After consuming two fifteen-hundred calorie meals every day for six weeks as a volunteer research subject in a Rockefeller Hospital food study, I came to realize a few things: 1) never again will I eat canned peaches by the half-kilo, 2) under the right conditions, generic caffeine-free diet ginger ale is a real treat, and 3) I would love to volunteer in a capacity that does not involve abdominal MRI’s and insulin clamps.

So as soon as I washed down my last pound of grape yogurt with a quart of OJ, four waffles, and some Spanish omelet substitute, I searched on Craigslist for volunteer opportunities, mainly in the fields of park clean-up and elderly care: the former because I had not seen natural sunlight in 43 days, the latter because I figured the elderly could keep me company at this point.

With the help of the Volunteer Referral Center1 I settled on Search & Care2, an organization that reaches out to isolated people in Yorkville. My first client was Bill, a 65 year-old man who had recently become blind due to complications from diabetes. Bill needed me to finish building a bookcase, a project he had started before his eyesight deteriorated. My job was simple: nail on the backing, which had a faux-wood finish on one side and, well, the other side looked like grey cardboard. It was, in other words, extremely clear to see which side of the backing should face out (cardboard) and which one inside (wood).
In any event, I laid the bookcase down on its front-side, and I started hammering while Bill stabilized the frame. I raced through the nails with an atypical zeal and confidence, which surprised me, as my carpentry skills are usually awful.

By the time I hammered in nearly all the nails, Bill muttered, “You gotta be kidding me.”
“What’s wrong? I asked.
“Can’t you see?” Bill replied as he grazed the faux-wood with his right hand. “It’s on backwards!”
I said nothing. But I was sure he could hear my stifled, befuddled chuckles.
“Jesus, Rich!” blurted Bill. “What’s gonna happen when we need to cross an intersection?”
Following an extended, awkward pause both of us burst into fits of laughter, as it was obvious that only the blind man could see in this room.

Bill and I have seen each other nearly every week since that day and we have become very good friends: Bill continues to test his newest blue joke on me while I try (in vain) to redeem my handyman skills.
My time with Bill encouraged me to seek out more volunteer opportunities at other NYC organizations, all of which have proved satisfying for me as an individual. Still, I wanted to hear from other people about their own volunteer experiences—whether humorous or humbling, much in the spirit of that bookcase anecdote. Moreover, I wanted to gather people together so we could volunteer as a unit and mutually encourage and support each other in our efforts. While I understood the RU community had an enormous amount of spirit and good will, I neither knew the time nor place to approach anyone about these ideas.

I sensed an opportunity, however, when I saw people’s faces light up during the televised broadcast of the presidential inauguration in Weiss cafeteria. Inspired by both President Obama’s “call to service” and the campus’ enthusiasm displayed on inauguration day, I sent out a mass email asking whether anyone wanted to start a volunteer organization. I was expecting (hoping for) several responses, but was floored when my inbox was flooded with nearly fifty “Re: Rockefeller Service/Volunteer Organization” subject lines.
Over the next couple weeks, we had meetings where people from all corners of the university (research, human resources, development, lab-safety) expressed enthusiasm for a variety of areas: education, health, park services, cultural exchange etc. I was also impressed by the diversity of the campus’ volunteer experiences: rape-hotline counselor, army medic, tutor in San Quentin prison, hospice volunteer, and many more.

Overall, people have shown the most passion for education, given the talent and resources available at RU. We have talked about summer programs, tutoring opportunities, and forming partnerships with neighboring schools so RU researchers could give some curiosity-piquing and “cool” demonstrations for students.
While the Rockefeller Volunteer Service Organization (RVSO) is still in its early stages, there are some concrete plans. In early April, for example, we are organizing a “Spring Cleaning” food and goods drive where we will encourage people to bring in food on the week of April 6th (“Clean out your cupboard!”) and other goods (old electronics, stationary, folders, and other stuff you will find during your “Spring Cleaning”) on the week of April 13th. Our plan is to set up collection boxes throughout campus and a table in Weiss to promote some upcoming events, like Hands On New York Day3, which involves over 5,000 volunteers cleaning up NYC and scheduled to take place on Saturday, April 25th. In addition, we might open up future food drives to other universities in the area, perhaps making it a competition.
In the end, I hope RVSO will serve three main functions: 1) to serve as a general exchange for people to share their thoughts about volunteer service, 2) to encourage and to be a resource for people on campus who would like to volunteer individually, and 3) to put together group service initiatives, like Habitat for Humanity. If you are interested in learning more about or would like to participate in volunteer service, please jump aboard.

REFERENCES

1. http://www.volunteer-referral.com
2. http://www.searchandcare.org
3. http://www.handsonnewyorkday.org/