[bksvol-discuss] Re: Volunteering for Bookshare
- From: Cindy <popularplace@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 9 Aug 2008 12:18:59 -0700 (PDT)
Bob,
I enjoy your sense of humor--always, and here in your post. I laughed three
times.
Cindy
--- On Sat, 8/9/08, Bob <rwiley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> From: Bob <rwiley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Volunteering for Bookshare
> To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Date: Saturday, August 9, 2008, 11:18 AM
> Well said Lori.
>
> I hope this thread will be a place for folks to tell their
> volunteering story.
>
> I joined bookshare about a year and a half ago. Before that
> I was an avid anti bookshare spokes person. I objected to
> the fact that bookshare charged for their services, and also
> to the fact that it's library wasn't totally
> available to international readers. But I got desperate for
> something to read, plus a friend of mine told me I
> didn't know what I was talking about since I had never
> been a bookshare member. So, I thought, I'll try it for
> a year then go back to criticizing it with my own
> experiences to rely on. Unfortunately, I love to read and
> got hooked on the books. So, about three months after I
> joined I decided to look into volunteering to help defray
> the annual cost.
>
> I don't scan because of arthritis in my hands, but part
> of my last job before I retired was editing documents. I
> found I enjoyed the detail involved in editing, and,
> validating is just editing by another name.
>
> Anyway, since I started volunteering, I've come to love
> it. I would validate even if we didn't get credits for
> it. Don't get any big ideas bookshare staff!
>
> I now validate mainly books that I like to read, rather
> than just taking on all comers. I take pride in doing a
> thorough job, and have only had one book rejected. It was my
> first book, and being inexperienced, I messed up the
> pagination something terrible. Thanks Carry for rejecting
> that long forgotten book. I'd hate to think it was
> lingering on the site with my mistakes as part of it.
>
> Anyway, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
>
> Oh yes, lest I forget, I am now a convert to bookshare and
> apologize for all my unwarranted criticisms.
>
> Bob
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Lori Castner
> To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Saturday, August 09, 2008 12:48 PM
> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Volunteering for Bookshare
>
>
> Hi, Folks,
>
> Recent discussions on this list have caused me to think a
> lot about why I volunteer for Bookshare.
>
> However, without considering these discussions, i.e.,
> whether volunteering will continue change or be the same in
> the future, I want to share my own experience here for those
> who might be interested.
>
> A year and a half ago, I purchased my husband Mike a
> membership to Bookshare because he was becoming bored with
> books from NLS. Although we have a friend who validates
> books for Bookshare, that activity seemed very abstract to
> me, and I simply wanted to get Mike a source of new books.
> He had been looking for a volunteer activity in the
> community with little success, so he began validating books
> and absolutely loved the activity.
>
> Because of his enthusiasm, I purchased a bookshare
> membership to get books to read, but primarily to validate
> books. And I enjoyed validating almost as much as he did.
>
> For us, bookshare is not so much a place to get reading
> material--although I have read a fair number of books and
> have many as yet unread on my computer and bookport and Mike
> has read very few books, but rather a way to give back, a
> way to give to others. Sure, we can still scan books just
> for us to read, but that process now seems incomplete,
> because Bookshare has provided a way for us to share those
> books with others who would not find them through other
> sources. Also, validating books so that they can become part
> of a larger collection and be available for others to read
> is unexpressibly rewarding.
>
> I used to knit items for three different charitable
> organizations, but since developing arthritis in my thumbs I
> can no longer contribute very much in that way. I also
> write poetry, but very few benefit from my poems at this
> time. If we had not discovered the joy of volunteering for
> Bookshare, Mike might still be looking for a gratifying
> volunteer activity, which for a blind person can be as
> difficult as finding a fulfilling job. And, I might be
> wondering how to give back to the world.
>
> Sure, without volunteering for bookshare, we would have
> time to read more books, but that is only partially
> rewarding and fulfilling. We might spend more time with
> friends, but many of them work days and have most evenings
> filled with family, errands, etc. But without the
> fulfillment of giving back to others through volunteering
> for Bookshare, our lives would be less rich, less fulfilled,
> and less meaningful.
>
> I speak only for myself although I am sure I am sharing a
> common feeling. Thanks! Bookshare!
>
> Cat Lover Lori
> P.S. and I would have more time to play with and pamper
> our cat who now sits in our den and watches us contribute to
> the world!
>
>
>
>
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