From Military to Community Service

From Military to Community Service

In the past few years, I have been attached to the experiences of veterans. I have seen people who serve the country get back into civilian life and struggle to make ends meet while at the same time struggling with physical and mental health issues. The different experiences of veterans that I have seen were the main motivation for me to volunteer in the community. I knew I wanted to do something to make life easier for the veterans. I decided to join the Red Cross to be trained as a wounded veteran caregiver. Caregiver training is a volunteer service that equips volunteers with the knowledge and skills to take care of wounded people and their families. When a service member returns home wounded, they struggle to take care of themselves and their families.  Extra assistance from a trained caregiver can always help to improve the lives of such veterans and their families.

After my training, I applied and got accepted to Caregiver Respite, a volunteer service that provides assistance to veterans in need. I got an opportunity to do night sitting for a veteran with hepatic encephalopathy. This is a disorder that is characterized by a severe decline in brain function caused by liver disease. When the liver is unable to effectively remove toxins from the blood, the toxins may build up and cause brain damage. The man I was helping had a hepatic failure that led him to develop this condition. As a result of this condition, he gets symptoms of dementia, such as confusion and forgetfulness. He also needs assistance with his day-to-day activities, such as preparing food and grooming. His family is not able to afford a professional caregiver; hence, they take care of him when they can. On days that they are not able to do it, they need assistance from other people. I was happy to be one of the people to assist in taking care of an American hero struggling with health care issues. This volunteer experience was good. I had a chance to converse with the man I was helping. Although he has experienced significant cognitive decline, he has a lot to share with me. He talked about his experiences in the Vietnamese War and made the night fun and a great learning experience for me.

This experience means a lot to me, and I will definitely be doing more such volunteer work. I was happy to be of assistance to a man who has sacrificed his life for the country. I am also happy that in the process of helping, I had a chance to learn a lot from him. I was somehow satisfied with the happiness that I was able to bring to this man and his family. Therefore, I will be looking forward to performing similar volunteer services in the future. For as long as I have the time and resources, I will be helping to make the lives of veterans and their families easier.

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From Military to Community Service

Write a 500-word essay on how you were inspired to volunteer and what it has meant to you.