Evolution of a Volunteer

The ultimate expression of generosity

is not giving of what you have

but of giving of who you are.

Johnnetta B. Cole

I read somewhere that volunteers are motivated to volunteer for two reasons.  One is ideological, ethical and moral....a sense of helping with needs or problems of others.  The other is a personal reason of feeling useful or living and knowing new experiences.  Either reason ends up helping.


The first time I volunteered was in 1958 while I was a member of the Sodality of Our Lady at Regis College.  We went to help at St. Claire's orphanage located on 32nd Avenue in North Denver.  I entered a white room with twelve white cribs and each crib held a baby dressed in white. I noticed each baby tried to make eye contact but I passed most of the children until I saw a rosy, smiling, healthy looking baby. My job was to feed the babies something that looked like cream of wheat. I remember enjoying feeding the cute babies and resented feeding the homely ones.  To this day, I am ashamed at how selfish I was with my love and time. I know now, they all needed my attention, yet I spent more time with those that appealed to me. I try to excuse my actions by thinking it was my youthful age, that I knew nothing about babies and that I had no experience in volunteering.

Teaching catechism (CCD) in the '60's took me to Cure d Ars in East Denver and to St. Leo's on 10th and Colfax.  What I remember is the difference in the attitude and language of the children as I tried to teach religion to them.  East Denver children were respectful, willing to learn and polite.  The St. Leo's children were rowdy, used vulgar language and had no respect.  Some days I would leave St. Leo's in tears. Wouldn't it be ironic if the St. Leo's children were the ones I did not pay attention to when they were babies?  I know they weren't, but if they were, I was getting my just rewards!

In the late 70's I assisted Fr. Peter Urban in teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to Hispanic persons in Brighton, Colorado. The one thing I learned in that year was that you can not mix young and old persons.  Young people will learn and retain much faster than an older person.  It was like having two classes....one younger class three or four lessons ahead of the older second class. I noticed that the older people wanted a social hour to chat with their friends while the younger students wanted to learn! 


For two years, around Christmas, I met many other volunteers to wrap gifts for the needy at Fr. Woody's Christmas Party.  Msgr. C.B. Woodrich (Fr. Woody) once said:  We cannot pray to the Lord and reject the ones he loves the most." We were an army of volunteers spending hours wrapping the gifts and then attending the dinner to help distribute the gifts.  I felt such a joy to see homeless children, living in a shelter, so excited with a gift of socks and a toy!

Volunteering at a migrant camp.

Shrine of St. Anne's volunteers
getting ready to go help
Habitat for Humanity.

In the late 1990's, the Shrine of St. Anne's Social Ministry sponsored Habitat For Humanity and Visiting Migrant Camps and I became a volunteer. Self-satisfaction, when I was able to do something to help persons who needed help, was rewarding.  Since I speak Spanish, I enjoyed chatting with the migrant workers, taking photos, interpreting the homily for Archbishop Chaput, and joining the migrant workers and the rest of the volunteers for dinner gave me much pleasure and a happy, content feeling.

Ruben, Angel and Sergio

After eating breakfast
I will take children to classroom.

Volunteering at Santa Maria del Mexicano in Colon, Mexico cinched what volunteering was all about. The first year I taught kindergarten to five year children.  I fell in love with the children, the area, the work, other volunteers, and realized being a volunteer gave me much more than I was able to give! For the next five years, for one week to three month, I returned to the orphanage and watched my little five year old children grow. The last time I visited, one of the boys was eighteen and in the army! Those five years taught me much about volunteering.  Not only did I do what was assigned to me, but anything that needed doing.  I became a taxi, a cook, a tour guide, a babysitter, a supervisor, a mail retriever, a party planner, a teacher, a nurse, a librarian and a cleaning woman.   

Watching the circus!

I had often thought about retiring in Mexico and one time when I was in Puerto Vallarta, I decided to find an orphanage.  My thought was that once I retired and lived in Mexico, I could volunteer at an orphanage.  It took me a while, but I did locate Casa Hogar, a home with children without parents. I found out that when God decides to help out, anything is possible. I was staying at Las Palmas Hotel and the young woman, Emma, who worked in the tourist office decided to help me after I mentioned my idea of taking some children from the orphanage to the circus that was in town. I would buy the tickets and treats but I needed transportation. She miraculously found a bus and she convinced the driver to volunteer his time to pickup the children and bring them to the circus where I would meet them. About twenty children arrived dressed in their best outfits. We bought them chips, peanuts, popcorn,candy and drinks and sat together to watch the different acts.  I spent most of my time watching the awed and amazed children. The excitement and happiness on their faces was wonderful to see! After the show, I went with the driver to return the children to the orphanage.  I got many hugs and "gracias" not only from the children but from the adults in charge of the orphanage. To do something that makes someone happy is a very fulfilling feeling!

Some of the children from
Casa Hogar in Puerto Vallarta

In 2010, I again volunteered through Spirit of Christ to teach ESL in Brighton. This time, we used computerized lessons with Rosetta Stone CD's. With gas prices increasing I could no longer make the long drive to Brighton but I do miss seeing the excited pupils as they learn a new language!


This year, I am volunteering at The Arvada Food Bank.  I am one of six "shoppers" for the day and we help people pick out their groceries. Depending on the size of family, the applicants are given points. Volunteers keep track of the points and help persons "purchase" what they need.  Some days it is not busy but some days I feel as if I am on a Merry Go Round.  I take one person, return and get another person, take that person around and by the time we return, there is someone else ready to shop! I enjoy helping Hispanics who do not speak English because I get to practice my Spanish.  Many persons in line have lost their jobs, others cannot find work, and many are struggling to make ends meet. I overheard a volunteer say, "Consider coming to the food bank as a bump in the road. Soon, I am sure, you will find work and this will just be a memory." As we go through the aisles, some tell me their story, others give me recipes, others love to tell me about their children, one told me how her pregnancy was progressing while others tell me how thankful they are for the food bank. I am grateful for everyone who donates to the food bank and I know I am a better volunteer than when I began in the 50's because I enjoy helping all of the persons asking for help no matter how they look!

My ultimate goal in volunteering is to be like this American proverb:

Actions and words are the windows through which the heart is seen!"