There are quite a few unsung heroes who quietly go about their day helping others and asking nothing in return.
People who give their time freely and never complain about how many hours they’ve worked. Many could have spent more time indulging in their favourite pastime or spent the day with friends or loved ones instead.
I am speaking, of course, about the people who volunteer. In many cases, they indulge a passion that could not be fulfilled at work. Or they fill a part of their lives with responsibility that is considered highly invaluable, yet no resources are readily available to pay for a particular service.
And this is a very remarkable thing because many of the volunteers in our community perform activities that we can’t do without.
Where would we be without the 4-H Club? Ranching and agriculture are a large part of our economic backbone of the Cariboo, yet young people would be lost without all the skills they gather from participating in 4-H starting at an early age.
The same applies to our small business community. Where would a young entrepreneur be without the help of all those who volunteer their time with the Chamber of Commerce? There are many who would not have survived their first year without the mentorship and advice that comes with belonging to their local chamber.
Last of all there are the very special individuals who put their lives on the line for their community through local volunteer fire departments and search and rescue and emergency social service workers. These are people who are called at all hours of the day or night to save a property from certain destruction, or save the life of a lost soul.
National Volunteer Week runs from April 15-21 and is a great opportunity to recognize your friends and neighbours who make life better for everyone.
Donna Barnett is the Liberal MLA for the Cariboo-Chilcotin.
