MILAM COUNTY, Texas (KRHD) — There is a growing concern in Milam County, where longtime volunteers say fewer people are willing to roll up their sleeves for community improvement projects.
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The Rockdale Rotary Club helped renovate Veterans Park earlier this summer, adding concrete curbing around the playscapes. But according to local volunteers, finding people ready to tackle projects like this is becoming increasingly difficult.
Charles Keagy, volunteer and former Rockdale Rotary Club president, has been involved in many local organizations through the years. He says he's noticed a troubling trend.
"You have to look at your community and think, how can I make it better? And you just, you're seeing less and less of that," Keagy said.
He believes technology has played a role in the decline.
"Social media has changed, group meetings, membership prestige has lost its value," Keagy said.
Gaye Bland, a Rockdale Rotary Club member, shares similar concerns.
"I am very active in the community. I have been since I was 17 years old, and I have seen all organizations take a hit — not just by fundraising and getting money but getting people to volunteer," Bland said.
Rockdale Rotary Club is a service organization whose motto is "Service Above Self." But even they're struggling to recruit new members.
"It always seems to be the same people going out and doing service projects, whether it's giving out fans or whatever it is, it's the same group of people. We are having a difficult time getting younger people involved," Bland said.
The trend extends beyond Rotary Club, affecting multiple community organizations.
"We see a decline in membership through Rotary, through Lions Club, through, you know, Masonic Lodge, all these nonprofits, even through Education Foundation, everything is just volunteerism, and it takes people to make things run," Bland said.
15 ABC asked Bland about the overarching issue facing service organizations.
"Getting people to become members, to volunteer, to give up their time," Bland said.
Despite the challenges, both volunteers remain committed to their mission and hopeful others will join them.
"Just putting the message out there to everyone to try to make the world a better place, right? And try to improve people's lives, and it's very important," Keagy said.
"Every volunteer that does something, it warms your heart and I know time is precious to everyone, but so is our community and we need to support as much as we can," Bland said.
Bland emphasized they're not asking everyone to give money. Instead, they're looking for people to help plant trees or help fix parks, adding that the impact volunteering can have goes a long way in strengthening communities.
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