In many of the places where I resided, I got to live in communities of different people who led different lives. In these places, I met people who inspired me, who taught me many things, and who loved me during the best and worst times. They were my teachers, my protectors, my friends. They helped me get through my problems, made me wiser, and made me happy. These people did not demand anything in return. And as my way of thanking them, I always did my best in giving back to my community because I also wanted them to feel what I felt and, hopefully, they can pass this form of gratitude on to others.

For me, the highest form of giving back to the community is to give our time. We can give money, but money can be earned. We can share our talents and skills, but the more we use them, the more we improve our own craft. But once we give our time, we can never get it back.

Even so, I learned that in giving our time, we attain our greatest achievements. Knowing that we participated in the growth of the community we live in not only feels great, it is a great legacy to the world.

The best expression of giving time is volunteerism. In my life, I got to volunteer a lot of times. I was inspired by my father, who also gave his time to volunteer as one of his ways of giving back to the community. He had set a good example for me and for the people that he helped. I grew up watching him working in diverse ways to help others. When I was younger, my father volunteered as an air raid warden during the early years of the war. He would go outside and tell people to close their curtains and window shades so that German troops could not track them down. As far as I know, he was proud of what he did. And I wanted to be like him also.

When I grew up and entered school, I learned many things that helped me understand what the value of giving back to your community is. I volunteered to take on extra workload in school. I worked as a cafeteria squad lieutenant and a book club monitor for English subjects (that is, unboxed, organized, sold, and repackaged books for the next day). I also volunteered to present the homework assignments on the board every day. Instead of feeling burdened by the additional tasks on top of my studies, I felt more satisfied, fulfilled, and determined.

Years after I graduated and worked, I volunteered to teach STEM subjects as part of the RE-SEED (Retired Engineers and Scientists Enhancing Education through Demonstrations) programs that dealt with resistant students. It was my way of giving back to the community, particularly to my teachers who taught me beyond what they were paid to do.

In the summer of 1972, when TV programming started to improve, I was one of the volunteers who served on the first Community Antenna Television Committee (CATV). We conducted our own analysis of the cost to viewers and benefits to the public. We also organized meetings with various departments to assess if there is a need to provide them CATV.

I also volunteered at the annual member meeting to represent the tenants with greedy and unjust landlords in Brookline, Massachusetts. I wasn’t selected, though, but it didn’t stop me from looking for other ways to help put justice to this serious problem. Together with other concerned citizens, we formed the Brookline Tenants Council and fought for rent control. It strengthened my relationship with others, and it lessened the load of the problem because we knew that we were not alone in that struggle. We were constantly energized because everyone was eager to help. It was one of the most memorable events of my life.

Giving back did not only benefit those whom I’ve helped. It also benefitted me in ways that I could not comprehend. Knowing that there is someone out there who needed me and my help was enough reason to wake me up every day.

We live and work not just for ourselves, but for others. Do you agree with what you read? I invite you to like my Facebook page and follow me on Twitter and Goodreads to read more true and inspiring stories. Grab a copy of From Brooklyn New York To Brookline Massachusetts now!

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