There are endless articles about the benefits of volunteering that include better physical and mental health, building skillsets and your resume and testing out a career change. 

For me, the biggest benefit of volunteer work has been meeting people throughout this fine city of Everett. I feel like I belong to this community now and it makes me feel happier. 

This wasn’t always the case and at one point I was considering whether or not I wanted to stay in Everett. This was what catapulted me into getting involved and having a say about what is going on around me. Be the change.  

Someone recently asked me how they can volunteer and boy did I have a lot of ideas for her. I thought I’d share them with you.  

Non-Profit Organizations

You probably know what cause is near and dear to your heart.  There is so much need and others may be promoting the cause near and dear to their heart, but go with what feels right for you. Call up your favorite non-profit or send an email and ask about ways you can help. Need some ideas? Check out the winners of our Favorite Non-profit EVVY Awards.  

Neighborhood Schools

Many schools never seem to have enough help. Teachers at schools with higher free and reduced lunch in particular need help. There are likely opportunities to make photocopies for teachers, teach an art class, read with a student or help the PTA set up for an event.  Volunteer with the Everett School District or Mukilteo School District. 

United Way of Snohomish County Volunteer Website

You can explore volunteering opportunities with the United Way’s volunteer database. It is a fantastic website that you can filter on impact areas such as animals and the environment or early childhood education.  There are other filters such as family-friendly and distance from your zip code.  You can set up an account and receive emails about upcoming opportunities.  

City Government

The really cool thing about a city our size is that it is easy to access city government and have an influence in the decisions that impact the citizens. You can just as easily run into a city councilmember at the grocery store as your next-door neighbor. Everyone I have encountered in the city council and city government is very accessible. You can call them up, send an email and even ask them to meet you for coffee. They are all very friendly and really want to hear what you have to say. 

So volunteer your viewpoint or opinion! Share it with someone who can do something to address it. I can not tell you how many times I’ve been told after sharing a city-related viewpoint, “I hadn’t thought about that.” I have seen my ideas put into play. It’s pretty cool.  

There are ample other ways to support our city. You can join your neighborhood association, apply for a board or commission position or volunteer at the animal shelter. There are so many ways that the city has a Get Involved page on their website.  Use the gray box to toggle between ways to get involved.  

Little Things

Little things count too. When you share a post about your favorite organization on social media, it helps create awareness and possibly new support for that organization. Picking up trash beautifies where you live and it will inspire others to do the same. You can always offer a smile or a kind word to someone passing by. 

Do you have a non-profit that you volunteer for? Did you get an idea about a new way to volunteer? What is it?  Tell us in the comments over on Facebook.  

Linda War Bonnet represents south Everett on the Live in Everett Team. When she isn’t working, she is running the Westmont-Holly Neighborhood Association. You might spot her walking her dog in the Holly neighborhood.