By Nancy K. Crevier

Sponsored by the Points of Light Foundation in Washington, D.C., April 23 to 29 was designated 2006 National Volunteer Week in America. National Volunteer Week was initiated in 1974 and is designed to bring attention to the more than 100 million Americans across the country who volunteer in some capacity to improve the lives and situations of others.

This year’s theme is “Inspire By Example” and Newtown has an exemplary number of citizens who provide inspiration within the borders of our town. Residents need only to look to the long list of volunteer organizations in The Guide To Newtown to realize the impact volunteers have on all that makes it “Nicer in Newtown.” 

Still, despite the many citizens who give generously of their time and money, the need for volunteers is always growing.

FISH, an organization that provides rides to medical appointments for those otherwise unable to do so, is one group that would feel more comfortable with “about five more regular drivers,” said president Pat Parrott. “Right now we have about 15 regular drivers and 15 substitutes,” she said.

The regular drivers commit to providing round trip transportation two to three times a month, each lasting approximately three hours. Many of the members, said Ms Parrott, are retired people. The group can run into problems when retirees turn into “snowbirds” during the winter months or head to northern retreats in the summer, reducing the number of drivers available. The needs in town, however, remain about the same year around, she said, so having a larger pool of drivers on which to call would make scheduling an easier task.

One of the largest consortiums of volunteers to be found in Newtown is that of the emergency services. Approximately 200 trained firefighters, every one of them a volunteer, staff the five fire houses in Newtown that provide protection and first response to the residents of this town. Newtown Underwater Search and Rescue volunteers are trained to help in underwater rescue situations and promote water safety. Volunteer Emergency Medical Technicians spend hundreds of hours training for certification at their own cost and staffing the Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps. The Ambulance Corps provides free ambulance service, first response medical aid, and offers community CPR training, as well.

Friends of The C.H. Booth Library, Friends of Music, and cemetery associations in Newtown rely on the time and expertise of volunteers to make these organizations, vital to the fabric of the town, run smoothly. Volunteers coach teams, lead scout troops, conduct religious instruction, instigate world projects, serve on town boards, and protect our environment and our health. Thousands of hours donated by hundreds of individuals of all ages make possible the enormous variety of activities and projects undertaken in Newtown.

 The Junior Women’s Club, the Newtown Lions Club and Rotary Club, the Newtown chapter of the Salvation Army, and many other clubs in town exist primarily as a means to help others in need. The people who volunteer with them devote endless hours to fundraising and assistance.

When extra support is needed, organizations such as Meals On Wheels, the FAITH food pantry, and the Newtown Fund offer assistance. The Newtown Fund consists of a small group currently, said vice president Linda Bates, and more volunteers are always welcome to help. The Newtown Fund has their biggest fundraiser in the fall, when sponsors for holiday baskets for needy local families are solicited and the donated items are put together in the one-day blitz, Depot Day. “We rely on volunteers for Depot Day,” said Ms Bates. “We get Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts and local people to help. It is amazing.”

Co-chairperson for Food Assistance Immediate Temporary Help (FAITH) Lee Paulson is pleased with the volunteers who assist at the St John’s food pantry. “We are always in need of new volunteers, though,” she said. Particularly, they need help on Thursday evenings. “Sometimes people come in and help and just never come back. That’s okay, but it would be nice to have steady volunteers. Our volunteers greet and help the people who come in, make sure the people who come in are from Newtown, and that sort of thing. Because Newtown residents donate to help other Newtown residents, we want to make sure of that.” Some of the younger volunteers stock shelves, she said. What is particularly important to volunteering at the food pantry, said Ms Paulson, is confidentiality. It has not been a problem, “but we need people who are able to work here and keep to themselves who comes in,” she said.

For these local philanthropic groups, the fundraising, solicitations, staffing, and distribution of goods is dependent upon the goodwill of those who give of their time.

Even our furry friends are not forgotten by volunteer groups in Newtown. Thanks again to the efforts of volunteers, The Animal Center helps find homes for abandoned, lost, and neglected creatures. Canine Advocates makes sure that the pound dogs are walked regularly and socialized by volunteers before placement in a new home. Volunteers staff the Spay and Neuter Association of Newtown, an organization that helps pet owners find affordable solutions to the overpopulation problem.

While many volunteers are committed to a particular organization on a regular basis, short-term volunteer opportunities crop up periodically. For example, the Newtown Lions-sponsored Lose the Litter Day is scheduled for April 30 this year and road captains are needed for just that one day. Volunteers are always welcome to offer hours or days of their time to assist at the annual C.H. Booth Library Book Sale, which this year takes place July 1 to 5 at Reed Intermediate School.

It will take little time or effort for every Newtown US Postal Service customer to be a volunteer on Saturday, May 13, when the National Association of Letter Carriers holds the 14th annual NACL Food Drive. Letter carriers nationwide will collect nonperishable food items left out by mailboxes that day and hope to exceed the nearly 71 million pounds of packages collected last year. The items will be distributed to local food pantries and Newtown Social Services is seeking volunteers to help sort the collected food items.

To have made a difference in the lives of others is all the thanks volunteers need. Whether the effort is one hour or one hundred hours, National Volunteer Week recognizes those volunteers who make our world spin a little more smoothly every day, every year.