Tuesday I did something I have never done before. I worked at my local voting precinct as a poll worker. It was a great experience, regardless of the long hours. My employer allows for one paid day of volunteer work each year, and I was allowed to use this as my volunteer day.
Although it was long (we arrived at 5:00 am and I left at 8:40 pm) the day went quite fast. We were bombarded at opening (6:00 am) and we had only one or two voters the last hour (we closed at 7:00 pm).
I enjoyed learning the process in my county, and I really enjoyed the interaction with others, given the fact that I work from home. There were 14 of us. Several were there for their first time. I will say it was a bit chaotic at opening, but people were understanding, and soon we got into our groove and a smooth assembly line process developed.
It was nice to see the voters and interact. Most were in good spirits, although a few were a bit stressed with election worry. I did my best to encourage, and to get folks taken care of. Although I felt the past week was very intense for me, oddly I felt more relaxed once the day was over. Most likely is was simply knowing it was over, and I had that good feeling of being a part of the process and helping out.
If you have never been a poll worker, and have the opportunity, I would recommend the experience. I met some great people, we worked together as a team, and I felt a part of something bigger than myself. I don’t know if I will do it again next election cycle. Maybe 😊
Until then, for those living in the US, may you be blessed with peace, regardless of your political views and may the next four years hold something wonderful for you. Look for it, expect it, find it.
And PS: Wearing the mask all day was not as tough as I expected!
“Our human compassion binds us the one to the other – not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future.”
~ Nelson Mandela
“Learn From Yesterday, Live for Today, hope for tomorrow.” ~ Orison Swett Marden
peace of life today 
It is quite an interesting experience! This is the third time I have done it. There were two precincts where I was, mine and another one. There were quite a few people there. Interesting seeing what all they have to do to take things down, isn’t it? I wasn’t there early, so I don’t know how that goes. Had several people thank me for volunteering, too!
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I had one person thank me, very sincerely. Opening was a little crazy since some of us didn’t know what we were doing 🙂 But the process that we did was very good. And now I know!
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Glad you enjoyed the experience
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It sounds like a great experience Lisa and it’s lovely you got this opportunity to help during an election in these extraordinary times 🤗💜
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Thank you, it was a great experience!
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Thank you for caring enough about America and our democracy, Lisa, to be involved in the process.
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Thank you, it was a great experience for sure!
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Good for you!!
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Thank you Nora!
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Sounds like it was a good experience for you and you learned a lot. Good for you!
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Thank you! 😊
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First, thank you for taking this on, and for sharing your experience with us. I did thank our own poll workers, who were cheerful and efficient. Masks were required but I still worried about their level of exposure. Hopefully no cases will occur based on voting or working the polls. I agree wholeheartedly with your sentiments and loved your closing Mandela quote. Wonderful post
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Awwwww, thank you so much Tina! I will say I’ve been monitoring my health to make sure. I had a lot of interaction. But so far so good!
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Thank you so much, Lisa for sharing your experience. Your employer allows for one paid day of volunteer work each year, how wonderful!
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Thank you Amy! Yes and this was really a great way to use my volunteer day. If we look for ways, we can still help out, but volunteering seems harder this year.
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sounds like a wonderful experience, Lisa. thanks for sharing! 🙂 a lovely quote from Mandela 🙂
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Thank you Lola! 😊
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