That's crazy because I know the program your talking about. When I first got out and was looking for a job they were going to set me up with a 'mentor' but I didn't follow through with it.

Have you met richard bolt?

Is he related to Usain?

I know him well. He was a client and a friend. He moved to Pennsylvania before Thanksgiving which is another reason they haven't connected me with anybody.

He's gone? That sucks, he was a really good guy. Helped me out with transportation while looking for a job.

And also, have you ever done any work with the NWCDC?

Small world. He got me into the program. He lived about half a mile from me.

Scaffolding,mixer,wheel barrels,shovels, brick saws, & all the other CRAP to run a masonry crew. We have houses coming up. Not enough homes to put a crew back together.

Do you anybody involved with the nwcdc or the fairmount community center? They do alot of work with contruction companies.

Nope. Not at all.

I'm the chair for The Arthritis Community Services and am in the process of heading up a new fundraiser.

I also volunteer time and advertising space to our Northend Community Association whose primary goal is a scholarship program for youth.

Lastly,I'm on the Postal Advisory Committee.

I wonder if our Northend Community Association Rainmakers concert would pull any folks this way?

I just want to tell everyone to keep up the good work. For those who don't volunteer, even doing just a little can go a long way. IMO, if I can help at least one person, it's worth it.

And there are opportunities everywhere, and it doesn't have to be through organizations. If you have an elderly neighbor who needs help, maybe with their lawn, grocery shopping, or just someone to visit with for a while, that's the best place to start.

My sister-in-law used to be really devoted to the Susan Komen Breast Cancer organization. Every year, she would round up several women to put a team together for one of their 3-day, 60-mile walk for the cure events. She did it in 3 or 4 different cities and she spent a lot of time raising money both for her own donation commitment and also to help the other members of her teams raise theirs. My wife did it with her 2 or 3 times.

A month or so ago, my wife was talking to her and asked her where she was going to walk this year and it turns out that she has completely disassociated herself with that charity. Apparently, she saw an article that described just how small the fraction of her donations that actually went to breast cancer research was compared to the overhead of the charity and she was disgusted. I don't know the breakdown, but it didn't surprise me because a lot of these large charity organizations are that way. Now she works with some local dog rescue charity that she feels better about.

I've heard only about 25% of what Susan G Komen Foundation raises actually goes toward researching the cure.

Nope. Just give money to places, too lazy to do any actual volunteer work.

To be honest haven't given much thought to volunteering until this year. I have to do some volunteer work for a couple of classes that I take.