Traditionally, when I write these articles, I suggest volunteering to particular or recommended organizations providing public services. Many of these organizations are funded by donations as well as by grants, etc.

This article is different. I’d like to present a brand new, old idea. Let’s volunteer within our neighborhoods!

There are those in our neighborhoods who need us, need our skills, talents, resources, labor, insight, counsel and friendship. There are the elderly, the infirm – those are obvious. They need help taking care of their homes, being driven to the doctor and hospital or even just down to the waterfront for a day out.

There is the single parent, often working two jobs, who needs help with the kids – anything from just time off for the parent, to help with homework, guidance and counsel. I could go on.

There is the new neighbor, you know, the family who just moved in. They need to be welcomed, shown where the parks are, where the best grocery stores are, given information about the schools, churches and so on. A batch of cookies goes well here too.

There are also a lot of families in the neighborhood where talents can be exchanged to help each other.

Let me give you an example: Our neighborhood became CERT certified (Community Emergency Response Teams) a few years back. We are able to take care of ourselves for a period of time if professional help is not available through public services.

As part of this project, we did a “Map Your Neighborhood” exercise wherein each family designated the location of their gas and water shutoff valves and other important details about their homes, so that other neighbors could help in case of an emergency.

But a really neat part of our exercise was that each homeowner listed both resources and skills/ talents that each family has. For instance, skills included first aid, child care, carpentry, elder care, search and rescue, crisis counseling, electrical, plumbing, firefighting, coordination and organizing.

Resources included first aid supplies, fire extinguishers, tents, bedding, chainsaws, generators, camp stoves, walkie talkies, ladders, coordinating and organizing.

One of the outcomes of the above is one neighbor helping another on decks (carpentry), sharing childcare duties, carpools for kids and the elderly, and a group that does the grocery shopping for an invalid neighbor. We’ve built neighborhood mailbox stands, built in conjunction with numerous other volunteers a very large play field, shared output from a variety of vegetable gardens, and I again, could go on.

So volunteering doesn’t have to be just to organizations, although they need you badly. For this edition of the column, think about talking to your neighbor about how you could help and are willing to do so, or that you are interested in sharing some duties.

In the same token, don’t be afraid to share your needs and wants with your neighbors – very likely they are interested in your welfare as well. Lastly, consider a neighborhood project as a whole – something that would benefit the entire neighborhood – landscaping, a play area, painting addresses on the curbs, repairing or replacing community resources like mailbox stands. Heck, in our neighborhood, we even share tools with each other. This way we all don’t have to have generators, chainsaws, snow blowers and power washers.  Oh my gosh – what could this lead to?

Remember – send in suggested volunteer opportunities to the Kirkland Reporter, attention Bill LaMarche.

Bill LaMarche is a 36-year Kirkland resident, retired, and active community, national and international volunteer. His prior career focused on coaching and mentoring profit and nonprofit executives and company/organizational participants in professional development, leadership, organizational alignment and performance management. Send in suggested volunteer opportunities to the Reporter, attn: Bill LaMarche, to: letters@kirklandreporter.com