To Give is to Live

Giving of myself was something that was ingrained in me at a very young age.

My mom was a giver, so was my dad.  They each gave in their own unique ways.  My mom never had a ton of money, so she gave her time in any way that she could.  My dad was an over-the-road truckdriver, so he, on the other hand never had much time, but was certainly able to donate financially to a cause that he believed in.

Some of my first memories as a child are going along with my mom to deliver Meals on Wheels.  My mom wasn’t one to just deliver a meal and move on to the next stop though.  She delivered a meal and visited with the people that she was delivering them to.  She literally became their friend.  She would sit and talk with them, ask them how they were doing, and most importantly, listened to their answers.  She was ever present with them.

If there was something that she could help with, she was there, without hesitation.  Between her and my dad, I think that is the main reason why as soon as I became an adult, I became heavily involved in volunteerism.  It’s also one of the main reasons why the nonprofit organization that I founded, the BIG Vision Foundation was so committed to getting our young players involved and understanding the importance of giving back.  I was a product of what being involved in volunteerism at a young age could result in.  It was second nature for me to give back.  It was the only thing that I knew.  By instilling that same value into our young players, we would be creating a ripple-effect that could be passed on for generations to come.

One of our main concerns when Sandy and I started this full-time RV journey was how we would find projects to get involved with while we were on the road.  We were both heavily involved in volunteering when we still lived in our sticks and bricks house.  Me with the nonprofit organization that I founded as well as others.  Sandy by helping me with that organization as well as volunteering at the Delaware Valley Golden Retriever Rescue, with Hurricane Sandy relief trips through our church, and serving on our church council.

When we first started last year, we were immediately blessed to volunteer at the Dream Center of SETX and with Hurricane Laura relief efforts in Sulfur and Lake Charles, Louisiana.  After that, we were kind of at a loss on how to find other projects.

Then, a funny thing happened on January 15, 2021 while we were at Boyd’s Campground in Key West, Florida.  The day after Sandy face planted onto a concrete walk while we were in the process of rescuing a dog that decided to jump in the water right next to our campsite, I had posted an update on her condition on Facebook and Instagram.  Shortly thereafter, a comment was made by A Year to Volunteer.  I had never heard of this group before, so I immediately checked out their social media pages and website.

The concept was intriguing to me to say the least.  In early April, I reached out to Phil and Shar Roos, the founders of A Year to Volunteer and asked them if they’d like to be guests on my podcast.  They accepted the invite and I immediately fell in love with what they were doing.  I knew that Sandy and I would want to get involved with them on a project at some point, but we had no idea when that might be.

As it turned out, we were going to be going through Wisconsin around the same time that they were doing a project at the Raptor Education Group (REGI).  We were late to the game, but as it turned out, one couple was only going to be there for the first week, so we were able to slide in and help for week number two.

The experience was beyond humbling.  I wrote about it afterwards and knew that A Year to Volunteer was going to be something that Sandy and I would want to continue to be a part of.  When we left Wisconsin, we were on the waiting list for a project in Picacho, Arizona.  About three hours after we had left, Shar sent us a text telling us that someone had backed out and we were in if we still wanted to come.  Without hesitation, Sandy responded with an emphatic, “YES!”

Our original plans after leaving Wisconsin had us heading out to Long Beach, Washington and then down the west coast through Oregon and California before slowly making a trek across the southern United States and landing back at the Dream Center for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The Picacho Peak State Park project started on October 10, so we were going to have to change our plans.  We wouldn’t have enough time to go through California.  We had to cut our Yellowstone visit short and we removed Glacier completely off of the itinerary.

We felt a little rushed at times, and wondered if we had made the right decision to sign-up for this project.  We were going into a state park, we knew that it wasn’t going to be like REGI.  I mean, what could?  Marge Gibson was an angelic soul who, like me, was the founder of not just a nonprofit, but more importantly, a nonprofit that fed her passion.  There was a part of me that felt like we were going to be setting ourselves up for disappoint.  There was also that fact that the majority of the Picacho Peak project was painting, which is something that quite honestly, I despise.  If Sandy ever suggested a painting project at home, I made sure that I had something else going.

Nonetheless, we had made a commitment, and we were going to see it through.

