A Legacy of Volunteering- Reflections from a Volunteer
I was so fortunate to have wonderful role models who taught me about serving others. As a young child, I witnessed my Grandfather picking men off of the streets in the city of Wilmington and taking them to the Sunday Breakfast Mission. He would pay for them to get a meal, a bath, new clothes and a bed to sleep in. He would also offer them a job if they needed one. He gave these men a hand up and I witnessed love in action. The mother of one of my close friends told me that if it wasn’t for my Grandfather offering her father a job, their family of eight children might not have made it. Her father was one of those men my Grandfather picked up off of the street. My parents volunteered and my sisters currently volunteer as do my children and grandchildren.
It was my beloved friend, Jerome, who asked me to volunteer for SILO. I went to my first monthly meal with him. I again saw love in action. SILO is a beautiful community of caring and dedicated volunteers making a difference in the lives of those in need in the town of Oxford. SILO makes people feel that they matter. Nothing can lift a persons spirit and make them feel valued more than that. I have enjoyed getting to know our SILO friends. Many of them also attend the Oxford Area Senior Center, where I work. It is great to see them get a good meal and fellowship that nurtures their souls.
The SILO Snow Ball still continues to amaze me. The dedication of the volunteers giving their time and talent to raise money to support SILO is a beautiful thing to witness and be a part of. I treasure the friends I have made through SILO and I am proud to be a volunteer of such an awesome organization. I thank Melissa, Andrea, Ed and all of the volunteers for their devotion to make the world a better place.
I love the two songs that, in my mind, exemplify volunteerism…Lean on Me and Put a Little Love in Your Heart. They make me think of SILO.
-Amy O’Donald