San Francisco Examiner
January 16, 2003
January 16, 2003
By Adrienne Sanders
The jobless have never been busier.
Thousands of unemployed Bay Area residents are volunteering their services while looking for work. These aren't just do-gooders, they're savvy job sleuths making valuable contacts, updating skills and keeping resumes current while helping others.
"I know senior engineers with 20 years experience volunteering. One of my clients is a docent at the Monterey Bay Aquarium," said Patti Wilson, a private Silicon Valley career counselor. "There is only a trickle of hiring so it can take a while to get a job. They want to be able to answer, 'What have you been doing for the past 18 months?"
Wilson said many out-of-work residents are go-getters accustomed to keeping full schedules. Volunteering keeps them busy and in touch with others.
After losing his job at a major software company in April, Jeff Finkelstein found he quickly hungered for human interaction.
"Once I got past the mindless channel surfing and video game consumption, I began to look for activities to become involved in. I had always wanted to do volunteering but hadn't had the time. I also thought it was a good way to network," he said.
Finkelstein joined his cousin at an HIV-prevention needle-packaging project and later at a Balboa Park cleanup organized by Hands On San Francisco, a group that links volunteers with worthy causes.
Inspired, Finkelstein soon joined the group's membership committee and led presentations for prospective volunteers. Even though he later got a job at a consumer electronics firm in Milpitas, he has continued to volunteer with Hands On.
Cynthia Typaldos said she unexpectedly created a job board, now run by volunteers, after losing her job. The former Internet chief was doing consulting work when clients asked her to help them find a vice president, she pooled all of her industry contacts and quickly found a winner.
As more insiders heard about her success, "People kept sending me jobs, from GE, Intuit, Network Appliance -- some of the big names who won't post on the big job boards anymore because they get such a mish-mash of people."
Her e-mail contacts soon formed the core of the Software Product Marketing eGroup, a 2,600-member job board. Typaldos, 10 volunteer directors and about 50 other volunteers manage the site, which was designed and hosted by volunteers. Three directors told her this week that they found employment through the group and are leaving the board.
When she's not running the eGroup or consulting, Typaldos hunts for a permanent job herself: "I really would like to be a VP or a COO. I really like being part of a team."
Volunteer work can also broaden people's skills or open them up to new possibilities.
Judy Mulder said she was thinking about teaching long before she lost her job in tech support. She decided to teach computer skills to senior citizens at a center near her San Carlos home. Most of her students want to communicate with family via e-mail but barely know how to turn on a computer. She enjoys helping them.
"You know how dismal looking for a job can be. It really perks me up to do this sort of thing," she said.
Gail Koffman, a Mission resident, donates her time to the Taproot Foundation, a group that provides nonprofits with free services such as marketing and Web site development.
Koffman, a copywriter and editor, is developing a branding campaign for a nonprofit literacy outfit -- a completely new field for her. Koffman, a volunteer project manager and volunteer brand marketing specialist are developing the group's tag line, logo and strategy.
In addition to learning new skills, she's finding freelance work through Taproot.
"A designer hooked me up with a company who needed a copywriter in a pinch. She liked what she saw of my work and said, 'Are you available for some paying work?' I said, 'Definitely.'"
The jobless have never been busier.
Thousands of unemployed Bay Area residents are volunteering their services while looking for work. These aren't just do-gooders, they're savvy job sleuths making valuable contacts, updating skills and keeping resumes current while helping others.
"I know senior engineers with 20 years experience volunteering. One of my clients is a docent at the Monterey Bay Aquarium," said Patti Wilson, a private Silicon Valley career counselor. "There is only a trickle of hiring so it can take a while to get a job. They want to be able to answer, 'What have you been doing for the past 18 months?"
Wilson said many out-of-work residents are go-getters accustomed to keeping full schedules. Volunteering keeps them busy and in touch with others.
After losing his job at a major software company in April, Jeff Finkelstein found he quickly hungered for human interaction.
"Once I got past the mindless channel surfing and video game consumption, I began to look for activities to become involved in. I had always wanted to do volunteering but hadn't had the time. I also thought it was a good way to network," he said.
Finkelstein joined his cousin at an HIV-prevention needle-packaging project and later at a Balboa Park cleanup organized by Hands On San Francisco, a group that links volunteers with worthy causes.
Inspired, Finkelstein soon joined the group's membership committee and led presentations for prospective volunteers. Even though he later got a job at a consumer electronics firm in Milpitas, he has continued to volunteer with Hands On.
Cynthia Typaldos said she unexpectedly created a job board, now run by volunteers, after losing her job. The former Internet chief was doing consulting work when clients asked her to help them find a vice president, she pooled all of her industry contacts and quickly found a winner.
As more insiders heard about her success, "People kept sending me jobs, from GE, Intuit, Network Appliance -- some of the big names who won't post on the big job boards anymore because they get such a mish-mash of people."
Her e-mail contacts soon formed the core of the Software Product Marketing eGroup, a 2,600-member job board. Typaldos, 10 volunteer directors and about 50 other volunteers manage the site, which was designed and hosted by volunteers. Three directors told her this week that they found employment through the group and are leaving the board.
When she's not running the eGroup or consulting, Typaldos hunts for a permanent job herself: "I really would like to be a VP or a COO. I really like being part of a team."
Volunteer work can also broaden people's skills or open them up to new possibilities.
Judy Mulder said she was thinking about teaching long before she lost her job in tech support. She decided to teach computer skills to senior citizens at a center near her San Carlos home. Most of her students want to communicate with family via e-mail but barely know how to turn on a computer. She enjoys helping them.
"You know how dismal looking for a job can be. It really perks me up to do this sort of thing," she said.
Gail Koffman, a Mission resident, donates her time to the Taproot Foundation, a group that provides nonprofits with free services such as marketing and Web site development.
Koffman, a copywriter and editor, is developing a branding campaign for a nonprofit literacy outfit -- a completely new field for her. Koffman, a volunteer project manager and volunteer brand marketing specialist are developing the group's tag line, logo and strategy.
In addition to learning new skills, she's finding freelance work through Taproot.
"A designer hooked me up with a company who needed a copywriter in a pinch. She liked what she saw of my work and said, 'Are you available for some paying work?' I said, 'Definitely.'"
