The dozen teenagers who huddled in a corner of the gymnasium at Pilsen’s Christo Rey High School on Thanksgiving looked a little bored as they waited to help someone.
They were surplus volunteers at a holiday dinner sponsored by the Little Brothers-Friends of the Elderly charity.
The Chicago charity normally has too little help, not too much. But an outpouring of selfless spirit meant that on this day, there would be one volunteer for every two senior citizens.
“They didn’t expect this many to show up,” said Belinda Hernandez, a student at the Near Southwest Side high school. “But we’ll do whatever they need us to. Some of the old folks just need a little hug or something.”
Many charities that search and scrounge for volunteers most of the year face an embarrassment of riches around holiday time–to the point that some must reluctantly turn away eager helpers.
The flood of goodwill, welcome though it is, can present a logistical challenge for groups used to a trickle.
Some organizations adopt a temporary motto: If your cup runneth over, keep a saucer handy.
Jean Mahon, spokeswoman for The McDermott Foundation in Chicago, said her organization expected 200 volunteers to show up Thursday morning at the Haymarket Center Annex, 932 W. Washington Blvd., to continue a tradition of providing free holiday dinners to homeless and needy people.
Mahon was shocked when 600 volunteers clamored to help. They all were put to work, mostly packing meals for later delivery.
“We were happy to have them all. It was fantastic,” Mahon said.
Little Brothers would like to espouse the “too much is never enough” philosophy on Thanksgiving, but full-time staffer Jamie Hersh-White said the group can’t cram enough work into one day to give every willing altruist something to do.
“The media has been so helpful to us in telling people of our need for volunteers on Thanksgiving that we have been turning people away since last night,” Hersh-White said Thursday.
The rush to serve also creates an atypical logjam of volunteers on Christmas and Easter, Hersh-White said. But some prominent charities expect an overabundance and figure out ways to handle it.
Stacy Segal, volunteer coordinator for the Christian Industrial League’s homeless shelter at 123 S. Green St., said her group tries to let other worthy organizations benefit when it acquires an excess of blessings.
“Once we reach our number of volunteers, we start referring the extra names to other agencies that are often overlooked,” Segal said. “This way, we are getting help, but other lesser-known non-profit agencies who do the same good work are getting the help they need as well.”
Would-be volunteers who wait until the last minute sometimes discover that finding an open spot can be as hard as landing a paying job. They may wade through layers of referrals before hitting pay dirt.
Marilyn Pino received a “thanks, but no thanks” from the Lakeview Pantry and the Chicago Food Depository before securing an opening as a driver for the Little Brothers dinner.
“Whatever happened, I was going to make a concerted effort to do this,” said Pino, who volunteered with her husband, Jorge.
The couple said Thursday was the first time they had reached out to people more needy than themselves on Thanksgiving.One of the seniors, Sally Marcus, ate up all the attention from her young volunteers. “They wine you, dine you, dance and romance you,” she said.
That first-timers such as the Pinos were willing to go to such lengths to help could be an indication that the volunteer spirit is on the rise in the Chicago area.
Some volunteers who gathered to eat a Thanksgiving dinner with Chicago-area foster children at Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant on the Near North Side said several factors may be increasingly leading people to feed their souls along with their stomachs.
“I wonder if it has something to do with the economy,” said Mary H. Hollie, executive director of Lawrence Hall Youth Services in Chicago. “People are doing well. There is a sense of, `I have to give back.’ “
Hollie said 124 children who are in residential treatment through the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services were invited to Maggiano’s for its second annual Thanksgiving meal.
Children were treated to a magic show, balloon tricks and the insight that there are people who do care that they are happy.
Hollie said she has seen an increase in the number of regular volunteers at Lawrence House: “It’s not just adults–it’s college, high school, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts.”
Suzy Reutter, a waitress at Maggiano’s who volunteered her time Thursday, agreed that younger people seem more inclined to get involved these days.
“I think that’s a good commentary on what’s going on in Chicago,” said Reutter, who regularly volunteers at Misericordia North, a home for mentally handicapped people.
But charity workers cautioned against complacency. Some said their most important challenge with holiday volunteers is to keep them coming back.
Juan Soto, volunteer coordinator for the Christo Rey High School dinner, agreed.
“The problems of loneliness and isolation don’t just occur on holidays,” Soto said. “We’re always looking for people who will make the transition to giving their help all year.”
The high schoolers who offered their services at Christo Rey on Thanksgiving may have given Soto hope.
Three girls from Mother Guerin High School in River Grove said events such as Thursday’s are only part of their larger commitment to the needy.
“Our school requires 10 hours of community service, but I don’t think I’ll use the dinner toward that,” said Terri Bucaro, a senior at Mother Guerin. “I think of this as something extra.”
