Why should I volunteer

[66788]

OK, somebody fill me in why working a fixed job 80+ hours per month for NO pay and a space with propane is a good deal?

I can boondock for free.   Solar is my electricity, and my propane is a few gallons every few months.  I don't have to get up, don't have responsibilites, and can change my view whenever I want.

Buying back into the system that you fought so hard to leave seems like a giant step backwards.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

I guess if you don't want to drive 26 miles to the nearest free campsite and want to go to the dunes.

I dont think id do it unless i need the hookups for to moonlight another job or my own business while working.

 

[cyndi]

OK, somebody fill me in why working a fixed job 80+ hours per month for NO pay and a space with propane is a good deal?

One doesn't volunteer because it's a good deal. One volunteers with the thought that they're doing something that matters; that they're making a difference in the world one way or another.

 

[offroad]

You can sit and do nothing staring at the flowers all day. Or you can donate your time and energy being a part of something. Both have advantages. One thing is sure, don't volunteer for the free support. Volunteer because you like the location.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

i mean...this is piles of sand were talking about right? Taking campers money is somehow improving that? i think the sand is gonna be there either way without the recreational area. They are taking money for services, so why wouldnt they pay people to help make that money right? Now if this volunteering were helping to preserve some animal's there etc i could see that or the sites were free to all etc i could see that. We arent talking working in a soup kitchen here.

 

[cyndi]

You have a very limited view of volunteering. The job of camp host goes far beyond just taking money.

I'm curious. Have either of you naysayers volunteered to serve in the military? (not comparing the workamper with out military, just wondering if they understand there are things worth fighting/working/volunteering for, like our wilderness areas and national parks) 

Have you ever done anything for your community without being asked and without expecting something in return?

Have you ever lived in a small town with only a volunteer fire department?

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

I think my point stands, they are making money, this isnt a free service or charity thy are giving, so why should you do the same. im not sure the relevence, but the military pays you. yes i have. And volunteer fire departments dont charge people to extinguish their homes ( usually). I think you havea naive view of people taking advantage of those willing to volunteer.

 

[gcal]

My local hospital and dog shelter charged for their services ( adoption fees for the shelter) , but I volunteered. People give money to churches. Synagogues actually charge a membership, but people still volunteer. If you dont want to volunteer, don't do it.

 

[rvpopeye]

Volunteering is exactly that !
If you don't want to , you don't have to.

Everyone has their own idea of what they need or want to do.
Driven by monetary needs or moral convictions .
Every opportunity has it's own merits as well as reasons for the requirements.

Be happy doing whatever you do is the bottom line.............

 

[cyndi]

I think my point stands, they are making money, this isnt a free service or charity thy are giving, so why should you do the same.  im not sure the relevence, but the military pays you.  yes i have.  And volunteer fire departments dont charge people to extinguish their homes ( usually).    I think you havea naive view of people taking advantage of those willing to volunteer.

So, you think our National Parks and forests would flourish without help? 

I realize the Military pays you. My point  was that you volunteered or were drafted. If you signed up on your own volition did you do that for the money? Or for the education? Or did you volunteer because you believed in something.

volunteer fire departments certainly do charge for their services. 
I know this because I lived in AZ where fees are charged by many volunteer and normally staffed fire departments (and also other emergency services including the police department and search and rescue.) here's a guote from the first result of a google search.

"FEES THAT MAY BE CHARGED BY A FIRE DEPARTMENT
 
IC 36-8-12-13 Version a Charges; owners of property or vehicle involved in fire or spill; failure to pay
     Note: This version of section amended by P.L.127-2009, SEC.12. See also following version of this section amended by P.L.182-2009(ss), SEC.435.
    Sec. 13. (a) A volunteer fire department may impose a charge on the owner of property, the owner of a vehicle, or a responsible party (as defined in IC 13-11-2-191(e)) that is involved in a hazardous material or fuel spill or chemical or hazardous material related fire (as defined in IC 13-11-2-96(b)):
        (1) that is responded to by the volunteer fire department; and
        (2) that members of that volunteer fire department assisted in extinguishing, containing, or cleaning up...."

