by Jan Wright

Created on: June 11, 2009   Last Updated: April 18, 2011

There are many opportunities for volunteering in the Indianapolis Area. Before finding a place to spend your time, however, you must take an inventory of yourself and the type of volunteering that you would like to do. Don't think that you have to volunteer at the first place that tries to recruit you. The place, people and allotted timeframe has to be right for you. Certainly, volunteering is an altruistic act, but in order for you and your fellow volunteers, as well as the population that you serve to obtained the desired results, you must examine yourself, your motives and your capabilities.

Why do you want to volunteer? The most common answers to this question are: Because I am bored, and Because I enjoy helping people. Don't volunteer if you are bored. This is the wrong reason to volunteer and you will probably find that you dislike what you are doing because your expectation for the experience is to jolt you from your boredom.

What are your interests, talents and experiences? Someone who does not like children should not mentor them. Someone who likes working with people should not volunteer to stuff envelopes. If you like cooking, then, you might like to prepare meals for a local soup kitchen. If you enjoy reading, then, you may be interested in reading for a local service that records the Indianapolis Star, so that the blind and print impaired can listen to it by telephone. You would visit: Indiana Reading and Information Services

1630 N Meridian St Ste 2105, Indianapolis, IN 46202 If you have experience in substance abuse, you might want to offer your mentoring services to someone who has yet to overcome these struggles.

There are many different kinds of opportunities. Some of these opportunities include: help in a summer camp or church bible school, work as a cook or server in a soup kitchen, teach your favorite sport to children at the YMCA or other clubs with many children, tutor, offer swim lessons, offer music lessons, accompany and assist a disabled person who needs an attendant, work as a caretaker or companion for hospice, walk dogs, clean kennels at the local animal shelter, stuff envelopes for an organization, assist in making the public aware of a worthy cause or service, be a puppy raiser for a service animal training facility(note: there are at least three service animal organizations in Indiana), be a driver for someone who is not able to drive, man the telephone of a fund raising drive, teach a self defense class

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