A thank you speech for volunteers

You make a difference in the dash.

Life is short. In the scheme of things this oft quoted saying must be true. Our planet has been here for millions of years – our universe billions.

On our headstones will be the etching of when we were born and the date when we died.

For example 1960 – 2050

What matters to me are not the two years mentioned. It is the dash. That little dash. -

That’s our life. That represents to me the short time we have, here, to make a difference, or not.

And making a difference means so many different things to so many people.

But for you, the volunteer, what you do during that dash is most significant.

You can give me money for my cause. Sure. But I may pay that back to you. Say you give a dollar a month. It is appreciated without doubt. It is your dollar. However you may pick it up elsewhere. Something extra you do. Some other way of earning that buck.

But how do we give back time?

As a volunteer you give time.

Time. The most precious resource in our lives.

Look at the dash. How many hours are in there? It’s not billions. It’s not infinite.

Money can be printed. Time cannot.

Once you give an hour of your time it is lost forever. That hour you just gave volunteering will never be replicated.

Your time volunteering must be valued but we can never put a value on that time.

How can you value something that is priceless?

As a volunteer you bring much to this organisation. Skills, advice, experience, friendship, vision, leadership, inspiration etc.

That you bring. But time you give.

In our time poor world you bear the gift of time.

You choose to donate the most precious commodity in the known universe.

We may count your time in numbers. We may attempt to count your time in cash value.

Though such methods have their reasons we will all be poorer if we don’t realize that the giving of your time is simply and utterly magnificent.

So today, we take a little time out to thank you for the amazing “time in” that you give.

Truly, thanks for your time!

© DJ Cronin 2010
Brisbane Australia