[preciousgiftsmama]

Do any of you volunteer? or plan to?

I do not volunteer, as I have no time at this point in my life. But when my kids are grown, I plan to volunteer at the hospital where all my kids were born, and volunteer in the NICU to hold and love the little preemies. I remember how much I appreciated the volunteers that did that for my micro-preemie twins, and ever since then I have wanted to do that. So that is my plan when my kids are grown and I have time. I look forward to giving back what was given to me.

[EquestrianMama]

I volunteer at a horse rescue a few times a month, working with abused and neglected horses.

[.s.o.p.h.]

I really want to.
I applied to volunteer with red cross and though they send me a membership newsletter and contacted me once, thats been it. Nothing.
I wanted to more when I was being a full time sahm but between Eva and uni, im not sure if i'd have tim right now. I guess it would depend how often it was but when im not at uni or studying, i just want to spend all my time with Evie.

[sethsmum]

I've just started back working my old crappy job, because I can't find a teaching job (300+ people applying for every job sucks!). On my days off I am going to volunteer in schools as a teaching assistant. I am going to speak to the teachers at Seths school and hopefully get in there. I used to volunteer at schools when I was 16 but then I got pregnant
I'd love to volunteer in hospitals but I wouldn't even know where to get started!

I volunteered from age 13-16 but after I got the freedom of driving, having a bf, had a real job, plus school, so I just lost interest.

I volunteered with Bona Vista with the occupational therapist since that's what I had wanted to be (changed my mind) but I loved loved loved working with children with special needs. It just melts me heart

[SarahBethsMommy]

Originally Posted by preciousgiftsmama

Do any of you volunteer? or plan to?

I do not volunteer, as I have no time at this point in my life. But when my kids are grown, I plan to volunteer at the hospital where all my kids were born, and volunteer in the NICU to hold and love the little preemies. I remember how much I appreciated the volunteers that did that for my micro-preemie twins, and ever since then I have wanted to do that. So that is my plan when my kids are grown and I have time. I look forward to giving back what was given to me.

Do they still allow that where you are? They won't allow anyone "outside" the NICU in there now here. Too scarey with so many germs and whatever.

I work closely with a lot of stuff.

- Footprints Ministry -- We make gift bags of things for every parent who has a baby in the NICU. We also do parent nights one time a month where the parents can come and do something together during the hours the NICU is closed (like scrapbook, or knit hats, or just have dinner).

- Groups from my church that work to feed the hungry. We have a community garden at my church that I helped start and now keep up too. People can come in and get whatever they would like from it whenever. We have stuff growing year round. And we also have a soup kitchen twice a week. I work once every other week there. And we do events like "CANstruction" and other things to gather food items for our community food bank.

- ESL classes -- I teach once a year for these. I find it so much fun because my students always are so eager to learn everything. The classes only last 6 weeks and then another teacher comes in to teach and so on.

- Foster care -- We work with our local DHR to get things that foster parents need. Around Christmas we always take up lists from all the foster parents of things their kids want and people buy Christmas for that child. (Really helps those foster parents who take in big sibling groups and have 10 kids at a time.) Throughout the year we work to get emergency bags together that have items like a change of clothes, a toothbrush/paste, hairbrush, and stuff like that to give when the kids are picked up in the middle of the night as an emergency placement and don't have time to get anything for them.

- Civitans -- We work to do things for the special needs community.

- I also do fundraising walks for March of Dimes, Crop Hunger Walk, Relay for Life and some other more local organizations.

I love volunteering. My kids do a lot of it with me so I feel it gives them a good appreciation of what others need and how good they have it... LOL.

[jessanddane]

I volunteered at the local SPCA (humane society) and worked every single Saturday helping dogs find forever homes. Until Emily was born I did that. Now, since I work monday-friday, I feel guilty if I dont spend every second of the weekend with her. Once she is older, I will probably get back into it, maybe even get her involved.

[sfarrow3]

I did a ton of volunteering in high school and college. I occasionally will do so with our church, but honestly having my two under 5 and working full time really keeps me so busy. Beth I don't see how you can do it.

[SarahBethsMommy]

Originally Posted by sfarrow3

I did a ton of volunteering in high school and college. I occasionally will do so with our church, but honestly having my two under 5 and working full time really keeps me so busy. Beth I don't see how you can do it.

Hey, don't think I'm super woman or anything. When I did work, I worked at the church and most of those things counted as part of my work. Now that I'm not working, I have more time to do stuff that I just "want" to do. I don't take the kids to story time at the library or anything like that, so we do the volunteer work instead. Daniel loves to go with me to DHR and play in their play room while I work on stuff for the foster kids and he also loves to play in the dirt while I work in the garden. LOL. So he enjoys it too. The older kids have learned to help me.

[preciousgiftsmama]

Originally Posted by SarahBethsMommy

Do they still allow that where you are? They won't allow anyone "outside" the NICU in there now here. Too scarey with so many germs and whatever.

.

I cannot speak for all hospitals in my area, but I do know the one where all my kids were born does. They are called baby cuddlers. Now that you mention it though, who knows, perhaps when Ty is grown they may no longer allow that If so, I will still volunteer anyway I can helping babies/little children in the hospital.

[SarahBethsMommy]

Originally Posted by preciousgiftsmama

I cannot speak for all hospitals in my area, but I do know the one where all my kids were born does. They are called baby cuddlers. Now that you mention it though, who knows, perhaps when Ty is grown they may no longer allow that If so, I will still volunteer anyway I can helping babies/little children in the hospital.

I so think it is necessary. I wish all the hospitals would allow it. You know? I think they could do background checks and fingerprinting and all that and be pretty safe of keeping out the crazies. And the babies who are the feeders and growers can really benefit from it. I hope you'll be able to do it!!

[*BabyMaMa*]

Originally Posted by preciousgiftsmama

I cannot speak for all hospitals in my area, but I do know the one where all my kids were born does. They are called baby cuddlers. Now that you mention it though, who knows, perhaps when Ty is grown they may no longer allow that If so, I will still volunteer anyway I can helping babies/little children in the hospital.

They still have volunteers at my hospitals NICU. I used to work in the NICU sometimes, and I loved my volunteers SO MUCH...they were such a huge help!

[CutlassDiva]

All I do right now is Big Brothers/Big Sisters.....I have been matched with my little for 5 years now (so hard to believe).....for awhile we were walking dogs every other week at a local shelter but when I got pregnant we stopped (she started sports too and scheduling didn't work)