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A Happier, Longer Life? Volunteer!
By Sr. Dorothy Robinson, Editor,
Olympia Microcomputer Users Group, WA
December 2010 OMUG News
www.olymug.org / newsletter (at) olymug.org

Although there may be some situations where volunteering would not necessarily get you a longer, happier life (any veteran could fill you in on that), there are now studies showing that people who volunteer at least two hours a week do in fact receive health benefits from volunteering.

According to an article by Adam Voiland at http://health.usnews.com a 2007 report which drew on the results of 30 studies said volunteering can indeed be good for your health. Voiland says the report indicates that “people who volunteer enjoy longer lives, higher functional ability, and lower rates of depression and heart disease.”

Volunteering keeps a person active and interested, as well as helping stay connected with other people.

Voiland quoted Steven Post, director of a research group at Case Western Reserve University that focuses on the “scientific study of altruism, compassion, and service,” as saying, “The helping impulse is very fundamental. When it is locked off we do not flourish.”

If we look around, there are friends, neighbors, and family who could use a helping hand now and then. There are also nonprofit organizations whose mission is to help people. You may belong to one. In fact, if you’re reading this newsletter, chances are you belong to The Olympia Microcomputer Users Group.

Any group needs leadership, and OMUG is no exception. All our officers and key members are volunteers, and if you talk to any of them, my guess is that you’ll find they enjoy taking an active part in our computer users group, keeping it alive to fulfill its mission.

OMUG’s purpose, according to our Bylaws, “shall be to provide a non-profit, educational, self-help organization for personal computer users; to cultivate cooperative relationships among computer users in our community; and to promote knowledgeable use of personal computer hardware and software.”

Think about why you joined OMUG, and why you keep renewing your membership each year. Maybe you have computer expertise to offer and you enjoy helping others. Maybe you don’t know a lot about computers and are looking for help. Whatever your reason, computer expertise, or lack of it, is irrelevant to participating in leadership of our group. People with many different lives, leisure and work experiences have served as OMUG officers. You can, too.