April is National Volunteer Month and in nonprofit organizations, volunteers make the world go ‘round. Whether you’re delivering meals to the elderly, fostering a cat or dog for your local rescue organization or – in the case of Give an Hour – donating your time as a mental health professional, board member or volunteer, we could not do what we do or help those we serve without our volunteers. So, this month we celebrate our volunteers!
Give an Hour’s greatest asset is our more than 4,500 volunteer mental health professionals who provide one-on-one counseling to those in need, including service members, veterans and their families. They are the backbone of our organization and truly make a meaningful difference every single day in someone else’s mental health journey.
Admittedly, volunteering helps many worthwhile organizations, but did you know it also can boost your mental health? Really! A great advantage to volunteering is the more you do, the happier you are. Who knew? Reduced stress, increased self-confidence and the feeling of satisfaction from making a positive difference in the lives of others are just a few of the other benefits you can expect that support your emotional well-being.
For National Volunteer Month, we will feature several volunteers in our blog who are important to our organization: Kaitlyn Moore, a volunteer through Aetna, one of our corporate partners, will share her experience with us; Bob Stead, LPC, is a Give an Hour provider and ambassador and we’ll hear from him on why both are important; Sean Howard, chair of the Give an Hour board of directors, will share insights on working with staff and volunteers to fulfill the organizational mission while pursuing a strategic plan in a period of transition.
We hope you’ll follow this blog series and learn a little bit more about what makes Give an Hour the organization it is today.
If you know a mental health professional who might be interested in joining our network of providers, please consider sharing this blog with your social media networks.