It's a document so there's no link. but google, "volunteer fire departments charge for their services." It's the very first result.
I understand it's becoming more and more common.

I've volunteered in many capacities throughout my life. I agree my view is limited by my experience. I don't think you can call it naive.  I think it's too bad more people don't volunteer. We're losing so many community organizations because of that factor alone.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

The volunteer fire dept shouldnt be charging, and if they do charge, then they need to use those funds to compensate the people that are helping them profit. If they cant run a volunteer fire dept off donations and free labor someone is spending to much or they need to switch to a salary staff and charge away (extortion as in your area, or extortion thru taxes).

If people are volunteering to help others make money then they shouldnt be. That simple. If you are volunteering to help others eat, or protect them, or fill a present need, im all for it.

i believe the earth would flourish fine without the national park campgrounds funding itself through money it makes at campsites. yes, as the land did fine before they drew an arbitrary line across it, made campsites and then charged people for the priviledge of using them. As it has in many other places. If there is a demand for those services great, charge people like they do, and pay people to help you keep yourself going. If they want to charge to keep this going fine, but they shouldnt ask us to help them do it for free. Where is the money they are charging going if there is no labor cost, the largest expense of any venture? supplies and utilities shouldnt cost that much. i work in a motel, i do the accounting for a lot more toilets, showers and amenties than ive ever seen at a campground. it isnt nearly as much as being charged.

Like i said, im not against volunteering to help people that need it. Im not really for volunteering because an organization would just rather save on labor costs in its pursuit of money.

Many people take I jobs at lower pay because the job is noble(really, the military comparison is not even relevent,it is a paid JOB, not volunteering. The draft isnt volunteering either, its even more the opposite). Or they take a lesser position cause its pleasing to them, but that doesnt mean they shouldnt be compensated at all.

 

[Marie]

Just regarding volunteer fire departments: where DO They get the money for fire engines (which look pretty expensive to me!), and money to build fire stations, and fuel to run the equipment, and pick up trucks, and ambulances, and medical supplies, and fire retardant, and fir fighting gear and equipment?

 

[Almost There]

Our volunteer fire department is mostly funded by the town(s) that they cover.

They also apply to higher levels of government for special funding for equipment and training fees as one time grants.

Funds are also raised through fundraisers at annual town events.

One VFD in BC was in charge of running a smallish forest service campground on a shared income basis. They took care of coming around collecting the camping fees, sold firewood and maintained the property and received a set % of the fees collected.

Basically the VFDs raise the money any way they can, the same way as search and rescue groups do!

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

its still apples to oranges, they are volunteering to save lives. Do we equate that to volunteering to..collect campsite rent? That is used to upkeep the very same campsites so they can....collect more rent? So on and so forth. One is a need fulfilled and worthy of volunteering (and donations), the other is a business worthy of being paid to do and maybe even paid for by comsumers.
Now if the campsite itself was using the funds for a good cause beyond sustaining the mechanism by which it feeds itself, like say, protecting and researching the area wolf population, then i think thats acceptable.

 

[GotSmart]

Lets see.  Someone getting a free site and hookups in a nice spot for several months.  They are freeing up other more skilled workers to build the trails, construct more campsites, keep roads repaired.  

Less tax dollars going out so less taxes being raised.  

Many years ago I did some free work for the City.  We built benches and worked on the City Hall.  We freed up $100,000 worth of city workers while spending $10,000 on materials.  A lot of the time we worked on private homes of people that could not afford help.  Mowing lawns, fixing doors and fences, that sort of things.  

I look at it as a way of paying it forward.  If you help enough people out, sooner or later it will come back to you.  

If not, I had fun and met a lot of nice people.

