Agree with earlier posters that any type of volunteerism can be beneficial (and am also a devotee of the "stealth" style). Still, what also comes to mind is that such 'micro-volunteering' is not always what organizations need nor necessarily can even accommodate.
Example: Immediately prior to and on Thanksgiving Day the Chicago Food Depository is swamped with calls from would-be volunteers that just want to help on that particular day. In recent years, via news outlets, this organization has let it be known that the need for their services (addressing hunger via donations of food, working at soup kitchens, or monetary donations) is ongoing and daily throughout the year. Prior to the holiday the CFD has already organized and implemented services for Thanksgiving Day and ask these last-minute callers to consider an ongoing commitment (at whatever level) because that assists the organization in determining how far their resources will reach on an annual basis.
Personally I find ongoing charitable obligations most fulfilling (for any variety of reasons) yet also applaud those who carve out any amount of time from their own life to help someone in need (be it a stranger or family member).
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