I thought about volunteering when I first retired. But as I think about getting ready, commuting and mentally preparing for the day, the more I realize that this sounds like work and volunteering no longer has an appeal. Every time I look at my calendar and see that most of it is empty except for travel dates, personal events and void of work obligations, there's a sense of joy and relief within me.
Fair, but volunteering is a massive concept that includes an enormous range of activities, not just working for an organization, essentially doing an unpaid job.
I'm not saying you need to volunteer, just that it can look like just about anything, A bunch of local ladies here make quilts for charity auctions.
Volunteering means doing something of value for others without demanding compensation. That's it.
Just to show some more examples of how volunteering can be fun and enjoyable - in the past I have volunteered at a women's shelter for domestic abuse, cleaning up highways, and cleaning up rivers.
All of these were very easy volunteering activities, with no real commitments (they have volunteering days and you just pick day), and they all involve doing outside work which I enjoy doing anyway.
At the women's shelter I just did landscaping. Raking leaves, cutting limbs, pruning bushes, cleaning up trash, etc. Not hard work at all. Interestingly, most of the volunteers were women, and I met some awesome and interesting new ladies there. We also briefly talked with some of the domestic abuse victims, which was extremely eye opening. You would not believe the kinds of abuse against women which is still going on today, in 2023. It is wild and very eye opening.
The highway cleanup is just walking down the highway with a picker and trash bag with several other people. These are usually more of a mixture of men and women, but again, always awesome people. I enjoy hiking, being outside, and meeting new people anyway. Normally everyone will want to grab lunch afterwards, exchange numbers, we get free t shirts, etc.
The river cleanup is just going down the river in a canoe, on a late summer/early fall day usually, with a trash picker and a tire puller (a long iron rod with a hook on the end to pull tires out of the river). You hunt for tires in the river, and periodically stop on shore to pick up trash along the shore line. We also got free lunch, free t shirts, etc. I just think of this as a sort of hide and seek game, where the tires are hiding at the bottom of the river and you are trying to find them.
I mean - this is basically a free, several hour long canoe trip, where you meet random new people then go canoeing with them. There were more women than men here also, we got free t shirts, everyone generally heads out for food afterwards, etc.
Volunteering is actually a very fun way to meet awesome new people, because people who volunteer tend to be more awesome than the average person anyway, imo. They tend to be outgoing, smart, social, physically active, compassionate, and selfless. In short: My kinds of people.
Volunteering does not have to be like work at all. It can be fun, active, social, enjoyable, flexible, and you can engage in it as much or as little as you want, doing activities you enjoy doing anyway.
I'm not sure why there are more women volunteering than men, at least in my limited experience. That point has always puzzled me.
