Volunteers are the life force that power associations. They contribute their time, brainpower, and hard work to help make associations more effective and successful. They come through in the clutch, but are associations doing enough for them when the chips are down?
It’s been a rough 18 months—and it’s been hard on everyone. It’s not getting much better, either. One year into the pandemic, nearly one-third of participants in a recent study by The Lancet Regional Health-Americas expressed having symptoms of depression. And one of the central drivers of that depression was the many stressors caused by the crisis.
Organizations have helped staff members cope with mental health challenges—and volunteers need to be a part of that outreach too. “It’s really crucial to remember that even though they are in a volunteer role, it is still work. It is something that they are passionate about and dedicating their time to, and they are experiencing total upheaval of their lives like everybody else is,” said Melissa Doman, MA, organizational psychologist, former clinical mental health therapist, and author of Yes, You Can Talk About Mental Health at Work … Here’s Why (And How to Do It Really Well).
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