Voluncheers

Let’s raise our glasses to the party elite of Naperville!
You know who we are. We’re the beautiful people who put
the fun into fundraisers. You can find us on any given
evening in a local bar or hotel bobbing about on a sea
of chat and laughter. The only thing louder than our voices
as we struggle to be heard above the breaking waves is the
sound of us patting our carefully manicured hands across our
own backs.
Not part of the inner circle? Don’t worry. You can find us among
the pages of local magazines, or the fan pages of Facebook.
You’ll see the same people popping up every time. Of course
‘in this economy’ that we refer to with some gravitas, it’s
not politically correct to enjoy yourself too much. Even in
Naperville hundreds of our neighbors are out of work or worse
out of food. So what do we do? We use the parties as an excuse
to give back to them. Hangovers with a cause! Sure we may
suffer a little the next morning, but that’s as good as wearing
a designer gown made of sack cloth and ashes.
Manicured nails may be all well and good, but it stops you
getting your hands dirty. Instead of raising money for people,
why not raise hope?
There are possibly as many people working on the coal face as
those dancing above it in the moonlight. There are Naperville
residents who volunteer overseas, build solar ovens and schools
in third world countries and houses right here in Aurora.
There are countless volunteers who work tirelessly at events,
behind the scenes and in front of the shelves at the food
pantry.
Are they the local celebrities of the Naperville scene? Not
necessarily. They go about their business, feeling just as
good as everyone else about the good works they do, but just
a little less publically.
I have a foot in a both camps. My heeled foot maybe a little
sore, but it loves taking me to some of these glittering events.
I’m definitely a party animal, although as I get older possibly
more of a comfortable old kitty than a cougar. My sneakered foot
helps out at other times, but I won’t say where because that’s
not why I do it.
So we have two camps when it comes to volunteering, those who
like to be seen and those who don’t. But if there is one thing
I have learned it’s this. Partying or plowing is equally fine.
The one thing that isn’t is doing nothing at all.