Why do we volunteer? To make friends, build skills, influence change, or find purpose? For Marines, spouses, and their families, the answer is often unique as their journey – but one of the most powerful reasons is the search for purpose.

Volunteering provides a meaningful way to explore personal values and use individual strengths, talents, and gifts to make a positive impact. It connects people to something larger than themselves and helps clarify what drives them.

For some, purpose is found on the sports field – coaching intramural or youth sports, mentoring athletes, and encouraging confidence, discipline, and teamwork. Others discover purpose through community service: serving meals to the homeless, tending community gardens, building homes, mentoring Marines or spouses, or writing letters to aging veterans who long to be remembered.

Volunteering is more than giving time – it is rewarding, uplifting, and motivating.

For the military community, the journey to purpose can begin with a simple step. One hour. One act of kindness. One choice to give back. Each action carries the power to create lifelong meaning for both volunteers and the lives they touch.

Take the first step today. Contact your local installation volunteer coordinator to explore opportunities through the Volunteer Program and begin your path to purpose.