That annoying, but effective, Dunkin commercial from the 1980s played through my head as I watched the group walk through the process and the various roles volunteers will play when making and selling donuts for the 50th season of Oak Park Farmers Market.
“Pilgrim started donuts with just a couple FryBabies in 1978 when the market moved to our parking lot,” said donut captain Leslie Sutphen, who was leading the March training session. “Since then, we invested in professional donut-making equipment and put together a detailed process for volunteers to come in and assist making donuts.”
Pilgrim makes more than 100,000 donuts every year and currently works with 23 local nonprofit organizations, recruiting nearly 1,000 volunteers each season.
But this isn’t about those amazing donuts.
This is about the volunteers who’ve been making those donuts for 26 Saturdays over five decades. And it’s about all the people in all the places in our cities, towns, and villages who make things happen as volunteers. The people who serve on boards and committees for free. The scouts who pick up trash. The folks who read to kids at the library. The people who arrange for household supplies and clothing for immigrant families. These are just a few for-instances of the many ways people give their time and talent with little or no recognition.
These days, conversations often turn to “how are you coping?” A knowing, but non-specific inquiry into another’s mental well-being. The unspoken implication is “with all this scary stuff” or “with everything that’s happening.” Answers, like the question itself, are vague. A worried look precedes some version of the same replies: “limiting the news” … “giving money” … “and I’m not sleeping well.” When asked, one friend had a shouting match with another friend, shrieking, “There’s nothing we can do for four years!”
But is that really true?
I hope not, and in the spirit of offering coping mechanisms for consideration, I turn to my fellow Pittsburgher, our beloved Fred Rogers, who said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” There’s even a phenomenon called “helper’s high.” The term describes the positive emotional state experienced when performing altruistic acts, due to the release of endorphins.
According to an AmeriCorps 2024 study, based on the latest research released: “More than 75.7 million people — or 28.3 percent of Americans — formally volunteered through an organization in 2023, giving more than 4.99 billion hours of service with $167.2 billion of economic value.”
To paraphrase theologian John Wesley: “Do all the good you can for as long as you can.” Giving your time to a cause, any worthy cause, is doing good. Your level of engagement is less important than the fact that you are sharing your time and your expertise.
We are called upon to vote (though not even two-thirds of us actually voted in 2024) every two or four years. In-between, we can volunteer with a nonprofit, civic or community organization whose mission we support. Our gift is our precious time and giving it just might help us cope.
Oh, and don’t forget about those delicious fresh donuts on summer Saturdays.
Jill O’Mahony Stewart is a commissioner on the Oak Park Farmers Market Commission, which is celebrating its 50th season in 2025.