Volunteering helps others and helps yourself at the same time
After retiring from teaching after 35 years, Jeff Kellert began volunteering as a tutor and helping out with monthly dinners at the synagogue.
He then became certified to lead biweekly support groups with the National Mental Health Federation, an organization for families of people with mental illness.
In total, Kellert, 71, volunteers about 30 hours a month. Volunteering keeps him active, but just as important, he says, it has led to new friendships and a sense of purpose he never expected after retirement.
“The addition of that gives you a sense of self-worth and confidence, and makes you feel like you’re doing something productive,” says Ms. Kellert, of Albany, N.Y. “Retirement isn’t the old rocking-chair knitting thing. It’s so much more than that.”
Volunteering has been shown in various studies to have a range of health and psychological benefits, and it might even help him live longer.
Jacqueline Stevens, a developmental health psychologist at the Mather Institute, a nonprofit in Evanston, Illinois, who studies ways to age healthily, said volunteering is a good thing even if it doesn’t have many benefits.
“But it just happens, especially with older people,” she says.
The Health Benefits of Volunteering
Eric S. Kim, a psychology professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, said his research has found links between volunteering and increased positive emotions, reduced loneliness and increased social support.
“These have downstream effects such as increased healthy behaviors and reduced inflammation, improving healthier biological function,” Kim said.
Although the most studied demographic is the elderly, they are not the only ones who can benefit: There are signs that volunteering can also benefit high school students.
Stevens noted that volunteer work, such as packing boxes at a food bank, involves physical activity, but it doesn’t have to be physical activity to be beneficial, she said.
“Like exercise, volunteering is best done by actually doing it,” she said, noting that the only risk is overdoing it to the point that it negates the health benefits. “You shouldn’t stress about volunteering.”
How to start volunteering
Stevens said many people may not volunteer because initially they only think of mundane options that they’re not interested in, like tutoring or providing food for those in need. Instead, he suggested getting on social networks to learn about opportunities that others enjoy.
Doing so will help screen organisations that are good environments for volunteers and encourage people to get involved and bond with their friends and relatives.
Other good places to start are AmeriCorps and aggregator websites like VolunteerMatch, which connect individuals’ skills with local opportunities.
Kellert recommended simply searching online for “volunteer opportunities in your town,” but also suggested a little soul-searching before retiring.
“A lot of times it’s right in front of you,” he says. “What do you love? What do you want to do? And now you can make it happen.”
Editor’s note: Albert Stumm writes about food, travel, and health. His work can be found at https://www.albertstumm.com.
