunting gear.
* Work with freshmen in our local high school through a school program aimed at identifying their strengths (ie communication, collaborator, etc)
* Coached football, basketball, and baseball as my kids went through the system.
* Taught Firearm Safety Class for 25 years
* Church volunteer
* Just volunteered to help our grid club (football).
* Working with a group on a pronghorn foundation

Probably too much. Should cut back some.

 

[Elky Welky]

Working with a group on a pronghorn foundation

You have my attention...

Very cool!

 

[MThuntr]

I've been helping single moms on my weekends

In actuality, I don't do much volunteering. I'm home 3 days a week and don't have time...also don't have kids and am not religious.

 

[Chama Grande]

This was something I was thinking about heavily last December, and my conclusion then (and now) was that I should do more. I've done some sporadic stuff with BHA and my local hockey rink, but I'd put myself in the bottom category here.

 

[Sheltowee]

I've been helping single moms on my weekends

Patronizing the local topless bar doesn't count.

 

[GrantK]

I volunteer for the local Mountain Rescue team, hard to call it a sacrifice as I find it one of the more fulfilling things I do...
I also live in a tiny town, show up for one thing and you will have more volunteer opportunities than you can get to, at this point I'm on a couple nonprofit boards and a couple other advisory teams...

 

[BillyHawk]

Vote casted

 

[Schaaf]

In the past I’ve served on the Town Council and coached high school football and youth basketball. My job being 100% on call put an axe to most coaching.

I volunteer a few different ways in the conservation world but would really like to be more involved in the community or school.

 

[EastTNHunter]

Coach 4H shooting sports and teach at church. Also try to do 1-1 mentoring with kids on hunting/outdoors/shooting, and am about to start mentoring high school kids in a architecture/engineering/construction program

 

[JLDemo]

Coach Little League for multiple kids/sports. Not consecutively, alternate per sport and kid. Love it with the exception of a few parents who love to criticize but won't help.

Volunteer for several veteran/disabled veteran organizations as events pop up.

Spent 10 yrs active duty and now in the 7th year in the Wyoming guard. This consumes more time than I'd like, three more years...

Use to be a volunteer firefighter, absolutely loved it and the crew. But due to work/life balance issues, decided to take a break and drop one major activity. So far I've managed to escape the CFD volunteer crowd..

Thanks to all for the volunteers, especially with youth. My kids love 4H and other activities and it wouldn't be possible without volunteers.

 

[Pucky Freak]

Blood donor
Foster/adoption parent
Peer support team lead (public safety)

My wife volunteers for everything and anything imaginable…oftentimes I’m just holding down the fort so she can do her thing.

From the poll I see a lot of public safety volunteers. THANK YOU!! Public safety folks needs all the support we can get! If you are directly serving the community you are lightening our load.

 

[wa_archer]

I dont really see how volunteering for habitat is any different than volunteering for the community. I would say they are one in the same. Out of your list, it was hard to check many boxes yet I'm a board member for BHA, Hunters Ed instructor, and coach youth sports. I could not do much more with a job and raising 2 kids and still have time to do my own things. I would agree though, other coaches i work with coach year round, hunter ed instructors are volunteer firefighters and even the community groups i work with through my job the member volunteer in multiple ways.

The big question is how do you get that mindset into more people. Our local volunteer firefighters are hurting for more people, our crime advocate working groups are the same people year after year and I know firsthand that the local wildlife group I used to work with it was the same old men.

It seems to me there has been a huge disconnect over the last 20-30 years with doing volunteer work and the younger generations dont even think about it. I supervise 8 guys ranging from 25-35 and only one of them does volunteer work which is helping coach and 4h of his own kids. Which is great but he will also be done after his kids grow up. I feel like I am still one of those younger people at 42 where besides BHA I am the young guy in everything I help out with.

Its great to see so many on here volunteer as much time as they do.

 

[FairWeather]

I don’t volunteer much, admittedly. I’m on the elections committee of my union, and I’m a regular blood donor, but that’s about it.

My OHA chapter has a few vacant board seats that I’ve thought about volunteering for one, but I want to get a better understanding of what that entails beforehand.

 

[Elky Welky]

seems to me there has been a huge disconnect over the last 20-30 years with doing volunteer work and the younger generations dont even think about it.

I’ll speculate that volunteerism is a luxury I don’t think many younger folks can indulge in. The age group you’re concerned about came into adulthood during exceptionally turbulent economic times, doesn’t have much stability, and has mostly been struggling with finding homes, stable careers, and finding partners. They’re behind on everything the generation before them had for their age. And once people have kids, that becomes its own full-time gig that leaves little room for much else. If people in that age group have kids, those kids are probably younger and definitely need more attention. I can’t fault folks for prioritizing their household’s needs before jumping in to volunteer.

As a fellow BHA board member, what I’ve noticed is the MT board is mostly older people whose kids have gone on to college and they may be toward the end of their career, or younger people without kids and the time and energy to devote to the cause. Most of the board members with kids still at home don’t stay on the board for too long.

So I guess I wouldn’t give up hope on those folks, they just aren’t in a position where they can give back yet. But I think it is human nature to give to causes bigger than ourselves. And I like to believe that when the time comes, those that can, do.

This is one of my favorite threads I’ve seen on HT in a while, there’s lots of impressive people here who care, and it’s nice to know we’re not alone in giving a damn.