Make Change Happen

I love to volunteer.  Why, you ask?  My answer is always, why NOT?  Why is volunteering so difficult for some people?  Why not get involved and make the communities we live in better?  Don’t wait to be directly asked to make a difference, just take the first step and GO for it!

First, you need to find something that you are truly passionate about, something that has touched your life.  Second, focus on that passion and find ways to put your passion into action with an organization or project.  If you’re passionate about what you’re doing, you will never fail!

For me, my passion is fighting cancer!  I can’t imagine that anyone reading this can say that they have not been affected by cancer in some way.  According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 1/3 of all Americans will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in their lifetime.  They are also estimating that in 2015, North Carolina will see nearly 50,000 new cases of cancer.  So, chances are that someone you know has fought cancer or is fighting it now or has passed away from this scary, life changing disease.  And being diagnosed is a life changer not only for the patient but also for their entire support system of friends, family and co-workers.

This will be the third consecutive year that I have headed up the First South Bank’s Relay for Life Team, Banking on a Cure.  During that time, I have been amazed not only at the outpouring of support of our employees and customers for our fundraising efforts, but also by the number of cancer fighters and survivors that currently work and bank with us.  These men and women are people that we either work with daily or come in contact with often.  Many of them you would never know had ever fought it, while others are fighting it now and I continue to hold out faith that they will beat it!  If seeing their determination and faith and strength isn’t motivation enough to get up and get involved then I’ll never know what is.

Please consider getting involved!  If not with Relay for Life, find something else that drives you and pour yourself into it!  Maybe you want to help with the elderly or children, perhaps fighting hunger or literacy.  The possibilities are endless.  The whole world may not notice and you may feel like your actions don’t matter but for the person it directly impacts you will become the change that makes their world a better place.

Beaufort County’s Relay for Life event will begin at 6:00 pm on May 1, 2015 at Washington High School. 

To find out about the Relay for Life events nearest you, please visit http://www.relayforlife.org to learn more.

Written by: Roxanna Leggett
Mortgage Operations