For over two decades, we at Matthew House have had the honor of being a part of the lives of hundreds of prison families. We’ve seen the same children that we saw take their first steps as babies go into their first year of elementary school. Daughters graduate high school, then college, and then find their soulmates. Sons start families of their own and break the cycle of imprisonment that for so long loomed over them. We’ve even watched girlfriends and wives put their families back together again while their partners get rehabilitated back into society.
And just as these families come and go, so do our volunteers.
Throughout the years, we’ve had thousands of people come to Matthew House with the hope of volunteering. It’s because of them that we as a nonprofit have been able to see as much success as we have. Volunteers are the backbone of many organizations, especially nonprofits like ours.
We’ve had people show up by the van load to volunteer and clean Matthew House for us; one of these groups eventually becoming regulars. A volunteer we had would come several times a week to wash all the bedding from our apartments upstairs, which are in use by women and their children who are visiting a loved one in prison. Another volunteer of ours would spend hours a day going through and organizing each donation that we received, including hundreds of clothes.
Holiday seasons are especially popular for volunteering as they’re our busiest times of the year. For Thanksgiving, people come and put together baskets filled with treats and Thanksgiving dinner staples. At Christmas, gifts are donated then put into dozens of categories and arranged for children and teenagers. When Easter rolls around, volunteers line up specially curated Easter baskets so that they’re ready for the taking. So much of what goes on is possible because of what our volunteers do behind the scenes. It’s because of this that we make it a point to show them how much we appreciate them.
If anyone deserves recognition for the work they do, it’s volunteers. And there are many ways you can do so. At Matthew House, we like to show this appreciation by raving about our volunteers in our newsletters to our donors, or by recognizing them on our social media pages. Often times, people forget just how important feeling appreciated is. How will you show yours?
Years ago, I started as an intern at Matthew House, and later worked part time as I finished school. Looking back, this was the most rewarding job I’ve had spiritually, and mission driven. Thank you Ma-Ma Linda Waddell-Paz, and the Matthew House guests for such a wonderful experience. God bless you all.
– Tawney Scollard