Ask the Expert: How Can I Get Involved in My Community?

Getting involved in your community is a great way to find the support you may need from your nearby neighbors while showing your young children the importance of volunteering. The executive director of the JCC Mid-Westchester and a mom of two shares why families should volunteer and donate time to those who need it most.

I am a big believer in modeling behavior for children.  My guidepost for many years has been the lyrics of the Stephen Sondheim song, "Children will Listen":

"Careful the things you say, children will listen. Careful the things you do, children will see. And learn…Children will look to you for which way to turn, to learn what to be."

When your children see you volunteering your time at their school, they integrate you as an adult and a parent into their environment. They may not express it but they are proud that you are there with them and their friends. 

As a teenager at BBYO leadership training camp, I learned to lead by example. When I thought my children should participate in post-Hurricane Sandy clean up, I signed up the whole family to go on a school bus to assist the devastated communities. Family civic engagement, often with different programs for teens, is quite powerful as the shared experience provides opportunities for ongoing discussions about the particular issue. 

When my girls were younger, we would go out in the evenings to meetings at their school, our synagogue, or at other community organizations they would ask me what we discussed at these meetings. I would answer them in age-appropriate language and explain one or two agenda items that I thought would have meaning for them or that would provide a teaching moment.