By Bill Walker
I can’t think of too many things that George W. Bush said or did during his years as president that I agreed with. In fact, as I think about it, I can think of only one thing that truly made sense to me. During one of his speeches, he called on every American to try and contribute two thousand hours of volunteer work for the betterment of all during their lifetime. One has to wonder if he himself has even attempted to achieve this goal but that’s a different story.
I started my volunteer career back in high school when I would accompany students from my mom’s special education school on field trips and other activities. And over the years since, I have volunteered a few hours here and a few there in various places including being a house manager for a theater group back in Rockville Maryland. However, most of my volunteer hours were spent at WAIF (Whidbey Animal Improvement Foundation) on Whidbey Island Washington where I did probably around fifteen hundred hours over many years. And as you read this remember that I’m writing this as a volunteer for the Green Party of Washington State. My guess is that I have completed at least sixteen hundred of my two thousand hours. And I fully intend to hit the two-thousand-hour mark or hopefully more as the following years go by.
And with a huge 2024 election looming in the near future, I can’t think of a better way to either start, or continue, your own volunteer career. The Green Party in our state has many opportunities to further our cause on social and environmental justice. As you watch and read the news don’t you want to help create something better than what the Republican or Democratic party has to offer? I would love for you to consider it!