We know that volunteering is important to local communities, providing energy and ideas to help make events like Tulip Time or Nationals successful year after year but a lot of the benefits to volunteering aren’t so easily seen. Cheri Doane, Director of the Community Based Learning program at Central says integrating volunteering into curriculum is a good way to learn, by showing students how different parts of the community are connected. Kathy Krafka-Harkema, spokesperson for Pella Corporation says for a community to reach its potential, it must be a great place to live and volunteering is a way to give something back for the betterment of the community, the individual and the organizations involved.