Volunteer!
It’s easy to spend a lot of time discussing the issues close to our hearts. It’s not as easy finding time to get more pro-active. For many of us (hopefully) summer means a more flexible schedule. I encourage you all, if you don’t already, to take some time for volunteer work this season.
I work for a non-profit organization that provides after school programs to elementary school children. My job has given me a great deal of emotional fulfillment, as well as a much deeper appreciation of the value of volunteerism. We have volunteers who help with tutoring, teaching classes, coaching sports teams, and even simply helping us clean and maintain the building. I’m not sure they realize how much they help us run our program, or how grateful we are for each and every volunteer’s help.
I’m certain various pro-life organizations feel similarly, as do politically neutral organizations that help women and their families in times of need. I strongly recommend volunteering, even just an hour per week, at an organization that supports your ideals. This does not have to be an abortion-prevention endeavor, although, this being Secular Pro-Life, we would love it if it were. 🙂
Volunteermatch.org may be a good place to start. For example, here are some projects I found in my state:
- Counsel pregnant teens, women, and families facing unplanned pregnancies.
- Donate new or “like new” infant supplies for families at local shelters.
- Tutor pregnant/parenting teens studying for their GEDs.
And here are some great youth development organizations:
Additionally, if you have a positive pro-life volunteer experience you’d like to share, email us at info@secularprolife.org.
All Our Lives has many prolife volunteer opportunities available. You can work from anywhere on your own schedule. We already have English and Spanish versions, but we need people to translate our "Family Planning Freedom Is Prolife" presentation into (at least) the following languages: Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), French, Russian, Hindi, Polish, Portuguese, Swahili, Tagalog, and Urdu. We also need people who know to organize, fundraise, publicize, secure nonprofit status for a charitable organization, and move our large resources directory to our new platform. Thanks!
I knit a whole bunch of baby hats for crisis pregnancy centers, and it's helped a lot with my depression. At times when I feel like the world is a hopelessly sad place and there's nothing I can do about it, I can tell myself, "Well, you know what? All these things might really suck, but there are dozens of babies born from crisis pregnancies who have warm, cute little hats because of me." It helps me feel like I'm not just at the mercy of my illness.
It's wonderful that you found a way to help yourself and help other people at the same time. Well done. 🙂