In early June while working at Kimberly Clark (Conway Mills) I noticed one of our Team Managers seated at a table in the hallway, promoting United Way of Central Arkansas. I have always believed in United Way and I knew immediately that I would like to help in some way, but was not sure what, when or how. Volunteering has always been important to me. I have volunteered in different ways throughout my life and I'm still a Big Sister in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program to someone who's now 22 years old. Getting involved is just part of my genes. When I found out that United Way of Central Arkansas was searching for volunteers to help out around Conway (where I was born and raised), it seemed like a perfect chance to give back, so I signed up and enlisted the help of my niece and nephew as well.
We were scheduled to help paint an older home in Conway, as part of United Way Week of Action and the Habitat for Humanity of Faulkner County's Brush with Kindness program. We signed up for a 4 hour shift on Thursday, June 24, 2010, which would turn out to be one of the hottest days of the summer. Going into it, I felt pretty good about our task and the opportunity to show my niece and nephew how good it can feel to give back. I wanted them to appreciate the simple things we take for granted every day. Hearing everyone at Kimberly Clark (Conway Mills) who had volunteered the previous days on the project go on and on about their experience and all the work that was getting done, I began to realize the impact my job was making in my hometown and it was an awesome feeling.
"My whole experience with Week of Action left me feeling very blessed."
Nothing could have prepared me for that Thursday though. Without having the address of the home prior to the day of the project, I had no idea who lived at the house we would be working on. When I arrived I realized that this house belonged to an elderly lady I have known all my life and I even grew up just one block over from this location. I began to laugh a most unusual laugh; a laugh that was coming from somewhere deep inside me and had been lost a long time. My niece, nephew and a Church friend who was helping as well asked me what was wrong. I replied "nothing's wrong, everything is right." Something happened that nobody could have planned more perfectly; the Circle of Life fell into place.
Week of Action started with the simple goal of completing 5 community service projects during that week.
By the end of the week, 374 individuals had served over 1,100 hours to complete 35 projects in Faulkner and Perry Counties.
To end my story, I go back to the beginning, where I mentioned that I am still a Big Sister in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. As fate would have it that Thursday in June, the elderly homeowner of the house we worked on happened to be the grandmother of my Little Sister, who is now 22 years old. My whole experience with Week of Action left me feeling very blessed.
As citizens of the community, we all have something to give. Volunteering teaches us that when we encounter bad things in our lives, we don't have to lay down; we can pour ourselves into the community and into each other and make a difference. When we feel blessed, we should bless others. For me, it's about giving back. I receive more when I am giving back to others.
Give. Advocate. Volunteer. LIVE UNITED™.