Many Hands Make Light Work
I heard the phrase “many hands make light work” often as I was growing up. It was the signal that everyone needed to pitch in to get a task done, set up for a dinner party or clean up after the event. What I recall most from these all-hands-on-deck moments are the laughter and conversations that ensued as we wiped down tables, stacked chairs or stuffed envelopes.
Dan Kysor working on the braille newsletters at the comb binding machine
I had another one of those fun and engaging experiences last week when I volunteered to help produce a big newsletter project in our Braille Production and Training Program. We had 250 newsletters to collate, bind and prepare for mailing. Working side by side with our volunteers and program staff, we managed to turn a two-day project into a single-day project. Many hands really do make light work!
Throughout April, we are joining organizations nationwide in honoring our beloved volunteers. Society for the Blind is assisted by more than 200 volunteers every year. Society volunteers contributed 13,550 hours last year reading for Access News, working in our Bingo program, mentoring in our Senior IMPACT Project, helping with braille projects, serving on our board of directors, and helping with various Society events and projects.
One hour of volunteer time is valued at $31.80 in the United States. But the true value of volunteers is priceless. Our volunteers enable Society for the Blind to reach more people and provide more support than we could ever do without these dedicated individuals. As Helen Keller wrote, “Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.”
Speaking of doing more together, I want to invite you to join me in supporting the Sacramento region’s Big Day of Giving on Thursday, May 2. Society for the Blind has a goal of raising $27,000 to support our CareersPLUS Youth Program providing children ages 3-18 who are blind or have low vision with educational and blindness skills training, after-school tutoring, teen summer camp and more. Learn more about Big Day of Giving here.