Jacqueline McDonald’s passion for volunteerism is driven by all avenues of her life.

She currently serves on the board of the Tennessee Action Council, which has two primary missions: Project Life and Helping Hands. Project Life supplies mobile ultrasound units to pregnancy centers, while Helping Hands supplies duffle bags to the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) for use by foster children. Additionally, she works with other foster care-focused organizations and with the veteran community.

When asked how she began her journey as a volunteer, Jaqueline immediately refers to her mother. Though she and her sister did not realize it as children, their single-parent household was impoverished, and their mom received government assistance to get by. Like many others in this situation, Jacqueline assumed that everyone lived the way they did and were “barely scraping by”. She noted that once her mother got back on her feet, she was able to give back to her community. This set an example for her children that Jacqueline was sure to remember.

Following mother’s lead, Jaqueline wants to continue the habit of giving back in hopes of inspiring her own children. Though they are still young, she brings them to fundraisers and events and continually reminds them who these efforts are for.

Though much of Jaqueline’s volunteer work is in Middle Tennessee, she had an opportunity to assist missionary volunteers in San Luis, Mexico where her understanding of the term “poverty” had grown immensely.

“It brings a new meaning to the level of poor,” she says in describing the lean-to homes made of cardboard. “The biggest thing I learned about being on that mission trip is the meaning and the importance behind a hand up and not a handout.”

In Mexico, Jacqueline encountered determined individuals who only needed “somebody to invest in them” in order to make a situation better for themselves. She returned to San Luis a year later to finish remodeling a building for a nail salon and learned that the business owner had taught her newfound skills to seven other people. This passing of knowledge, and the influence of her mother, sparked Jacqueline’s awareness.

Since then, she now knows that her version of poverty was but one of many and that the most beneficial way for someone to give back is through education. Jacqueline says that passing knowledge and teaching skills welcomes a “constant cycle”.

Jacqueline encourages listeners who want to give back by saying that nothing is ever too small. Whether it is a ten dollar donation or a couple hours each month, a small thing from one person may make a huge difference to another.

To hear Jacqueline’s story, listen to her interview on our Podcast.