Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/434495
F r e e m u s i c d o w n l o a d s f o r C e r t i f i e d m e m b e r s : w w w. a b m p . c o m / g o / c e r t i f i e d c e n t r a l 19 ❱❱❱ Did You Know? In 2013, only 25.4 percent of all Americans age 16 and over volunteered with an organization at least once during the year. 2 That's the lowest rate of volunteerism since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started keeping track in 2002, which means that volunteers are needed now more than ever. Sites like www.volunteermatch.org and www.idealist.org can help you fi nd nearby volunteer opportunities that fi t your special skills and interests. ❱❱❱ www.facebook.com/ABMPpage @ABMPmassage http://abmp.us/LinkedInMT Make sure you connect with us to get your voice heard in next issue's Tell Me … www.massageprofessionals.com http://abmp.us/ABMPgplus www.instagram.com/abmpmassage mp A PROFESSIONAL BOOST Volunteering can not only enrich your personal life, it can help your professional life as well. Word-of-mouth and hands-on marketing are still essential in the massage and bodywork profession, and volunteering at local events is a powerful way to get you and your work noticed in the community. For Darcy Doggett of New York, "It is a way of giving back, supporting my community, and spreading the word about massage and healthy living. It allows me to meet people who might become clients someday. There's never a group or event where I don't make a new connection or run into someone I know." Potential clients want to meet the person they can trust to provide them with professional bodywork, and what better way for you to meet new people than to be active in your local community? This can be especially effective if you reach out to health-care professionals, whose recommendations could turn their patients into frequent bodywork clients. "About twice a month, I offer on-site massages at a nearby teaching hospital. I hope to promote the acceptance and use of massage to a new generation of family physicians by providing a 30-minute respite from their very stressful lives," says Beth Ryan Fisher of Pennsylvania. Notes 1. C. E. Jenkinson et al., "Is Volunteering a Public Health Intervention? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Health and Survival of Volunteers," BMC Public Health (2013) 13: 773. 2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, accessed October 2014, www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.nr0.htm. "I volunteer during ABMP's EveryBody Deserves A Massage Week and often give a free massage to a vet on Veterans Day." CYNTHIA HILL-MERIWETHER, OKLAHOMA "I volunteer each year at the Indiana AIDS Walk. It's a rewarding experience." MATT WININGS, INDIANA "I give massage at the local shelter for victims of domestic violence. I think helping these women get reacquainted with healthy touch is crucial, and it gives them something happy and positive in their lives." JON TALLERICO, MISSOURI EVERYBODY DESERVES A MASSAGE WEEK IS JULY 12–18, 2015. ❱❱❱ ABMP Facebook Reader Poll Do you volunteer in your community? NO 7% YES 93%