"Service Is The Rent We Pay For Living"

Malaak Compton-Rock is a mother of two, wife of comedian/actor Chris Rock, humanitarian, advocate for children’s rights, named “Philanthropist of the Year” by the Association of Fundraising Professionals in November 2008, and founder of the Angel Rock Project (www.angelrockproject.com). Bradi Nathan, Butterfly Co-founder, sits down with Malaak to learn how we can all make a difference.

What advice do you have for moms looking for a part-time volunteer opportunity or career in the non-profit sector?

I think part-time and flex-time positions are wonderful and we are lucky that many companies are allowing women to work from home: job-share, tele-commute, etc. If someone is interested in non-profit work, there are lots of wonderful organizations like Council of Foundations, Philanthropy Times and Idealist.com that list part-time positions. The thing to remember about non-profit organizations is that unless they are well-established large organizations, many of them actually need to utilize part-time workers. And when you work for a small organization, you often get to really feel the wonderful fruits of your labor.

What skills do women need to volunteer or to find a job in a non-profit organization?

There is a movement now to run a good non-profit just like you would any company. They utilize people with varying skills and backgrounds. Therefore, a non-profit is a good place for someone with special events, finance, accounting, marketing, public relations, advertising, legal, computer science, graphic design, and many other diverse career backgrounds. You just have to decide that you want to make a move from the for-profit to the non-profit arena.

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Comment by constance a hill on July 6, 2011 at 6:14pm: I truly appreciate this article about volunteerism. I have been unemployed for 2 1/2 years and I have literally burned myself out with the job searching. I know I am on a rebound to get fully back into the career field. Meanwhile, I never liked feeling useless. I have always worked until the the last couple of years and it's been a very difficult and emotional roller coaster for me. I did not truly foscus on volunteering because I so desperatley needed to make an income immediatley. I realized with the time I have on my hand apart from being a 100% homemaker I can possiably lend a helping hand outside of my home & church. I have always been a people person and I do have a thrive to succeed in any enviornment. I just need to trust my personal instincts which sometimes very hard to do. I would like to say Thankyou, for the article by Chris Rock's wife Malaak Compton-Rock. This article is helping me to my thoughts into place and to take on new challenges in life that may not always require a paycheck in return but is the reward of joy and happiness that you can bring into another human beings life.

Comment by Kelly Gump on July 26, 2009 at 8:33pm: I saw Black in America II on CNN and saw Journey for Change featured...very powerful. I taught in a poor, rural school where many kids were like those who took part in the Journey for Change experience.