Be the change in your community

For more than 15 years, Ioannis Perifanos has been tutoring, training volunteers and fundraising for Pathways of Life, a non-governmental organization that supports education

“Volunteering is an attitude regarding life and a way of life,” he said.” It’s an opportunity to give back to my community and to change people’s lives. I have been volunteering for the last 15 years and have enjoyed a sense of achievement and fulfilment in making a difference in people’s lives. I believe that it is incumbent on us all to give our time and effort whenever and wherever we can to the less fortunate, as I have discovered over the years, that I have received much more from the volunteering experience than I have given.”

Volunteering is meaningful to me because growing up my family was poor. When I was eight years old my mom told my siblings and I that there would be no Christmas that year – no presents, no tree, no Christmas dinner… nothing.

Christmas morning a van pulled up in front of our house. These men got out and unloaded a toboggan and lots and lots of bags. Bags of food. Bags of clothes. Bags toys for the family.

Because of the kindness and generosity of individuals, it was one of the best Christmas’ we ever had. It left a lifelong lasting impression on me to be generous with the time and the resources I do have.

The reason I volunteer and do random acts of kindness is because you never know what kind of impression you are leaving on someone else’s life. It’s rewarding to put a smile on someone’s face and make someone else’s day.

“Our Nutrilite family stepped up to help when one of the young ladies at the Orangewood Foundation was expecting a baby. I had to make three trips to deliver all of the donations. The smile on her face and tears in her eyes told me everything was going to be OK. She has since had her baby and we still get to see her often during our monthly visits. This is just one example of our efforts here. Knowing you can make such a big impact on a child’s future is indescribable. My son helps me with the coordination of our Orangewood Foundation events and now that I have a granddaughter, I want to instill this passion for giving into her life as well.”

“When the Great East Japan Earthquake happened, Makiko and I were far away in Kyoto. Makiko was watching TV and crying because her family and friends lived in the disaster area. But we knew there would be things we could do to help – then we started to act on it. In Tohoku, we asked our ABO friends for support and collected relief goods that filled two trucks and we were able to deliver directly to those in need.

Since then, I have accepted a position as the Remember HOPE Ambassador to help build community houses for disaster areas – because I want to help people smile and make them happy. In addition to fundraising, I help petition activity for recovery of the beach damaged by the tsunami. For us, volunteering is to see the need and act on it from your heart without giving much thought.

I want to entertain people. I want to help others be successful. For me, this is same for both business and volunteering.”

Volunteering has to come from the heart! Helping someone, knowing there is nothing that they can do for you… that’s the reward.

It is gratifying to serve and bring a sense of calm and peace to an otherwise chaotic situation. These experiences are priceless.

Amway has provided me and my family to the opportunity to be there for my community, and I am grateful.