By: Danny May
“Helping you help others,” that’s the driving force behind helpsomeone.us. Written clearly on their website, helpsomeone.us is an effort to connect people in Owensboro with volunteer opportunities at local charities and non-profit organizations.
You may have heard a commercial on one of the Cromwell Radio Group stations (WBIO, 97X, CJ105.7, WVJS), read the article in the Messenger Inquirer, or seen a commercial on Time Warner Channel 8. But visiting the website lets you see what helpsomeone.us is really all about. The site is designed to be a one-stop source for all things “volunteer” in Owensboro, providing an extensive list of 501c3 organizations, describing their needs and listing contact information. The layout of the website categorizes service opportunities for working with babies and children, those with disabilities, elderly, homeless and those who are suffering from an illness. So whatever your interests are, you will be able to find a way to volunteer in that area using helpsomeone.us.
How it all began
It all started five years ago during a visit to a nursing home. Founder Randy Lanham tells the story:
“It was one of those ‘God moments.’ Wayne Morris and I were visiting a nursing home, going room to room playing music and singing songs for the residents. We like to do that when we can, and the people really appreciate it. A lot of times they want to hear Gospel songs and hymns. Well, there was this one room we went into where the woman was lying in bed and had been unresponsive for weeks. I was thinking we should just move on, but Wayne said, ‘No, let’s go ahead and play one’ so he started playing “Amazing Grace.” As soon as we started singing the first verse, she opened her eyes, and then she even started to move around. Eventually this woman, who had been unresponsive for weeks, sat up in bed and started singing every word in perfect pitch. … That moment changed my life. It was like I could hear God saying ‘I can use you.’”
That moment stuck with Lanham, and it seemed everywhere he went after that he couldn’t help but notice so many people with so much need. Randy continued to feel the nudge to do something about it, and the idea behind helpsomeone.us was born. The vision grew to launch a website that would inspire people to volunteer and then connect them with opportunities to serve in the community.
Last summer, helpsomeone.us received their 501c3 status, formed a board of directors and got right to work. Thanks to the support of the Owensboro community, they’ve already made a tremendous impact and are launching some exciting plans for the future.
Promotional Videos
One of the ways helpsomeone.us assists local charities is by producing promotional videos and jingles free of charge and posting them on their website. The videos let you hear and see first-hand how you can help those agencies. Helpsomeone.us is currently working on a video for Mentor Kids Kentucky, but you can watch videos about Boulware Mission, Oasis Women’s Shelter, the Daniel Pitino Shelter, St. Benedict’s and several others as well.
Many of those videos were aired on Time Warner Channel 8 as part of their homeless campaign during the month of March. (Another promotion that helpsomeone.us just finished was a teen poetry contest for a $250 cash prize and a chance to put the winning poem into song to be played on the radio. The helpsomeone.us production crew is putting the finishing touches on that song right now.)
Unsung TV
In addition to the promotional videos, helpsomeone.us has partnered with Time Warner Cable to produce a TV series called “Unsung TV,” which airs on Channel 8. Each episode runs for a month and is shown at 8 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Lanham explained, “With Unsung TV, we are honoring the ordinary that do the extraordinary.” With real life scenarios, the stories of unsung “hero” volunteers who serve generously without expecting anything in return are meant to inspire viewers to want to serve others as well. Once they’ve experienced it, hopefully they’ll want to do even more and in turn inspire others. According to Lanham, “The goal is for viewers to think ‘You know, I can do that too,’ and then go out and help someone.”
The May episode told the story of Ashley Johnson and her family who were the runners up for an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition house when the show came to Owensboro a few years ago. When Jerry Morris heard about Ashley’s situation of living in a house that was difficult to maneuver her wheelchair in, he called on friends, family and other builders in the community of Whitesville to build a brand new house for Ashley and her family. That’s just one example of being an unsung volunteer. June’s episode was about a volunteer named George who helps at the Wendell Foster Center.
Helpsomeone.us is looking for more stories about unsung volunteers in our community to be featured in upcoming Unsung TV episodes. If you know of someone that you feel should be featured, email your suggestion to [email protected]
Advantages of volunteering as a family
Volunteering does not have to be an “adult” thing to do. As a youth minister for the past 12 years, I’ve seen time and again how young people can have life-changing experiences from volunteering. There is nothing more humbling than serving others. Seeing people who are less fortunate or suffering from a disability makes you appreciate what you have. It cuts straight to the heart, going much deeper emotionally than just the “good” feeling you get from doing something nice. Young people connect with that.
From a parent’s perspective, what better way to model humility, service, compassion and loving others than by volunteering as a family? The beauty is that you don’t even have to “preach” this lesson. Visiting a nursing home or homeless shelter can be very intimidating, especially if it’s your first time going. But when your kids see you doing the hard work without complaining, they’ll learn that you think it’s important to give back. And the younger that kids start seeing it, the more it sticks.
Plus, there is tremendous family bonding that comes from being in the trenches together, and those are memories and stories that last a lifetime.
Helpsomeone.us believes in volunteering as a family so strongly that they are starting a new initiative to encourage families to volunteer together. In fact, it’s so new that when Owensboro Parent interviewed Randy Lanham the project didn’t even have a name yet. But basically the way it works is this:
The family volunteer program will be set up as a six-week series, where each week the family would have the opportunity to volunteer at a different agency or organization. It’s designed that way so families would get a wide variety of experiences. At the end of the six weeks, each member of the family would learn what their areas of interest are from their practical experience.
“Families these days are so busy with sports and extracurricular activities, and that’s great…” Lanham explained. “So this approach would sort of give that ‘team’ aspect to volunteering, because families could serve as a team.”
Think of the family discussions that might arise. Think of how that might affect your family’s priorities, like how you spend your money and your time. Families who are already volunteering are finding that a little bit of compassion can go along way. It doesn’t have to be drastic, life-altering change. It can be simple things.
Okay, so how?
For example, every family does chores. Maybe you’ve experienced yourself how some people hate to clean their room, but they sure don’t mind to straighten someone else’s room or house. So why not clean a shelter as a family? You could spend a couple hours on a Saturday morning cleaning St. Benedict’s Shelter or the Pitino Shelter. One person mops, one person washes the towels, one person wipes down the tables and chairs, somebody else straightens the linen closet etc.
Or, how about preparing and serving lunch together at the Boulware Mission or Pitino Shelter? One person makes the Kool-Aid, one person puts the rolls in the oven, someone else fills the salad bowl, etc. St. Benedict’s serves a hot meal to guests when they open at 8 p.m., so you could fix supper at home and bring it in to serve. They’ll fill their bellies; you’ll fill your hearts. If you’d rather go on a shopping spree, then load up a cart and drop the food off at any of the places listed above.
If you’re looking for something outside, volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. There are age limitations for swinging hammers and driving nails, but every house has to be landscaped. Let your kids go wild digging in the dirt so you can drop that root ball into it. Or, maybe you could paint a backyard outbuilding together.
If you’ve got some Handy Manny or Bob the Builder fans in the house, you may enjoy doing an extreme room makeover at the Boulware Mission. Since they’ve relocated to the old convent on Wing Avenue, there is an entire second floor of dorm rooms that need to be sponsored, updated and renovated. Now that would be leaving your mark!
Contact information for all of these organizations mentioned can be easily found at www. helpsomeone.us. They are constantly updating and adding to the website, so if you hear of any ideas or come up with any on your own, please email [email protected] to submit ideas.