President's Message
Although this is the scary season, don’t let it affect your volunteering! PTA shouldn’t be scary.
I have been very busy this month assisting PTAs throughout San Diego and Imperial Counties with various issues. A common problem is volunteers. Mainly, not enough of them! This shouldn’t mean that you make yourself or your family miserable because you are trying to do too many things. Remember this when you are trying to recruit new volunteers as well. Try to break up tasks so they are manageable and fun! Then you will have enough volunteers to help with the boring tasks and the fun ones!
The amount of your time, talents or treasures you have to share changes throughout your life. It is great to say yes to volunteering, but if circumstances change, be sure to communicate to others that things have changed. Many of us were raised that “quitting” is failing, but it is also a valuable lesson to admit when you need help. It may seem easier to just do it yourself, but that makes it difficult for others to help when needed, and it also prevents new volunteers from contributing and eventually taking on the task.
Finally, I am often contacted about sharing information about other organizations that provide services to the education community. We share some of these events via our social media channels. We also provide links on our website, under the community resources tab. We will occasionally highlight some in this newsletter. Pick how you share your extra resources carefully, because ideally they will provide benefits to you as well! All you have to do is search, “benefits of volunteering” and you will find many articles and resources extolling the benefits to YOU, the volunteer! Volunteering is a treat, not a trick!
Shawna Straw
president@ninthdistrictpta.org
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