As we enter the New Year, many people have resolved to help out in their community through volunteer work in 2025. Volunteering your time is more than just a way to give back—it's a way to nourish your mental, physical, and emotional well-being. If you’re passionate about natural conservation and education, you might be the perfect volunteer for Intermountain Health’s longtime partner, the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance (DZCA). Brianna Cronin, DZCA’s Volunteer Coordinator, provides all the details on how your unique talents can improve your health and make a difference for animals, your community, and global conservation efforts.
Improving Your Mental Health Through Connection
When considering the health benefits of volunteering, mental health is probably the first thing that comes to mind. Volunteering has been shown to increase levels of serotonin in the brain. This "happy chemical" leaves you feeling calm and satisfied, helping to lower feelings of anxiety and depression.
Recent studies show that volunteering is not only good for the soul, but has a range of health benefits. Volunteering can bring positive change to your life in surprising ways.
Volunteering provides you with a sense of purpose. Humans need these intentions set to maintain good moods, resilience in the face of adversity, and motivation. One of the easiest ways to cultivate purpose, or the feeling that your life is valuable and important, is by making sure you feel like what you contribute matters. Volunteering is a great way to use your talents and skills to foster a sense of purpose by helping your community. This increased sense of purpose can help with brain chemical imbalances, heal past traumas, and manage stress in adults of all ages.
“By stepping up to help with so many different tasks, volunteers are providing staff with the opportunity to complete the tasks they are uniquely qualified to do,” Cronin said.
Working with animals might even give you an added boost of serotonin! Working with or around animals, like those at DZCA, can provide a much-needed sense of calm and reduced feelings of stress, leading to an added boost in mental health.
Volunteering Is Good for the Heart: Physical Benefits
It’s not just a turn of phrase! Studies from the American Journal of Preventive Medicine have shown that volunteer work could help lower your risk for heart disease. In fact, your entire circulatory system may benefit from just a few hours of volunteer work weekly. Other studies have shown that volunteer work helps increase levels of “good” HDL cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and decrease blood glucose levels, especially in participants over 40 years of age. Your risk of having a stroke or developing heart disease also lowers significantly. While doctors are working to figure out why volunteer work is so beneficial to our cardiovascular health, it’s theorized that this could be due to the proven stress-relieving and mental health benefits of volunteer work.
As we get older, finding ways to exercise enough becomes more difficult, especially for adults at or nearing retirement age. According to the National Institute of Health, only 30% of adults aged 45 to 65 get enough exercise. Luckily, your bones and muscles get a boost from volunteer work as well. The walking, lifting, and gentle movement you get from volunteer work can strengthen your bones and muscles and decrease your risk of developing osteoporosis. Volunteering can also help you lose weight, build muscle, and decrease body fat, which can help you manage chronic conditions such as diabetes.
For most DZCA volunteers, their work involves moving around, getting those steps in, and improving physical health for a good cause.
“Volunteers support by cleaning, chopping diets, providing education to guests, maintaining the beautiful landscaping, collecting valuable animal observation data, and more,” Cronin said.
We once wrote about how mindset affects pain perception. Because volunteering improves your headspace, it can serve as a painkiller. When you immerse yourself in meaningful activities, your brain's focus shifts away from pain, providing temporary relief.
The sense of purpose from helping others can positively impact your perception of pain. It's a win-win situation for your health and those you help.
Get a Social-Emotional Boost
Your emotional health, while often ignored, is important to maintaining both your mental and physical well-being. 34% of seniors and 40% of adults living with disabilities report feelings of loneliness and isolation, which can lead to increased stress, poor mental health, and an increase in risk factors for debilitating illnesses like heart disease, substance abuse, and dementia. Many people, especially older adults or adults with disabilities, can turn to volunteer programs like the ones at DZCA to help foster connections and make friends. In fact, about 35% of volunteers say that social interaction is one of the main reasons they choose to contribute their efforts.
“In a post-COVID volunteer world, we are seeing more volunteers than ever prioritize social connection as part of their volunteer experience,” Cronin said.
Volunteering anywhere can provide a wonderful social network of people who share your passion, leading to decreased feelings of loneliness and isolation and increased self-confidence. The social-emotional connection you find through volunteering provides a wonderful array of health benefits, from increased satisfaction and healthier habits to boosted immunity against colds and viruses!
The volunteers at the DZCA are committed to socializing and sharing experiences together. Cronin says she and the volunteers have started a book club to stay connected and explore their passions in a fun way.
“We read a book together (often animal-themed, of course) and meet monthly. This relatively informal format allows volunteers to spend time with each other and with staff, and take the opportunity to reflect on the book, and even share how we might incorporate some aspect of the reading into our volunteer program. One of the biggest motivators for our volunteers is learning new information, and the book club provides a really wonderful outlet for that desire. Book club participation has even led to volunteers getting together in other informal spaces to learn from each other,” Cronin said.
How to Get Involved
DZCA has plenty of opportunities to get involved. On any given day, 50+ volunteers are needed in all corners of their campus. From gardening to education to animal diet prep, you’re sure to find a way to contribute your unique set of skills to help your community and the conservation of our natural world. Volunteer applications are open from January 10th-24th, 2025. Cronin’s advice is to apply early, since the number of applications the zoo receives is often greater than the number of volunteers they need.
“During each application window, we receive 2-3 times the number of applications as we have positions available, so we encourage individuals to apply again if they are not selected,” Cronin said.
Other application windows include March 26th-April 1st for Safari camp helpers, and a fall window which has yet to be determined.
Too far away from the DZCA to apply? Looking to make a difference in the healthcare world? Consider donating your time and skills to an Intermountain Health hospital near you.