Volunteering Pays

The Gaiser Student Center traded in its cafeteria-style chairs and round tables last Wednesday for rows of poster boards praising the efforts and good deeds of 35 local non-profit organizations.

  Clark hosted the Non-Profit Fair that allowed students and organizations to come together, network and discover opportunities to make a difference.

The room bustled with activity as students and staff perused the posters, fliers and displays of groups as wide-ranging as the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District, Furry Friends, Habitat for Humanity and the Vancouver Police Department.

"Some people are here because they want to add some nice flare to their résumés," said Katie Barr, a Clark College student. "That's cool. I'm here because this is an opportunity to spread some love and help out the community. That's what's beautiful about non-profit organizations - they have the power to really make a difference."

Even in a job market as tight as today's, in which would-be employees struggle to find work and those who are working are worried about getting laid off, volunteering is very much alive.

A non-profit organization is one that is formed with the intent of benefiting the public instead of attaining financial gain. Volunteering or interning for a non-profit company can benefit both the community as well as a person's résumé. It can also provide networking opportunities to foster contacts in a chosen career field.

As recently as last year, more than 1.7 million Washington residents donated nearly 205 million hours of service to non-profit groups, according to the government-sponsored data-collection service Volunteering in America.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics noted that volunteering is more common among older adults, particularly in the 45- to 54-year-old group. Still, volunteering is popular in the 16- to 24-year-old group, according to the bureau.

In part, volunteering is a chance to connect with potential employers and others that might facilitate work opportunities. "All contacts are good contacts," Liz Healy, former accountant for African Rainforest Conservancy and Humanitarian Notes, said in a Bend Bulletin article. "Networking on any level always tends to lead to someone else who may have a contact that leads to someone else."

Volunteering can also be an opportunity to acquire skills that can improve one's employment opportunities.

"Volunteer experience can be just as helpful in getting a job as paid experience," said a Clark Career & Employment Services webpage. "It does not matter if you learned to manage a database in a paid position or volunteer. The important thing is that you learned to manage a database."

Representatives from the groups at the Non-Profit Fair say the time people invest is vital. "Any non-profit here will tell you that volunteers are the life-blood of any organization," said Mariah Acton of Columbia Springs, an environmental education center and local non-profit.

Other non-profit agencies at the event last week included Shared Hope International, Empower Up and the American Red Cross.

For more information, visit Clark's Career Services website, or visit the Career Center, located in Gaiser Hall.