Why Volunteer?

Gary Mangum
Bell Nursey
Burtsonville, MD

In any industry there are those who volunteer their time to help the broader industry – and those who choose to focus more intently on their own business and personal endeavors. I’d like to suggest that each of us has some time inherently available that we can “give back” to the industry that helps us put food on the table – and brings joy to so many.

I owe just about everything that I’ve been able to achieve personally and professionally to the foundation provided by my parents. I was not a great student, and did plenty while growing up to skirt nearly every rule I could. My parents worked hard to teach us a strong work ethic and instill positive values that I only fully appreciated after they were both gone.

One of the things I learned from my father was the importance of participating in organizations that could help his young retail floral, and later tropical plant business grow and prosper. At the same time he was developing business contacts through committee work and leadership positions with Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce, Izaak Walton and others. He spent countless hours helping United Way and the Salvation Army. I clearly remember him saying that these efforts would each provide future dividends, and those conversations four decades ago were the first time I ever heard anything about “giving back to the community”

I don’t think there is anything more important in business than the relationships that we develop, and in many cases the enduring friendships that come as a result. In 1988, I started spending serious volunteer time in the start up effort that took the NASA research findings about plants and clean air, and made them available to the public. During the media tour that was part of the early effort, I was exposed to a buyer from the Home Depot (Vince Naab), in NYC, that I didn’t know was in the audience. A number of years later, he visited our greenhouses at the suggestion of a mutual industry friend, Mike Rimland – and today we’re doing very serious sales with Home Depot as a direct result of those entirely unrelated contacts. I often wonder if we as a company had not been a believer in volunteer work in industry organizations – would we have ever gotten onto Home Depot’s radar. Had Home Depot not supported industry events, they might have missed out on a good thing as well.

Organizations that benefit all of us personally and professionally deserve meaningful support. Finances, dues, PAC support, and outright contributions, are clearly important – but people capital in my mind is critical – and in short supply. Too often we see and hear the same names involved in organizations – sometimes for decades. These “givers” would all welcome new talent in their ranks – and depending on your willingness, maybe it’s you.

It’s amazing how few people raise their hands and say – I can help. I would challenge anyone reading this to examine your own situation – and see if there aren’t a few hours a month you can carve out to give back to the community. Whether that giving is expressed monetarily or through personal efforts I’m not sure it matters. I really do believe what my father said – and I can tell you that from my own perspective, the personal and professional rewards have been well beyond any investment myself and my partner have made.