Volunteers deserve the sincere thanks of their community

Astaggering fact released this week by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics gnawed at my cheerful nature and exposed my existential angst. It was that 61 million people volunteered through or for an organization between September 2006 and September 2007.

I don't even clear the dishes.

Nevertheless, more than one out of every four Americans enhances our collective experience like a high quality aperitif. These bright beams of inspiration serve to illuminate the somber world of indifference. They are everywhere, and they influence everything.

They aid in the shaping of a child's character, assist in the definition and development of a community, and promote a wide variety of projects from animal husbandry to zero tolerance. I am indebted to scores if not hundreds of them - we all are, but volunteerism isn't an ineffable mystery.

Indeed, the common thread of civic responsibility has woven its way through the fabric of society since the dawn of civilization. Ancient hieroglyphics bear this out; a recently discovered drawing on the wall of an obscure pyramid depicts an Egyptian hewing a granite obelisk at the Aswan Quarry by day and coaching his daughter's Under-12 soccer team by night.

Of course, that was a little bit of hyperbole, but steeped at the divide between exaggeration and reality lie perched politicians with partisan agendas and masonry chisels to grind. These people have tremendous power: they can either uplift or demoralize a volunteer's spirit.

Such power should lurk prudently in the shadow of humility, since the debasement of an individual is a blight on the community. Recognizing a broken man can be disheartening. It is, however, abundantly easier than seeing the linear relationship of cause and effect.

Volunteerism is the bedrock of a community. The contribution of every single person catalogued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics merits our gratitude.

Who suffers if their ranks are diminished? Here's a shout out to every volunteer who has touched either my family or me - you know who you are. You guys are amazing. I appreciate all you do and thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Steve Leviton

Manalapan