As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by Phil and Shar.  Their smiling faces and overflowing passion were instantly contagious.  Once we got set-up, they immediately started to introduce us to the other volunteers that had arrived before us or as they say, “the Y2V family.”

The term “Family” was something that I could definitely relate to.  I truly considered all of the players that went through our organization as family.  It wasn’t just a phrase; it was from the heart.  Phil and Shar are the same way.  When they refer to the Y2V family, it’s not just a catchy term, it’s from their hearts.  They truly treat every single volunteer that signs up for a project as family.  Whether it’s someone on their first Y2V project, or their 11^th, it’s all about family and making everyone feel welcome.

That’s why these Y2V projects are always so successful.  Phil and Shar’s genuine love, caring and leadership trickles down to everyone that they interact with.  They’re not doing this for likes, subscriptions or followers, they’re doing it because they have a true passion for helping others without asking for anything in return.  They each have the Y2V logo tattooed on them, that’s a commitment.  Never once did I consider having the BIG Vision Foundation or Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club logos tattooed on my body, and it was my baby for 30-plus years.  These guys are doing work that matters.  They are truly changing lives.

As I had mentioned, we came into this project with low expectations, thinking that Marge and REGI had set the bar really high, which they did.  I also wasn’t sure the impact that we’d have on a state employee as compared to a nonprofit founder who is serving her passion.

Well, Y2V did it again.  The park manager, Carolin Miller was speechless with the work that our Y2V team did in the two weeks that we were there.  The 36 ramadas that we had to paint were completed by Day 7 of the project.  After that we went on to paint 242 campground posts, 89 campground pedestals, three water towers, a walking bridge, demolish another bridge, repair stucco, fix a honey wagon, and prune, pull weeds and landscape a large portion of the park.

On our final day, to see Carolin’s reaction and hear the gratefulness in her voice was proof of how this organization is truly changing lives.

I’ll never doubt whether we made the right decision to sign up for another Y2V project again.  I know that whatever the project is or wherever it is at, it’s going to be life changing for both Sandy and I, as well as everyone else that is involved in it, whether as a volunteer or as the project recipient.

We’re already signed up to go to Lake Charles, Louisiana with Y2V in March and can’t wait.  It will be special for us because of the friends that we have there and those that we volunteered with there last September.

Volunteerism is something that is dying in our current “me first” society.  The shabby work that many other volunteer groups did that came before Y2V often times leave the organization that we’re coming into cynical and skeptical to say the least.  Carolin and Marge alike, were somewhat surprised just for the group to show up, yet alone do what we did.  That sentiment is pretty common about other Y2V projects as well, from what we’ve heard.

Then, to complete our task list early, knock out tons of items that weren’t on the list originally with an incredibly high-level quality of work, leaves them awe-struck.

While we were on the Picacho Peak State Park project, Y2V received approval from the IRS for its official nonprofit 501(c)3 status.  The goal is to create an organization that is even more impactful by being totally self-funding.  That means going into a project and not just provided the blood, sweat and tears of labor from a fully committed volunteer group, but by also being able to pay for the campsites and purchase materials for the project.  Donations are now tax deductible and can be made on the Y2V website.  It is a very worthwhile cause.

The work is incredible and fulfilling in its own right.  It has definitely given Sandy and I purpose on this journey.  We are incredibly grateful to be a small part of the Y2V family.  With both of us coming from the nonprofit world in some capacity or another, it has certainly filled our desire to give back.

More importantly, the people that we’ve met through Y2V are amazing.

I can’t name them all because there are so many, so I will just say that as a whole, these people are genuine, like-minded people who have a desire to make the world a little bit better of a place than how they found it.

The Y2V family is literally the epitome of the subtitle of my podcast, “Many Little People in Many Little Places.”

As the opening lyrics of the song “Gloria” by Michael Franti go, “When many little people in many little places, do many little things, then the whole world changes.”

That’s it.  That’s Y2V.  These many little people show up in their rigs from all of these many little places, from all of these many different walks of life, and they literally change the world for the people who they are doing the project for.

That’s powerful.  That’s why we love Phil and Shar and the work that they started and can’t wait to see it continue to grow.

To give is to live, Y2V is creating opportunities for people to give.  That is doing work that matters.