My Volunteer Story - Ari

This International Volunteer Day, I want to peel back the curtain on volunteering at SoundLincs. I'll talk about the journey that led me here, and my reasons for sticking around.

I was first involved with a SoundLincs project when I was about 10 years old. This was my introduction to electronic music production, a hobby that I've maintained for more than a decade — though I've upgraded my tools since the days of GarageBand on my iPod Touch.

After I graduated from university and moved back to Lincoln, I wanted to gain some experience before getting my first job, so I looked for volunteering opportunities. It didn't occur to me that volunteering at SoundLincs was an option until somebody else suggested it. I set up a meeting with Eddy and we figured out the best ways for me to help.

Now, I come into the SoundLincs office for one day a week to make social media posts, marketing materials and the SoundEMission newsletter. I really value my time here: it gives me experience to put on my CV, and it lets me contribute to a good cause in a flexible way. I think experience doing a range of tasks in an office environment will be very useful. Most importantly, having responsibilities and a routine like this makes me feel grounded and connected, which is a huge benefit for my mental health.

I would seriously recommend volunteering if you have time to spare. If you love music, maybe SoundLincs would be a good fit for you too. There's a variety of tasks to help with, so whatever skills you have there will be something you can do.

If you are interested, you can contact info@soundlincs.org.