On Saturday night I had the honour of representing the city at the Knights of Columbus’ annual citizen of the year banquet. Bill McDonnell was this year’s recipient, and he joined a very impressive list of past recipients whose volunteer contributions are inspiring.
There is an incredible number of volunteers in Nelson! From my perspective both as a city councilor and that of a resident, I am truly grateful to live in a place where people give so much. First there are the service clubs who are our oldest established volunteer organizations. Then add in the sports organizations, the environmental not-for-profits, the health and social organizations, the arts and cultural organizations.
The Columbia Basin Trust community initiatives grant applications have just come to city council this week for our annual decision making process on how to divvy up the money. This year there are 58 applications (up from 40 last year). The vast majority of them are from organizations or groups of individuals that survive only because of the volunteers they manage to inspire to be part of their work and goals. We won’t be able to fund them all, so my approach will be to spread the money out to a number of organizations who will be able to leverage the dollars (and volunteers) in projects that will touch the broadest range of people in the community, in a variety of sectors.
The level of volunteerism we have in Nelson is a key factor in what makes our city a great city. The people are great and they inspire, motivate and create great things.
There’s another aspect to volunteering that helps make our city awesome: it creates a positive feedback loop. Volunteering benefits the volunteer.
Studies have shown that one of the best determinants of health and resiliency in adults is the extent of their social network (and I don’t mean Facebook). Volunteering is a prime mechanism for creating and maintaining social connections.
You volunteer, it makes you feel good, you help others in the community and you meet people who will be there for you when you need some support. It is the ultimate win-win situation.
When volunteerism and philanthropy are combined amazing things happen. This past weekend 60 of the most active and inspiring people I know participated in a design workshop for the proposed Kalein Hospice Center.
An initial private commitment of $1.2 million has been made, to be dispensed based on matching funds raised from other sources. Can you imagine a center of excellence in Nelson that inspires the best in palliative care internationally? I can.
Philanthropy is what will enable the renovation of the deteriorating old Savoy Hotel by Kootenay Christian Fellowship to provide much needed affordable housing to our at-risk population. Many of our businesses support community projects like the CT scanner and skatepark which make our city a better place to live. Opportunities abound for volunteerism and philanthropy — this is what building community is about.
If you are new to volunteering or have a little time to spare check out the upcoming BC Seniors Games: 2011bcseniorsgames.org. Have fun and get to feel good about yourself, too!
Nelson city councillor Kim Charlesworth shares a Wednesday column space in the Star with her colleagues around the table.