What makes you happy?
While you are thinking about it, let me tell you what makes Evelyn Stall happy.
Evelyn is one of the very happy persons I have met. From time to time, she drops by my office at the Palliser Health Authority. She wants to know how I am doing. How is my family doing? And then she will ask: how is mother? Referring to my mothers health that was the subject of one of my columns. Then I just relax and listen to her gentle soft voice. And if you can see through her dark glasses then you can observe that mischievous twinkle in her eyes. Her stories and homilies are very funny to very serious.
She is like a cheerleader to me. Every time she talks to me I feel happy. I develop a renewed sense of purpose in life. She has a capacity to inspire you to do things that are good for others. That is Evelyn Stall, a lady with unselfish and unlimited desire to help people. A true volunteer. And I think that is what keeps her happy.
A volunteer is one who enters into or offers himself for any service of his own free will. We are all volunteers in one-way or the other. We do not get paid for everything we do. Consciously or unconsciously we volunteer our time to our school, hospital, church, association, society, sorority or for a cause which we firmly believe in. When we do this, we dont even think of getting paid. We feel it is our duty to help.
Why do people volunteer?
I think the primary reason is unselfish desire and interest to care for the welfare of others. Some people volunteer because they want to do something in their retirement. They want to continue to be useful in society. Which is healthy for the giver and the recipient of the volunteer service. Volunteering is a win-win situation.
Some people argue that volunteerism is dead. They think people are working harder to make ends meet and have no incentive or desire to provide free service. They have less free time to devote to the poor, the sick and the needy.
So, the news of the opening of the Volunteer Centre at 856 Allowance Avenue caught my attention. And I was quite happy to see that Evelyn Stall and her associates perseverance had borne fruit. It is going to be the principal volunteer centre in Medicine Hat and many local societies will benefit from the training program being established at the Centre.
I had the pleasure of visiting the Centre given to Volunteerism in Action Association rent-free by REDI Enterprises. Pam Wagner and her associates gave me a tour. I was impressed the way the old bottle depot has changed. No more smell of old beer bottles! Instead, tastefully furnished large meeting rooms with big windows. There are fresh apples to welcome new volunteers. There is air of enthusiasm and happiness!
Happiness is a very subjective thing. If helping people is your kind of happiness then phone Pam Wagner at 528-1799. She will match you up with a society that is looking for some body like you. Your happiness will rub onto many people who will be ever so grateful that you made that phone call. So do it now while you are finishing this column. Let there be happiness everywhere! And you will be the source of that happiness!
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