When you volunteer, you give part of yourself–your time, energy, skills and feelings. You give to your family and friends, to your neighbors, to your community. Sometimes, you are giving to people you don’t know, to people thousands of miles away.

Giving is one of the reasons why people volunteer. Their contributions to others and to their communities bring them feelings of self-fulfillment and the knowledge that they have made a difference.

Volunteering is also a way of saying thank you. It’s a way of recognizing the countless others who, in big ways and small, have made life richer and better through donations of time and effort. But there is more to volunteering than giving. As a volunteer, you also reap personal benefits and enhance your personal growth.

That’s the thing about volunteering. You get as much out of it as you put into it! And often, you get a whole lot more.