Writing for thegrandviews.com, Courtney Townsend has argued the case for both students and graduates to dedicate a portion of their time to volunteer work.

‘Everyone should take the time to volunteer… and help out in his or her community. Taking the time to lend a helping hand can make a difference in someone’s life and can be more fulfilling than a normal pastime.’

Townsend’s love for volunteering stems from her volunteer experiences with her church youth group in Alaska, south Dakota and Montana. ‘I cannot express how great it felt to work together with my peers to help out people in need.’

Townsend’s experiences demonstrate the reward that can be found in different types of community volunteer work. On one programme her group worked to clean up the aftermath of a family house fire. While this manual work was tedious, ‘seeing how appreciative the family was made it all worth it’.

Working directly with children brought equal reward in a more intimate environment. While working on a literacy and mentoring programme in Iowa, Townsend ‘was able to read to children each week, and enjoyed seeing their excitement increase for reading’.

Townsend’s experiences highlight the positive impact volunteering can have in disadvantaged communities and the personal satisfaction and enjoyment that can go hand-in-hand with this. While she recognises that being a student leaves little spare time, young adults should seriously consider taking part in community volunteering.

Find out how you can help communities as a volunteer abroad with Inspire Volunteering.