Top Five Reasons I Volunteer

"... no matter how big government gets, and no matter how many services it provides, it can never take the place of volunteers." - Ronald Reagan

It’s National Volunteer Appreciation Week. It got me thinking about why, as a (sometimes frantically) busy single mom of two, I freely give over 200 hours a year to the Fire Rescue Department. Of course, giving my time without resentment tells me straight off the bat how passionate I am about The Citizen Reserve. I have most certainly found myself in myriad volunteering situations, unable to say “no” and perpetually floundering for excuses to bow out of the commitments I had made. That’s not the case here.

I wondered if the fact that I helped form this group and define its direction keeps me so dedicated; seeing it grow and come into fruition in two short years is quite a reward in itself. I came to the conclusion that there are much bigger motivators at work.

It fulfills a passion. My dad was a police officer, firefighter, and paramedic. My brother has had multiple terms as Chief in a volunteer fire department. I didn’t know it was in my blood until about five years ago, when I got the calling. Volunteering is a way for me to answer that call while maintaining my current means of income and childcare arrangements.

I get to interact with extraordinary people. This is one of my favorite reasons. I work alongside some amazing people from such diverse backgrounds that I normally would never be exposed to with the lifestyle I lead right now. Every single member brings a gift and talent to the group, and it is so much fun getting to know people in this setting. A “Breakfast Club” of sorts... we laugh together in ways that can only come from the challenges of training hard and being faced with situations not normally dealt with in our day jobs. It also cleared one of my most nagging character defects: judging a book by its cover : )

Invaluable training opportunities. So many people have told me there is something about my gait and the way I carry myself these days that wasn’t present a few years ago. I think it’s the confidence and knowledge I’ve gained from facing some sizable fears and learning life-saving skills that helps me hold my head just a little higher. Knowing that I can care for my children, neighbors, or a bystander in a disaster or life-threatening medical situation makes me glow inside, brighter than I can express with words. I most certainly am grateful for the opportunity to give my time in exchange for this kind of real-life training.

Sense of accomplishment. Knowing that I have risen above many challenges to be a part of this incredible group gives me an extreme sense of accomplishment and encourages me to meet more obstacles head-on rather than make excuses about them. Another benefit is the opportunity to use a skill set I did not believe I had until I pushed myself. There was no one else to design logos, patches, newsletters, or brochures. Knowing just enough of the required software to be dangerous, I took a stab at it, which resulted in a creative door opening for me that otherwise never would have been approached.

Giving back. Whether you call it God, Allah, Higher Power, Source, The Universe... I am grateful to a power greater than myself for these gifts that I have, and the drive to do something with them. Giving my time and talents to a group that serves the community feels good. Really good.

How can you feed your soul through volunteering? Is there a passion burning in you? Perhaps instead of feeling like you missed the boat with your current career choice, you can find a way to volunteer in a vocation that excites you and live the best of both worlds.

DeKalb County CERT Takes Third Place

DeKalb County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) took 3rd place in the First Annual GEMA CERT Challenge in Henry County on Saturday, April 4th, 2009. The team consisted of Debi Taylor, Heather Roth, Hayne Palmer, Alex Lopez, and Elliott Fried as the Team Leader.

The competition was hosted by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency and was designed to engage CERT teams from across the State to test their response skills in the areas of disaster preparedness, small fire suppression, light search and rescue, disaster psychology, and basic disaster medical operations. Although rooted in sportsmanship, the focus of the event was the networking and sharing of ideas among Georgia’s CERT volunteers in their individual county programs.

The DeKalb CERT participants scored 98, which tied us with Chatham County. There was also a Moulage Competition, in which we had to fabricate a disaster scenario and make up a victim with realistic injuries in a time-restricted session. Christened with our first hands-on experience with moulage, we still managed to take 4th place.
 Prizes included Training Aids to help continue to grow our program:

 a brand new Rescue Randy Mannequin,
 two refillable/rechargeable fire extinguishers, 
a Ben Nye Starter Moulage Kit, and seven new loaded CERT kits.

“You should be very proud of your team. I know I am very proud,” DeKalb County Fire Rescue Chief David Foster told Elliott Fried upon hearing our accomplishment.

This was the first time this event was done and the GEMA staff is looking forward to holding the next one.

Way to go, team!