BICSI Insider

Volunteering has been and continues to be a huge part of my daily activities. Getting involved in areas where you not only want to share your knowledge but also further develop your skills is truly an amazing way to help others while learning more "from the inside." As a 20-year BICSI member, I have happily served on a number of committees, contributed to BICSI articles and publications, helped organization efforts for Breakfast Clubs and supported the Women in BICSI Group. Once I started volunteering, I was amazed at the amount of work the committees contribute. From the outside it is like seeing only the fin in the water. All the work goes on under the surface. And as an unofficial BICSI ambassador, I am excited to support peers with technical information and share how to achieve or maintain their certification or membership. In addition to my BICSI activities, I lead the Foster Care and Adoption Ministry in our church. My husband and I speak at various community events, publish articles in local papers during National Adoption Month (November) and National More than Words from Women in BICSI "Balancing and Benefitting from the Volunteer Life" By Patti Fisher, RCDD, DCDC, OSP, WD, RTPM Systems Designer, The Sextant Group, NV5 Engineering and Technology Foster Care Month (May), and we encourage others to do what they can even if they cannot foster or adopt. While it can be hard to balance these volunteer efforts between work, social and family obligations, I find that you can make time for what you enjoy no matter your schedule. You make it work. For example, the foster care and adoption efforts are a family activity. BICSI volunteering is easy to man- age by making clear my family and work commitments when joining a committee or effort. Achievement is a group effort; by working together helping one another, combining our strengths and compensating for each other's weaknesses, we can accomplish so much more. I feel most rewarded, not by what I do directly, but through assisting and mentoring new volunteers and watching them go on to contribute to the success of these groups. It is hard to overemphasize the importance of having mentors and being a mentor to others. Balance isn't an individual effort. It's very fluid; what is needed to achieve success can change from time to time. If you wait for the perfect moment, ORGANIZATION Page 13

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