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“As a society, we are still struggling with the after-effects of COVID,” Susanne said. “At the beginning of the pandemic, people were told to shut their doors and isolate. Regrettably, people have been slow to get back to engaging with their communities.” People are still suffering from the effects of that isolation to varying degrees, she said. “So, anything we can do to help foster human connection is so important. Volunteering goes beyond the specific activity. Looking someone in the eye, smiling, and asking about their day is almost like medicine that can help us heal from COVID.”
The volunteer sector must do more to help their volunteers understand the depth and breadth of the impact of their volunteering. “Those little moments can be life-altering for everyone involved,” Susanne said. “We get into volunteering because we want to give to others; we stay in volunteering because of the benefits we accrue—how it makes us feel and how it helps us with our own sense of purpose and value to the community. It is up to us to help people take the first step to connect to volunteering. Every match made is one more piece of the network that helps to create the communities we want to make and live in.”
