María José Cantero, Antonio Pareja and Maribel García are three of the 4,000 Red Cross volunteers in Cordoba Province. Like all of them, they received the question, “What do you want to focus on in your volunteer work?” The answer translates into working hours … Selflessness in very diverse areas, which can range from Administrative management for relief efforts, undertaking all kinds of tasks where their specific qualities, attitudes, aptitudes and preferences direct such necessary work for which the ultimate compensation is simple mutual aid.
Volunteer Day is celebrated on December 5, and as a result of that anniversary, Red Cross It was organized in honor of Volunteers In the library of Grupo Cantico, focusing on twelve people from various local associations, including those already mentioned. This year there were 470 new additions.
Maria Jose Canteroa native of Lucena and a student of Education and Social Work at the Pablo de Olavide University in Seville, has been a volunteer for three and a half years. Her interest in associational activities to make profitable use of her spare time led to an interest in the Red Cross.
in case Antonio Pareja and Maribel Garcia It was their prior retirement that made them think about the best way to allocate hours Which they previously assigned to their commercial and administrative jobs in a financial company. The first has been a volunteer for about nine months, although he knew the entity through his children, and the second has been volunteering for eight years.
“I devote myself mainly to managing volunteer work in Lucina. “We are the first face to welcome the volunteers themselves, and because I study in Seville, I do a lot of digital volunteer work, such as data processing,” Cantero explained.
Projects
For its part, a couple, in Priego de Cordobais “whatever it takes.” Within this expression are included those of an organization Gold withdrawal For activities with older people or event management. Finally, Garcia was involved in various projects, such as welcoming Red Cross users themselves, “but also raising money, employment Or bigger.
Regional Director of Volunteer Work at the Red Cross Ana Belen LosadaHe explained that the Red Cross is present in twelve municipalities in the governorate, and that the quickest way to volunteer is to register via the website. “On the same day we try to schedule an appointment with the person.”
They may also be provided at each location’s headquarters. There is no limit to age Except for the legal one, which in this case is twelve years. In fact, the Red Cross has a large participation of young people. On the other end, there are a large number of older volunteers.
The entity receives volunteers and asks them about their interests to find out the field in which they can integrate best.
After some time BriefingsThe entity, which is in constant contact with the future volunteer, notes areas that may be suitable for carrying out the work. “We have a special part for profiling to know the interests, motivations and talents of the person who goes to the Red Cross,” Losada pointed out.
The regional official also noted that there is a certain “surge” in volunteer work during the pandemic, and that there is a certain tendency towards so-called causal volunteering, that is, what arises from Specific eventand convergent, when the organization’s purposes are compatible with the volunteer’s purposes.