Monthly Archives: November 2011

For those who have walked away, those who have come back and those who are here now: 20th anniversary celebration

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Twelve years ago, I walked away from Hands On Charlotte.

It was not that I did not enjoy my time at Hands On Charlotte projects or the camaraderie with other volunteers. Life was too busy. There were just too many other priorities. My family and my career came first. Volunteering always ended up at the bottom of my agenda.

Although my volunteerism came to a halt, I still came face to face with the tremendous needs of the economically challenged in our community and the non-profit agencies, which aim to help individuals and families, survive. It was my job to connect with these people and organizations to share their stories through my work as a television news reporter. Viewers seemed to respond to the news coverage and were often eager to help. It was nice to know that my work sometimes made a difference.

Last year, I changed careers.

It was time to step away from the hectic and sometimes chaotic life that comes with working in TV news. It was a chance to focus on other priorities. I still needed an outlet to help the people I came to know through my previous job. It was time to come back to Hands On Charlotte.

Because I had been absent for 11 years, I needed to attend another orientation session. I stood in a circle of new volunteers at the Hands On Charlotte office and listened to introductions. My eyes wandered around the room.

“Wait, what is that?” I thought to myself. “Is that…that’s my signature on the wall!”

I had completely forgotten about my first orientation back in 1999. Twelve years later, I was staring at my handprint and signature from when I had first signed up with Hands On Charlotte.

As I looked at the other handprints on the walls, I wondered how many of those other volunteers had attended orientation, signed the wall, participated in one or two Hands On Charlotte projects and then stopped volunteering.

Hands On Charlotte was there for me in 1999. It welcomed me back in 2010.

It’s staggering to think of the number of people who have stood in a circle at a Hands On Charlotte orientation since the organization’s founding in 1991. It’s comforting to know you can walk away when needed and come back when you’re ready to go to work.

Next week, Hands On Charlotte is celebrating all of the people who have walked away, the people who have come back and the people who are here now.

The party, marking HOC’s 20th anniversary, begins at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 29th at Taco Mac in Piedmont Row, near SouthPark Mall. Light appetizers will be provided, along with a cash bar.

The celebration is also an opportunity to introduce your friends, colleagues and family to the volunteer opportunities Hands On Charlotte provides. Because new volunteers will help ensure HOC is around for the next 20 years, with doors open whenever you are ready to come back.

Mark Boone
Hands On Charlotte volunteer
HOC Media and Communications Committee member

Supporting our veterans through service

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They’ve sweated, bled and sacrificed for this country. They have done the ultimate duty. Now, it’s time to recognize their services to our country. Veterans’ Day is an annual federal holiday where we remember the service of our soldiers. On this day, we respect the heroes and those who have put their lives on the line for this country.

But not only should we respect and admire our veterans, we should also recognize the need to assist them with reintegration back into civilian life. And Family Forum is a non-profit that works to do just that.

Some, if not many, of our veterans have faced hardship returning to society at large. Some have even ended up homeless. Family Forum, with the help of the Department of Veteran Affairs, people like you and others, has found a way to house our veterans who have faced homelessness.

I know that we can make a difference in the lives of our veterans who have faced such hardship. This Saturday, November 12, 2011 from 8:30 a.m. to noon, Hands On Charlotte and Family Forum will be honoring our veterans with service. So sign up for the Veterans’ Day project today. Our veterans need us. We hope to see you there.

Tarik Kiley
tarik@handsoncharlotte.org

‘I got more from a group of volunteers …than I have from people I have known for years’

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You get so many memories from volunteering and it truly builds relationships like nothing else can. Some memories are uncomfortable; some are uplifting and inspiring; some are rewarding; and, some memories are just dirty. The “BIG Project” for November is back and seeing the “BIG Project” on the calendar made me smile until my cheeks hurt remembering my first experience.

The “BIG Project” is a monster undertaking that Hands on Charlotte organizes.  It takes cooperation on the part of the school, volunteers and “Blue Max” (BIG Project’s corporate sponsor). For November, the BIG Project will take place at Steele Creek Elementary School in southwest Charlotte. Volunteers will help to repair garden beds, build new beds in the school’s courtyard, build benches and otherwise beautify and maintain the school grounds. Nothing brings people together like bad weather and hard work!

One of my first projects with Hands On Charlotte, much before I decided to serve as an AmeriCorps volunteer, was with the BIG Project in March 2011 at Olympic High School.

As with anything unfamiliar, my experience started off a little intimidating and, like every project since, before and after, I remember feeling good but anxious and full of apprehension. My initial reaction was to run away as fast as possible.

To be surrounded by strangers, working outside, is something that can take almost anyone out of their comfort zone.  But I didn’t end up running away! I had committed to being there and I was going to get through that morning. I probably wouldn’t come back next week, but I was getting through it, I thought to myself.

It was raining that morning — it wasn’t a heavy rain but a non-stop drizzle that covers you from head to toe and makes you wonder if you will ever be dry again. It felt like walking through a heavy fog and coming out of a swimming pool — a rain that covers you in water.

To make the wet and sloppiness of the day harder, we were beautifying the front of the school by spreading fresh dirt over the flower beds and areas around the trees. If you have ever worked with piles of dirt and rain, you know it is like gaining extra pounds with every step you take. Slowly, the mud sticks to your jeans and clothes as you walk. It feels like carrying an extra five pounds per extremity.

Again, nothing brings people together like bad weather and hard work!

While slipping, falling, and laughing at each other, we completed everything we set out to do that morning. Some of us built benches, some of us planted flowers and some of us shoveled a swamp into wheel barrels. Boys, girls, men and women, no one shied away from the dirt and mud. It is always amazing to see what people can accomplish.

Through all of this work and mud, something remarkable happened. We accidentally got to know the people working around us. Some of us spend our lives trying to protect that from happening. This day was different, Maybe it was because we were building something for a neighborhood, giving something back of ourselves. Maybe it was because we didn’t give up when we got there and saw the rain. Maybe it was because we were covered in rain and dirt and filth (some of us more than others). Maybe, just maybe, for a brief moment, it just didn’t matter what anyone thought and we allowed ourselves to be — ourselves. Whatever the reason, people opened up and the people I meet that day helped me realize something I never knew. Letting go of your insecurities and connecting to another human is something we crave and something we need to make us feel alive.

It is only when we force ourselves out of our comfort zones that we truly open up to connect, when we let down our guards and release our insecurities that we can really get to know the people around us. I showed up that morning ready to run. I left that afternoon feeling like a new person, ready to conquer anything.

Do I still talk to anyone from that day of rain and mud? A couple of them, not many, but not all relationships last forever. Ultimately, I got more from a group of volunteers that wet and rainy morning than I have from people I have known for years. And even if we never talk again, I will always smile at the memory of that day.

Sean Leto
sean@handsoncharlotte.org