Volunteering with Please Live
Oops, it looks like I missed a month of blog posting! But for good reason, I promise!
July was hectic for me, both in my personal life and in the life of Please Live. The highlight of the month was heading out to Ft. Collins, Colorado to host two suicide prevention workshops at the Church of the Brethren’s National Youth Conference. One workshop was targeted towards staff, and another was targeted towards teens. I received a great response from both workshops, many local pastors from Pennsylvania promising me they’d be in touch to bring Please Live to their congregations.
Here’s some feedback we received from both workshops:
“Very energetic leader and very informative. Didn’t realize how many teens attempt suicide. The numbers are staggering.”
“This workshop really meant a lot to me. I have dealt with depression and anxiety and suicidal ideation for years. I’ve never had someone explain the terrible things I feel in such an accurate and yet still lighthearted way.”
“I have had thoughts relating to the ones you talked about, like hoping I won’t wake up or that a car will hit me. I have no interest in attempting suicide. I feel very depressed during the school year but that’s probably due to stress and social interactions (or lack thereof). I’m very glad you led this seminar and I feel a lot more comfortable. […] I will make it out of this labyrinth.”
“FANTASTIC workshop! Thank you so much! I feel ready to help when my friends come to me.”
So, needless to say, July came and went before I even noticed!
Moving on, I wanted to really highlight the benefits of volunteering with Please Live for this month’s blog post. If you’re reading this post, chances are you’re interested in what we do. If the feedback from the National Youth Conference got you excited, then perhaps you’re in the perfect place to volunteer with us and be part of the success of helping teens.
I’d like to say we treat our volunteers well. We make it incredibly easy to interact and stay updated with all news happening within Please Live. We’re also very understanding of personal lives and stress factors. We have volunteers that range from continuous Please Live support to individuals who just help out here and there. Really, we have a place for you regardless of your skill set, time commitment, or even physical location.
At Please Live, we have three separate committees, all which are managed by the Board of Directors. The committees are:
Education: Focuses on our message, our mission/vision, the content of our resources, website, etc. Education is very involved in our event coordination efforts when we schedule a new program.
Fundraising: Focuses on our financial progress, scheduling, analyzing, and implementation of fundraising events, and grant research and application.
Marketing/Design: Focuses on media aspects of Please Live (such as graphic design, web design, videography). Also connects with local news sources, analyzes social media, and website hits.
90% of our volunteer communication is done via a website called Wiggio, in which information is continuously updated and distributed so that volunteers are always in-the-know. As volunteer opportunities come and go, individuals may jump in and add their two-cents wherever they feel comfortable.
As Please Live continues to grow, we are finding ourselves in need of more and more dependable and motivated people. We’re also actively looking towards the future of Please Live, meaning, we’re eager to see younger generations popping up behind us. You may be aware that we have a fairly young board of directors. All but one of our directors is still in their 20’s – that being said, we also are looking for experienced volunteers who have the insight that we don’t have. Basically what we’re saying is you’re never too young or too old to make an impact with Please Live.
So why volunteer at all? Well, there are so many benefits, it’s hard to list them all here. Volunteering helps you connect with others, meet new friends, and work valuable inter-personal skills. Volunteering increases self confidence, decreases depression and anxiety, can advance your career, makes you happier, and promotes longer life!
So you’re sold on volunteering, but why volunteer with Please Live? Again, I’d like to say we treat our volunteers pretty well. It’s a low-stress environment that keeps communication channels open and clear so there’s little confusion about what needs done. Additionally, you can sleep sound at night knowing that your input is making a difference in the lives of teens in our community, and may even save a life.
Interested in volunteering with Please Live? Here’s how to move forward:
1. Fill out our Volunteer Assessment Survey. This helps us identify your skills and where you would best fit in our volunteer committees. Filled out forms can be scanned and sent to support@pleaselive.org or mailed to PO Box 1281, Mechanicsburg PA 17055
2. We will review your survey and get back to you within three business days of receiving it. We’ll schedule a time to sit with you to learn more about you and discuss where you best fit in Please Live.
3. We’ll give you access to the volunteer website and you begin officially volunteering!
Thanks for reading and your continued support of Please Live!