More volunteers needed in Allamakee County; Learn more about opportunities at upcoming local meetings


More volunteers needed in Allamakee County ... The Northeast Iowa RSVP 55+ Initiative provides an abundance of opportunities for volunteering in Allamakee, Howard and Winneshiek Counties. With a need for more volunteers in Allamakee County, RSVP is hosting three meetings over the next couple weeks to learn more about volunteering opportunities in Allamakee County. Those meetings are slated for April 26 in Postville, April 28 in Lansing and May 4 in Waukon. Submitted photo.

Hundreds of people volunteer each year through the Northeast Iowa RSVP (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program) 55+ Initiative. Along the way, they may help fill a need in their communities, find meaning and enjoyment, widen their circle of friends and pay forward the benefits of their own lives.

RSVP is part of the federal agency AmeriCorps Seniors and is sponsored locally by the Decorah Public Library. Currently, RSVP is working with about 75 community organizations in Allamakee, Howard and Winneshiek counties. However, RSVP Director Deana Hageman sees a need for more volunteers in Allamakee County.

RSVP will hold informational meetings in Postville, Lansing and Waukon from 5-6 p.m. at the following dates and places:
• April 26, Postville - Northeast Iowa Wellness and Recreation Center, located at 313 West Post Street.
• April 28, Lansing - Kerndt Brothers Community Center, located at 274 Main Street.
• May 4, Waukon - Freedom Bank meeting room, located at 201 West Main Street.

A primary need in Allamakee is to form a team of emergency management volunteers, Hageman says. This team would assist local emergency responders in cases such as missing persons, natural disasters and power outages. Volunteers could choose to support emergency professionals in a volunteer or disaster reception center, emergency operation center or shelter operations.

For instance, volunteers could handle telephone tip lines, register emergency responders for missing person searches, and help set up shelters in case of natural disaster and power outages. Emergency management volunteers would have regular training meetings and exercises. Anyone who would respond to a call for volunteers at the time of an emergency event is encouraged to become involved now to receive the training and be prepared. This need applies to people of all ages.

Nursing homes also have a great need for volunteers to visit with residents. Simple activities like playing cards, reading aloud, painting fingernails or just having a conversation can be the highlight of a resident’s day, Hageman says. She welcomes all volunteers and would like to set up a specific program in which military veterans visit with residents who are also veterans.

RSVP aims to help senior volunteers enrich their own lives as they help their communities. Hageman has learned that people volunteer for three reasons: They want to keep their hands busy, they want to keep their brain active and sharp, or they want to feel good about what they’re doing.

“I try to make matches based on why a person wants to volunteer,” she says. Someone who wants to keep busy with their hands might want to stock shelves in a food pantry, and someone who seeks enjoyable interaction might get that through helping people select food in a pantry.

Julie Rotach volunteers as coordinator of the Allamakee County Food Shelf. Besides feeling good about the work, she says she enjoys the people who volunteer with her. Helping other people is a good way to get out of the house and socialize, she says.

Wendy Gibbs began helping at the Lansing Iowa Food Trust (LIFT) when she retired and moved to the area. “I’ve been fortunate in my personal and professional life, and I wanted to pay it back in some way when I retired. Through volunteering, I’ve found the same fulfillment,” she shared.

For some, volunteering has long been a way of life. Nona Sawyer serves through Meals on Wheels and the Food Shelf and has assisted many people and organizations over the past three decades, developing friendships that have outlasted some of her volunteer stints. Sawyer’s advice for anyone considering joining RSVP is: “Give it a try. You’re not signing up for a lifetime. You might get more out of it than the people you’re volunteering to help.”

Anyone who wants to volunteer should contact Hageman at rsvp@decorahlibrary.org or 563-277-5181. She will make the connections with the organizations. When connecting through RSVP, volunteers receive insurance to cover activities at their stations and can attend volunteer appreciation events.

Food pantries in Lansing (Lansing Iowa Food Trust) and Postville (Postville Community Support) are among the Allamakee organizations that need more volunteer help. RSVP is also looking for people who can be reading buddies, classroom helpers or mentors at schools in the county. Meal delivery drivers are needed, as are volunteers who can help sort donations at Carol’s Closet in Waukon. Those are just a handful of the organizations that can use help - the full list contains dozens more.

How long or how often a volunteer works at a station is completely up to them. As an alternative to ongoing positions, volunteers can sign up for limited-time work, such as helping with tax preparation at the beginning of the year, or one-day events, such as the Driftless Half Marathon.

“I help volunteers find options that feed that need,” Hageman says, “and I don’t pressure people to do more than they’ve said they want to do. They volunteer on their own terms.”