My Volunteer Odyssey allowed me to get to know Memphis on a much better and deeper level than I did before my volunteer week in more ways than one. First, I now have a much better sense of the geography of Memphis. I just moved here at the beginning of March, although for the preceding 20 years I was an occasional visitor to the city. Finding my way to all the various volunteer organizations gave me a much more coherent idea of the layout of the city. I am now a lot less dependent on the sat-nav apps on my smart phone.

I also have a much better sense of the people and culture of Memphis. I met a lot of people from various backgrounds contributing to their city in different ways. I witnessed first-hand those that are struggling at the bottom of the financial barrel trying to scrape together a living. Seeing it with my own eyes makes an impression that cannot be reproduced from reading about it in articles or watching it on the news or seeing it through any other means. On some level I already knew this, but I learned that people do not necessarily become poor and homeless because they are lazy and do not want to work. There are many contributing factors that can lead to dire circumstances, and many of them are often beyond the control of the impacted individuals.

Working with the poor and homeless did not give me a more pessimistic outlook on life in general or particularly here in Memphis. On the contrary, I was reassured by the number of people out there trying to help others, whether by traditional means such as soup kitchens, or more innovative methods like mobile food markets. I saw that there is plenty of room for enterprising individuals with new ideas for ways to help people and revitalize the economy. I am definitely interested in returning to some of the places I worked with during my Volunteer Odyssey week, especially SRVS, Green Machine and Indie Memphis. Although I did not go there as part of my Volunteer Odyssey, I am also thinking about volunteering at the National Ornamental Metal Museum. Of all the non-academic institutions in Memphis, the Metal Museum seems to be the best fit for my experience, skills, and interests.

Although I am still seeking an academic post, I have expanded my job search to include working in the non-profit scene. Academic posts are hard to come by, and I think the right non-profit would and could provide me with the job-satisfaction that I am looking for. I have sat down over coffee with someone who knows the non-profit scene in Memphis inside and out, and he provided me with some good leads to pursue.

Thank you for reading! I’m searching for a job as an historical consultant, researcher or educator. If you know of a great fit, please send it our way: jobleads@volunteerodyssey.com.

Cheers,
Michael

My profile pages:
LinkedIn
Academia.edu

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