Volunteering is at the heart of our communities and is a driving force for positive change worldwide. It is a great way to make a difference in the lives of others, plus you’ll discover some pretty amazing benefits in your own life while you’re at it!
Volunteers play a key role in the success of Rainbows United. Our volunteers donate their time, talent and even treasure to help Rainbows continue to serve children with special needs and their families.
The safety and health of our children, families and staff members remains our top priority. While we are not welcoming volunteers into our facilities at this time, we still need our volunteers to help with many projects we can’t complete on our own.
Our Top 3 Reasons for Volunteering During COVID-19
1. One benefit of volunteering is that focusing on others can give us a deeper sense of perspective. Volunteering helps you forget your own problems and think on a larger scale.
Through giving to Rainbows, LifePoint Church youth volunteers, ages 9-11 years old, experience the true meaning and value of volunteering. Their service impacts not only the children they serve, but also the volunteers themselves.
“We volunteer to help the community,” said Pastor Nathanial. “We volunteer because we want to show our community that we care. I also lead kids in volunteering to help kids learn the importance of serving those around them and thinking beyond themselves.”
This year the youth volunteers assembled materials for a sidewalk shaving cream/chalk art project for the pre-K classrooms. The volunteers gathered at their church, wearing masks and maintaining social distance, and put together the project materials. They then delivered the gift to the front door of Rainbows.
“I’ve loved to see my kids make connections with the kids at Rainbows,” said Pastor Nathanial. “I’ve seen older kids find enjoyment in teaching and helping those younger than them. Some of the best nursery and preschool workers at our church are kids that found how much they loved serving kids from volunteering at Rainbows. Some of my earlier helpers are currently in college to become teachers and pediatricians, and serving at Rainbows was their first opportunity to lead kids in an activity.”
2. Volunteering can help increase your self-confidence, which leads to a sense of accomplishment and pride.
Max Fiebach, Eagle Scout candidate, chose volunteering at Rainbows for his Eagle Scout final project. Planning and executing a group project during a pandemic brought new challenges and a new determination from Max. For his Eagle Scout project, Max incorporated social distancing and mask requirements into his plan for beautifying the campus, planting a tree, trimming trees and leading a crew of 20 other scouts and volunteers at Rainbows’ Kids’ Cove location.
“When Max was one of these little boy scouts at the beginning, that meant following the lead of the other boy scouts learning how to be a part of an Eagle Scout project,” said Marie Fiebach, Max’s mom. “I’ve seen him grow from being a worker to being a leader. It’s wonderful to see him be on the initiator side.”
“The idea behind the Boy Scouts is to develop lifelong volunteers,” said Jim Hunt, Eagle Rank Advancement Chair, “and we’re very grateful for a partner like Rainbows that gives kids the opportunity to do projects like this.”
3. Giving back to your community creates a sense of belonging and purpose in your work. A sense of solidarity can also be established through joining others in working towards a common purpose. You feel like your work or organization is truly making a difference in the lives of others
Several of Rainbows’ corporate volunteers have taken the opportunity to not only help Rainbows, but also use the experience for team building and reinforcing pride in their companies. With Rainbows’ “Take to your home or office” projects, volunteers make an impact on Rainbows…from a distance. Thank you to employees of Sunflower Bank, Meritrust Credit Union, Fidelity Bank, Stearman Bar and Grill and many other individuals who have risen to the challenge of volunteering in a new way!
Over the last 8 months, volunteers have winterized garden beds and planted flowers; created and delivered craft projects for our children; compiled packets and mailers; planted trees; spread mountains of mulch; waxed playground equipment; filled hand sanitizer bottles; trimmed trees; sewn masks; and collected wish list items.
If you would like more information about volunteering for Rainbows, join us for a virtual coffee break from 9-9:30 a.m. Friday, November 13. We want to share with you the wonderful things happening at Rainbows and brainstorm some volunteer opportunities with you. Contact Melani Kiewer at mkliewer@rui.org to get the Zoom information.
