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Why Volunteering is Important for Your Child

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Encouraging your child to volunteer is a great way to help them think of others. Depending on the activity, kids as young as 2 years old can be involved, and starting young helps instill a service attitude that your child will carry forward throughout their life. The benefits of volunteering are many, not only to those receiving help or support, but for your child and your family.

  • Volunteering teaches caring, empathy, and selflessness. It raises awareness of those who are in need and teaches that even small acts of compassion are valuable.
  • Helping others increases self-esteem, as your child realizes their ability to make a difference on a personal level.
  • School performance and attendance are improved in kids who volunteer according to multiple research studies.
  • Some volunteer opportunities may provide information about possible careers in medicine, politics, conservation, etc. and listing volunteer involvement is helpful on a resume or college application.
  • Physical and emotional well-being are increased by volunteering, as are social skills especially if the activity involves working as a team. Group activities provide the opportunity to meet people of different ages and backgrounds.
  • In the wake of a tragedy or natural disaster, having the opportunity to help, for example by having a food drive, makes kids feel less powerless and overwhelmed.
  • Volunteering as a family connects kids and parents with a common compassionate goal.

There are lots of ways children of all ages can volunteer. Your local chamber of commerce or downtown association typically has a calendar listing about volunteering opportunities. Food banks often need helpers as well as food donations. Schools and houses of worship are good sources for more options. Look online for organizations that send letters to veterans, deployed troops, first responders, etc.; they love to have cards and notes written by kids to distribute. Think (very) local and see if there is a neighbor who needs help with raking leaves or maybe would appreciate a visit from you and your child. As a reminder, younger children should always be accompanied by an adult for one-on-one situations.

Volunteering helps us feel capable and connected, and yet only 25% of Americans volunteer annually. Coming up is more incentive to get involved– Friday, December 5 is International Volunteer Day. Knowing the benefits, start early making volunteering part of your family’s ‘brand’. You may well inspire others to do the same and we will all be the better for it.

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Dr. Elise Herman

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Dr. Herman is passionate about community health outreach, school programs, and child/family health and wellness. She has more than 31 years of experience as a pediatrician in Ellensburg, Washington, the last 3 with KVH Pediatrics. In 2022 Dr. Herman mostly retired from practice and continues to contribute blog posts and remain a visible advocate for kids in the community.

Mary Holmgren (KVH Volunteer)

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In 2022, April 17-23 is National Volunteer Week.

It was early 2002 when Doug and Mary Holmgren, freshly retired, moved east to be near to their children’s growing families. Not long after, a granddaughter was born at KVH Hospital.

“I noticed the hospital was preparing to open a gift shop,” says Mary, who had volunteered for years at the Mary Bridge hospital gift shop and knew a thing or two about retail.

When the KVH gift shop was ready to open, Mary was there to volunteer. Of course, it wasn’t all hard work. “Dolly McFadden did the coffee and I did the shop,” recalls Mary. “Wyman (Renfrow) would be here sometimes. We’d all get a bit noisy when there were no customers around. We were having a good time.”

The trio stayed flexible, shifting into new roles wherever they were most needed. Mary moved across the hall to the courtesy desk, and Wyman to the outpatient waiting area, to help patients and family members who were visiting the hospital. After their shifts, the friends would often have lunch together and catch up on family news.

Twenty years later, Mary remains a familiar face at KVH Hospital. She’s spent most of her adult life volunteering, even during a busy career as a pediatric nurse. “I enjoy meeting people,” she explains. She considers KVH “a nice place to volunteer,” adding, “Much of the time, the people you’re helping are neighbors and friends.”

That strong desire to help others unexpectedly pulled Mary out of retirement and onto the KVH payroll for several years. During a visit to her doctor at KVH Internal Medicine, one of the nurses was clearly struggling: a family emergency on the east coast was her heart’s priority, yet she was unable to travel without someone to cover her clinic shifts.

Enter Mary. Still waiting to be seen by the doctor, Mary realized there was something she could do to help. “I’m a registered nurse, you know,” she offered. “I have my license.”

The moment Mary’s exam ended, the nurse took her straight to the clinic manager. There was no hesitation. “I was signed up right then and there,” says Mary, who worked in an on-call capacity for the next half-dozen years, covering for maternity leaves, vacation, sick days, and more. She was happy to help, and did so on her own terms. “If Doug and I had a vacation planned, I let them know I wasn’t available. It worked out well for everybody.”

When COVID struck in 2020, protocols changed as the safety of patients and staff became more important than ever. With a strict visitation policy in place, volunteers were among those who were unable to enter the hospital and clinics. Mary took the next available opportunity to serve, lending a hand in late 2020 during COVID vaccination efforts at KVH Hospital and again at the mass vaccination clinics held at the Fairgrounds in 2021.

Today, Mary’s back at the courtesy desk, helping patients with her trademark smile, visible even behind a face mask. KVH staff are thrilled to see the return of volunteers, who are more like work family and were dearly missed. “We really need nurses, Mary,” one of her former Internal Medicine colleagues teased, recently.

Mary laughs. “I said, ‘I’m done.’ I retired at the end of 2013, and didn’t renew my license.”