Being an Assisted Living Volunteer Improves Lives

If you are looking for volunteer opportunities, you should definitely consider an assisted living community. Why? Because being an assisted living volunteer improves lives! It not only improves the lives of the seniors you are working with, but it can have a positive impact on your life too.
Here are just some of the ways that being an assisted living volunteer benefits both the volunteer and the residents.

Benefits of Volunteers for the Residents

In an assisted living community, there are plenty of people on staff, but there’s also plenty of work for them to get done. Because of this, volunteers are extra important and extra special for the residents. Volunteers sharing their time, effort, and passion to spend time with residents, keep them company, socialize with them, and assist them as much as possible provides that extra special touch in the lives of residents.
For instance, having volunteers who can create art or craft with the residents, keep them company while watching television, or converse with them gives residents more opportunities for new social interactions. This is extremely important for seniors. Such interactions are not only sure to put a smile on a resident’s face, but they will give them encouragement and support, a benefit to their overall wellbeing.

Benefits of Volunteering for the Volunteer

There are many studies that support all of the benefits that volunteering has on an individual. Being an assisted living volunteer has all of those benefits and more, as you are directly interacting with other humans and adding some extra brightness and support to their lives.
You can immediately see the positive impact of the volunteering you do on the resident you are working with, whether it’s from the smile on their face or the gratitude they show you.
In addition, being an assisted living volunteer can also open you up to a wealth of knowledge. Just by talking with seniors and listening to their stories, you learn about where they’ve been and who they knew. You could hear about life experiences that you may not have had yet had (or may never even have). Especially if they served in the military during one of the major international conflicts of our time, you could gain a great amount of knowledge and be a good listener for someone else while learning it.
One other big benefit of being an assisted living volunteer is adding to your job experience. Of course, this is the case for any volunteer opportunity, but volunteering in an assisted living community could give you the experience of organizing, coordinating, fundraising, scheduling, planning daily activities, special events, and project management. All of these skills and experiences are very transferable to other jobs and will enhance your resume.
If you are considering being an assisted living volunteer, we encourage you to take that next step and get more information. At Solterra Senior Living, we are always looking for volunteers who enjoy working with our seniors, for both our White Mountain and Chandler communities. We hope to hear from you soon.