BRIAN O'CONNELL

...on the reason he wrote the book 385k WAV audio file 2.1Mb QuickTime movie ...on the reason volunteer work is popular 430k WAV audio file 2.3Mb QuickTime movie

O'Connell's book "Voices from the Heart"

(Photos Courtesy Chronicle Books) View photos from the book Picture 1 Picture 2 Picture 3 Picture 4 Picture 5 Picture 6 Picture 7 Picture 8 View photos from "Voices from the Heart" (Requires JavaScript)

Valdimir Joseph is one of the key volunteers in O'Connell's book

Web posted on: Monday, January 11, 1999 4:11:13 PM

(CNN) -- Volunteers often can make a critical difference in the lives of people they are trying to help. Don't believe it? Read the new book "Voices From the Heart," a collection of passionate testimony and pictures about the lives of two dozen volunteers.

The author, Brian O'Connell, along with Valdimir Joseph, one of the key volunteers in the book, appeared recently on CNN Sunday Morning.

CNN ANCHOR MILES O'BRIEN : First of all, Brian, great job. It really is an inspirational book. I'm curious. Just give me the thumbnail sketch on how you came to write the book.

BRIAN O'CONNELL: I've been concerned for many years, Miles, that volunteers and voluntary organizations don't really appreciate, take pride in, have a total understanding of how absolutely influential, how central volunteers are, not just to the causes and people served, but to the character of America.

So the book is designed to lift up volunteers, and the American generally, this wonderful American characteristic of caring and doing something about it, so that people just have that sense that this is a special part of their lives and of America.

O'BRIEN: You do get that sense from reading the book. I'm going to turn to Val. You work here in Atlanta. Tell us a little bit about what you do in your volunteer work.

VALDIMIR JOSEPH: I work with a program called Inner Strength. We work with at-risk males, ages 12 to 21. We offer tutoring and GED prep; SAT prep; general high school studies; mentoring and life skills, as well as management and violence prevention; and out-of-urban experiences such as hiking, camping, white-water rafting and aerobics courses.

O'BRIEN: Which is, of course, the fun stuff. Once the tutoring is done, you get to go on a hike.

Tell me, do you notice when you take these kids into an environment which they may not have a lot of experience in, is there an instant gratification that they get and you get?

JOSEPH: I'd have to say yes. Where you have kids who come from different walks of life, who generally wouldn't see the outdoors, who wouldn't have the opportunity to be just children. You know, they are forced to grow up a lot earlier because of their situations.

O'BRIEN: Now, what motivated you to do this? I assume this takes a lot of your time.

JOSEPH: Oh, yes. I guess just the overwhelming need, you know, young people who just really need help; and it seemed pretty essential to their development. And it was pretty easy getting people involved, you know, asking people, 'Hey, can you help a child out?' And people were really psyched.

O'BRIEN: Brian, is that sort of something you found as a common thread when you talked to all the people, that they sort of identified a need that they felt was pressing? Or are there other motivations that you noticed?

O'CONNELL: That certainly is a major motivation among not just these 25 who are emblematic of volunteers in America, but really of the hundred million Americans who volunteer week in and week out; that's one out of every two of us. We find that, first of all, they feel that they do have something to offer in the cause, whether it is counseling, as Val does so wonderfully well, or whether it's working with the dying in a hospice or working in a museum or in their church.

But they also find very quickly that not only do they feel they're doing something important and good, but they feel better about themselves in terms of realizing that they can make a difference, that they are more fulfilled. They feel suddenly they are caring and doing something about it.

O'BRIEN: So I guess there's a little bit of irony here, is that really if you get to it and look at it honestly, there's a bit of a selfish motivation in volunteering.

O'CONNELL: It's the best kind of quid pro quo; that is, initially they start out for reasons of wanting to do good, and that grows. But at the same time, there appears and grows this sense of, 'Hey, I feel good about myself.' And that's a pretty nice combination of benefits for the individual who is served and the individual who serves.

O'BRIEN: Val, do you feel better about yourself having volunteered?

JOSEPH: Oh, definitely. You have a situation where a young man walks in who -- actually, he did, four years ago -- was a former drop out from high school, and this year he graduated.

O'BRIEN: Wow.

JOSEPH: As a matter of fact, on January 4th he started technical school. More likely a possibility was that he wouldn't have finished school and he wouldn't have pursued aspirations. And I know it does my heart really good to know that I was part of that in some way shape or form, you know, big and small.

O'BRIEN: That's got to be incredible gratification. I'm curious, what are the frustrations, if any, you encounter as you volunteer? Are there challenges which we're not talking about here yet?

JOSEPH: Definitely. Volunteering challenges you to look at yourself, it challenges you to really get involved, and though there are selfish motives for some people, there are also -- you bring joy to people. And in getting involved, you give a piece of yourself.

And the frustration is, sometimes in working with youth that sometimes they don't get it quick enough. You know, people would get frustrated, and they tend to sometimes give up. And I guess I see that a little more often than I'd like, because sometimes you're dealing with real people with, especially children who have lists -- long lists -- of people who have let them down, and they have a very short list of people who have really been honest and follow through.

O'BRIEN: Brian, I'm curious, in some of the statistics that you've quoted, one of them is that 60 percent, 13.3 million of teen-agers age 14 to 18, volunteer about three and a half hours a week, and that is as opposed to about 50 percent of adults giving four hours a week. Is there a trend there, or is that historically been the case that teen-agers, because they have more time or whatever the case may be, volunteer more?

O'CONNELL: Well, it's certainly not a trend. It is something new and exciting and encouraging. Now, we're not absolutely sure we know why there is this wonderful degree of participation among young people, but it seems to relate to six factors which I'll tear through very quickly.

One is, if the mother or father is a volunteer, the child is likely to pick it up. If the school has a program or the church has a program to encourage volunteering, that has enormous influence. If the youth service organization provides some assistance, that makes a difference. If the media, such as this wonderful coverage, extols people participating, including younger people like Val and even younger ones like several pictured in the book, then the young person is almost certain to pick it up. And all of those factors are strengthening in America, which makes it look awfully encouraging for 50 and even maybe 100 years out.