 

[Marie]

Maybe DG isn't a business person and so doesn't understand the costs involved in Campgrounds, including keeping them maintained, cleaning the restrooms, buying supplies, clearing trails, keeping the roadways in good repair, buying and maintaining trash containers, relocating troublesome bears, cleaning up after messy campers, building restrooms and information kiosks, repairing bridges, and probably a bunch more stuff. I'm not a campground expert, but those things come immediately to mind. I AM a business owner, and do have a little experience with costs of doing business and miscellaneous expenditures.

 

[66788]

Do we pay taxes just to support social programs?

This type of expense is normally paid by taxes. By working for free you encourage the Feds to spend more on worthless social programs, like here in California; High Speed Bullet Trains. Really now!

I have been self employed since age 18 and in all those years NOBODY has volunteered to assist me. They all want top dollar.

I think DG is right on the money.

 

[SoulRaven]

I'm typically inspired to volunteer when a cause and/or community I care about is being negatively affected by something that my volunteering could make a positive difference on. It nearly always comes with a plethora of perks - coworkers/teammates for social connection, job training/experience/references, and free use of utilities being the main ones I note.

If you don't want to volunteer, then for heaven's sake please don't. An attitude like yours spoils all the fun.

Whenever I find a volunteer position is no longer enjoyable, I either change things around so that it is or - usually after unsuccessfully attempting that - gracefully bow out and move on.

I currently volunteer at a non-profit's specialty library open to the public. Doing so has resulted in encountering a lot of interesting books and worldviews, learning what management style I work best under, proven tenfold that I'm still far too disabled to get a job no matter how badly I want to, and caused me to discover I have a deep passion for book preservation and repair...something I never would have guessed. Seeing the results of my labor on the shelves gives me immense satisfaction, and offering that to patrons looking up info on sensitive issues is personally fulfilling.

As side perks, I've got restroom/shower access, full kitchen access, water access, and now they even let me charge from their grid because I requested it and work with them to maintain discretion. I'm surrounded by a community of people who know me, who've worked alongside me, who actually care if I'm having a bad day and vice versa. And they've come through for me in emergencies. And I them.

All that stuff makes volunteering way more worth it than I ever could have hoped.

Back in the day people used to have "work parties" when some large task needed doing with many hands. The idea was to turn a daunting chore into a pleasant social and community building event. Now it's just called "volunteering", and only those who've participated before are 'in the know' about the enjoyment hiding behind all that drudgery.

But hey, if it isn't your thing...it isn't your thing. You're totally welcome to go find something else in life that makes you happy. *shrug*

 

[SoulRaven]

Over the years I've done a lot of volunteer work for causes that I believe in.

My decision making process is pretty simple. I will volunteer to help people or causes, but I will NOT volunteer to help some entity make money when they should be paying their help.

Most of these places are perfectly capable of paying their help decent wages, but instead find suckers willing to volunteer, so that people who do far less work than the volunteers can take home fatter paychecks and bonuses for finding those suckers.

People who volunteer for positions which should be paid positions only perpetuate the problem.

Camp hosts are frequently a good example. If your time is worth anything, you are actually paying more for your campsite, and the ??privilege?? of working your butt off, than the paying visitors are. They're on a paid vacation and relaxing, while you're working for nothing. I don't consider a campsite as fair compensation, because I can camp for free anywhere, and not have to do any work.

There are plenty of places to volunteer where you're not making somebody else rich. I'll stick to those, and encourage others to do the same.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

marie, a business, right. Do you expect your employees to work for free? the expenses you mention just further my point, the money is being used to sustain the BUSINESS, so they can do more business. Businesses need to pay employees for thier valuable time.

I am not sure how many more times i have to state that i am not against volunteering, for an actual cause, but not revenue that is used so a business, or organization, can perpetuate itself .

Im just repeating myself, go forth and make others money if you feel the need to, that also is freedom. Ive said all im saying on this.