20 ways you can give back

This is Auckland, 2007. According to the rest of the country, we Jafas would sell our own grandmother for tax reasons. However, there are those of us who'd like to find time in our busy schedules to help others. No matter whether you have five minutes or a lifetime to spare, $5 or $500, there is a way you can make our city a better place. Andrea Jutson discovered 20:
1 Clear up your clutter Donate NZ runs a free online service, where donors with items to give away can offer them to schools and not-for-profit organisations. Best of all, you don't have to do a thing but log on to your computer. Register at www.donatenz.co.nz.
2 Monkey around If you're the cuddly type, Auckland Zoo needs part-time volunteers to guide people around the zoo, perform routine maintenance or feeding, or even help the animals learn. Call Bev Butler, ph 360 3800 ext 3840 or email bev.butler@aucklandcity.govt.nz
3 Give kids a hand Schools are desperate for adults to help children with reading recovery or supervise road crossings. Once a week, be a lollipop lady (or man) or give a child self-confidence by opening up a whole new world of words.
4 Care for your elders You can read or chat to someone at a rest home, but you can also do it at home. St John Caring Callers volunteers ring an elderly person for a few minutes a week. It's a way to provide a friendly voice, and also a good way to learn something. Ph 0800 785 646.
5 Grow a green thumb Smarten up your city and get some exercise by going to a council tree planting, or volunteer at a public garden. Contact Auckland Regional Council at www.arc.govt.nz, Auckland Botanic Gardens, ph 267 1457, or Eden Gardens, ph 638 8395.
6 Release a book If you love a book, set it free. It's called bookcrossing. You leave a book in a cafe, on a bench or at a bus stop, for others to find and enjoy. Paste reader histories in the front to record who's received it and where it's come from, and track it on www.bookcrossing.com.
7 Foster furry creatures The SPCA needs helpers to look after an animal in their own home until it is ready to be adopted, if it's injured or too small to be on its own. You'll get warm fuzzies ? literally ? but be prepared to give the patient back after a month or so. Contact www.spca.org.nz.
8 Be a cool school Students, if your school doesn't do so already, maybe your class or your house could nominate a special charity and hold fundraising events once a term. Mufti days are so last century ? go nuts with a talent show, a quiz or a crazy sports day, wash people's cars or mow their lawns.
9 Walk through the wardrobe Regret buying that peach blouse that makes you look jaundiced? Lost/gained a bit of weight and that smart skirt won't fit anymore? Changed lifestyles from financier to fruit-picker? Donate your unwanted business attire to women in need, to help them nail a job. Visit www.dressforsuccess.org.nz.
10 Perform random acts Ever seen Amelie? We're not advocating fake love letters, but nominate one day a month when you do something nice for others. Buy a train ticket for a stranger, pick up rubbish on your way to work or school, bake a cake for your colleagues, shout someone coffee or pick flowers for your neighbour. Do something new each month.
11 Become a detective Community crimewatch patrols are our eyes and ears. You don't need to be fit or fearsome: you stay in a car and watch for potential trouble, and call the police if necessary. See www.communitypatrols.org.nz for your local group, or start one and call yourselves the Sheriffs of Sandringham.
12 Give staff a day off If you are an employer, consider allowing staff a paid day a year to work for not-for-profit organisations. The company's expertise could be used on a big project (see www.skills-exchange.org.nz) or each staff member could work on a separate charity. Think of it as a sick day that makes everyone better.
13 Listen to teenagers Youthline is a phone service offering a sympathetic ear to young people in distress. Spend time helping others cope with their problems and you may learn how to deal with your own. To become a volunteer counsellor, contact www.youthline.org.nz or its adult counterpart www.lifeline.org.nz.
14 Donate your car Plenty of organisations need help getting patients to hospital, such as the Cancer Society, or to aged care social groups, such as Communicare. Other groups need delivery people. If you have a car and a bit of time, why not get out and about?
15 Write a biography These days it's not uncommon for the elderly to request ghost writers to record their biographies. Caring people with a flair for writing can have a ball learning about the past and someone else's life. Who knows, it might even get made into a film or a book! And it keeps the vanishing past, our history, alive. Contact your local hospice.
16 Coach a team We don't necessarily mean a children's one, either. Special Olympics teams for intellectually disabled athletes rely on helpers giving them a hand with their golf swing or arranging events. Dedication is more important than athleticism. Call Special Olympics NZ, ph 630 8062.
17 Tune up Those who are musically inclined can play a musical instrument at a rest home, the piano, guitar, or even singing. Everyone likes a concert now and then and it can help overcome stage fright.
18 Choose life First Response teams provide First Aid in areas where there are no ambulances, or at public events, until help can arrive. Even if you don't want to sign up to a local team, simply learning First Aid or CPR can save someone's life if you happen to be on the spot. Ring St John, 526 0568.
19 Parade your pets Many rest homes, hospices and children's homes receive visits from pets through the Animal Outreach programme. If you have a social animal, whether it be a cat or a donkey, brighten up someone's day once a month by sharing your pet with them. Visit www.spca.org.nz.
20 Be diplomatic Roam the streets with a smile, and share your secrets about this great city with visitors. Auckland City, the airport, Otara and Papakura all have voluntary ambassadors with flexible shifts. Contact your council or the airport, ph 256 8894.
Helen gave back ... 20 ways
In the short 12 months Helen Murray Scott has lived in Auckland she's become known as a serial volunteer. "I've taken this volunteering thing to a whole new level," she laughs.
It's no joke. In the past eight months Helen has volunteered four days a week, nearly every week. The 36-year-old Englishwoman has a background in finance, marketing and sales but was too old to be granted a working visa. Instead of sitting around, Helen decided she would volunteer.
She searched the internet and came across the AUT-developed Skills Exchange website.
"I saw the words skills and exchange and thought, well I have skills that I'm happy to exchange, so I contacted them."
From there Helen started volunteering in AUT's communications department and it wasn't long before she registered for more projects via the website. She has planted trees at Motuihe Island, completed market research, spread mulch at the zoo and collected for several street appeals.
"It's just been a really great experience," she says. "It's been a great way to get involved with my community."
Helen will take the experience back to the UK. "I've enjoyed doing what I've done, I've got a lot out of it personally. I used to have a really bad work-life balance and I won't let that happen again. I've seen that volunteering is a very good way of adjusting that."
Helen flies home with a plea: "Once you are engaged in something, you really do start to see the needs and benefits of what you are doing. And you do get a lot back for yourself, whether it's the people you've met or getting a different point of view. It helps you grow as a person." - by Candice Reed