Summer has almost come and gone, and long after sunburns or tans fade, local organizations which depend on volunteers will hopefully continue to see the boost they got over recent months.
Students and others in the community made the decision to help others this summer when they had the extra time, or in some cases couldn’t find jobs elsewhere, taking the bad economy and turning it into a good opportunity.
“I decided to volunteer this summer because the pickings for summer jobs in Issaquah were slim to none,” said Megan Jonas, a college student at Western Washington University who grew up here and spends her summers at home in Issaquah. “I had three months off from college, and wanted to do something with my time. I have always enjoyed volunteering, so I began to look for places in the community that could use some extra help.”
Jonas spent her time at several places, including the Issaquah Food and Clothing Bank and the Issaquah Senior Center.
“I started to volunteer at the senior center because I heard they were a friendly group, and it couldn’t be more true. I have enjoyed serving them lunch and talking with them,” said Jonas. “It’s a neat opportunity to learn about an older generation’s experiences and perspectives. I chose to volunteer at the food and clothing bank because I enjoy helping people find the things they need. It’s always neat when I can help a client who is looking for something specific that I just found in our incoming donations.”
Jan Koriath, the director of the Issaquah Senior Center, said they see a different type of volunteer during the summer months, when people who have time off school or a break from work have the time to donate. Overall, she said the number of volunteers at the senior center this summer has stayed about the same as compared to other years.
Janice Batchelder started helping serve lunch to senior citizens at the Issaquah Senior Center about a month ago because she is retired and wanted to find a way to get more involved in the community. She also volunteers with the Issaquah School District as part of the VOICE mentoring program where she works with a particular student, who will be entering the sixth grade this fall.
“I know a lot of seniors who volunteer, but this is the first time I’ve seen a lot of younger people out,” said Batchelder.
For Liz Gibson, helping at the senior center helps her fill time, in a good way.
“At least this way I feel like I’m doing something worthwhile,” said Gibson.
Another longtime volunteer, at both the Senior Center and Issaquah Food and Clothing Bank, Rowan Hinds, started helping with the lunches because it’s a great way to help seniors socialize and make connections in the community.
At the food bank, volunteers were busy on the opening day of the week unpacking food and storing donations.Cherie Meier, the executive director of the food and clothing bank, said during busy periods they’ve had about 100 volunteers helping out. Some are there as part of community service, filling time needed for various reasons, and others are there to simply give their time.
Gabe Cervants said he started out doing community service for the food bank, but once his time was finished he decided to continue volunteering.
“It’s a refreshing way to fix an attitude,” he said.
He said he just wanted to help out, especially during these times.
Christa Schommer got started over seven years ago after a friend encouraged her to get involved. Following her husband’s death she was looking for a way to help out and volunteering every Tuesday at the food bank helped fill her time. Typically manning the front desk of the store, Schommer said this summer has seen more volunteers.
“There’s more volunteers this summer because of the economy,” she said.
She added they used to average 60 people volunteering, but are now consistently in the 100s.
Whether the trend will continue through the fall when kids go back to school and schedules return to regular remains to be seen, but these local organizations will always need help to continue.
