A Drop in the Ocean

 

“We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.” – Mother Teresa

What does it mean to volunteer? Maybe it means dedicating a portion of one’s life to a certain cause, sharing professional skills to help others, or donating money to a good cause. At the end of the day, there are really no specific criteria. To volunteer is to give. This could be giving time, skills, money, resources, support, feedback…the list goes on.  At Family Advocates, we recognize the variety of ways our volunteers can, and do, give. Volunteers give to positively impact their community and make a difference in the world.

Family Advocates is primarily volunteer-based and therefore we could not do what we do without our amazing volunteers.  Many of our volunteers work directly with the families and children which we serve through our two programs; the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Program and our Family Strengthening Program.  The families and children whose lives they have positively affected will forever be changed for the better.  Though this year was especially tough due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, our volunteers showed amazing resilience through it all.  They showed our families and children that hope is always on the horizon, and that a silver lining is never out of reach. We want to extend a huge thank you to all of our volunteers who have made this year possible!

Despite the “COVID Curveball” and being thrown into a new, virtual world this year, our volunteers helped shoot us to the moon and back. This year no child has gone unserved in our CASA program, and we hope to continue this trend. Our Family Strengthening Program went completely online and, with the help of some amazing volunteers, families have continued to graduate from the program throughout the year. We currently have 100 pro bono attorneys, without whom our CASA cases could not happen. None of this would have been possible without our wonderful volunteers (we have around 300!).

Advancing hope cannot happen without action and our volunteers are a prime example of this. At Family Advocates we know how much hope our volunteers bring to the lives of the families and children they work with. As our community continues to grow and flourish, so does the need for hope.  There are so many simple ways one can bring hope into the community. Whether it be spending time with a child for a few hours a week, planting some flowers at a local park, or designing a flyer for an event. These may seem like small drops in the ocean, but as Mother Teresa said, “…the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.”

Thank you, to all of our wonderful volunteers! You are changing the world one drop at a time.

For more information on how you can get involved visit our website familyadvocates.org or email volunteer@familyadvocat.wpengine.com.