Why Do People Volunteer Essay

1660 Words7 Pages
Introduction There are many reasons to volunteer; whether it be to give back, to connect with others, or to gain experience. In the conduction of this research paper, 8 Aggies were interviewed regarding the Big Event. The Big Event is as direct as it sounds. It is a day where any Aggie contributes time out of their day to help anyone who needs it. For this service day, I served alongside of my Living Learning Community, where we spent our day doing yard work. Going into this research paper, I had the expectation that the chosen respondents had a purpose for doing the Big Event. There’s a saying here at A&M that goes, “Aggies help Aggies” but in this case “Aggies help Everyone,” meaning that many students at A&M came together for this event to help out in the community whether those people were Aggies or not, people were going to be helped. Some may think that doing yard work, cleaning windows, help people paint is just some extra…show more content…
Robert Wuthnow, author of Acts of Compassion, states that “Have we come to the point where, ironically enough, our charity has become a selfish act?” Based on the 8 fellow Aggies I have interviewed and on life experience, I think his statement would have to be true. While everyone had the right intentions to help the community and to give back to those who needs, they also volunteered because it benefited them. One of my respondents stated that they volunteered in order to “give back to the community and build their resume,” while they are doing a selfless deed, they are also benefitting themselves in the process. In high school, for example, people volunteered because they wanted to get the cord of which symbolized that they volunteered for 100+ hours. Not because they actually enjoyed doing it, but because it aided them. With everything that we do, there is an act of selfish being
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