One of the most impactful volunteer experiences I have had is serving on the United Way of Dallas grant review panel.  The objective of this panel is to recommend levels of funding for the non-profit agencies that have submitted requests to United Way.  The process required approximately 30-40 hours of time over an 8-week period including volunteer training, grant review, panel discussions, agency tours and panel deliberations.  I originally volunteered for this role three years ago because I wanted to make sure that the agency we asked our employees to support (and Freeman matches) was worthy of our valuable resources.

That first experience was life changing. I am now an avid supporter of United Way in both giving of my money and time.  The agency tours proved the abject need in our communities and the grant review process, although sometimes painstaking in detail, proved that United Way is a superior steward of the funds. I just completed my third year of grant reviews and was once again moved to tears on just about every tour.  United Way has honed their focus in their 2020 goals and our panel reviewed college and career preparation grant requests.  It was encouraging to see productive outcomes in the agencies, but  the personal stories of how these agencies are changing lives caused the tears to flow.

West Dallas Community Center serves the lowest income zip code in Dallas.  They are less than five miles from our corporate office.  During our tour, we saw moms cleaning the facility. The director explained that the parents volunteer their time however they can – cleaning, repairing, cooking tamales for fundraising, etc. – so that none of the agency budget goes toward these services. Instead, all of the money goes toward the resources necessary to help their kids have a better life.  Or, Uplift Education, a charter school who only counts their students as high school graduates if they are accepted in a college or vocational school. Again, serving the lowest income zip codes, hearing from three first generation college-bound seniors was amazing.  And, their graduation rate is 100%! It is just so easy to take for granted the support and resources I had growing up, and that my kids have.  I am humbled by the professionals who have made it their life’s work to make a difference in our community in so many meaningful ways.

With every volunteer experience I have, I am compelled to do more.  Share my resources, share my time, expose my children to the responsibility of service – and, most importantly, respect the dignity and worth of those who are less fortunate.

The Dallas offices of Freeman will be engaged in a fundraising campaign for United Way in early June.  So that our employees are able to experience the good work that their donations make in the community, we are partnering with Visiting Nurse’s Association by delivering Meals on Wheels every weekday in June.  Our hope is to provide 2-3 teams of people each weekday in June to deliver meals to home-bound, lower income senior citizens.  No doubt, we will have more than enough volunteers because we have such a caring community in Freeman.  Of course, those receiving the meals will benefit and VNA will be able to save precious resources that can be spent on meals. My guess is that the true beneficiary of the volunteer effort will be those who deliver the meals.  I’m not sure how it works, but it is so true that the gift is in the giving.

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