To stay organized, Yvonne Stoffey keeps notebooks and information in separate bags.

It’s a way she can easily grab what she needs and head to her volunteer meetings.

And there are quite a few.

“I just love to give back to the community and make improvements in our town. I like to help with anything I can,” explained Stoffey, of Coaldale. “I love working with a group that has a common goal of working toward something for the better.”

Stoffey volunteers with the Panther Valley Women’s Club, Black Diamond Parrot Head Club, Coaldale Community Crime Watch, Friends of the Lansford Pool, Coaldale Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary, Coaldale American Legion Auxiliary and the American Cancer Society Telethon Committee.

“All the groups I’m in, they’re little. There are fewer and fewer volunteers but they are consistent and dedicated. I love them all and if you asked me my favorite, I wouldn’t be able to tell you,” Stoffey said. “I enjoy all of them.”

Stoffey was also very involved with Coaldale C.H.O.S.E. and has helped with her current church, St. Joseph of Summit Hill, in the kitchen during bingo games, church festivals and holiday food deliveries.

She began volunteering as a teenager with her church, the former St. Cyril and Methodius Church, Coaldale. She remembered manning the hot dog stand during festivals.

“They never ran out of them because they could always go to the store and get more, so I was always one of the last stands open,” she smiled.

From volunteering, Stoffey said she’s met a lot of wonderful people. Many of the groups raise funds for local fire departments, food pantries and those in need.

“I just want people to know that there are a lot of good people and they are trying,” she said.

Stoffey finds time to be involved despite working a full-time job as a supports coordinator for Expert Community Care Management. In that role, she helps people with autism and intellectual disabilities find services, and keeps a check on them to make sure they’re living the best lives they can.

It’s a job she loves.

“I think that’s part of the giving,” she explained. “I think it comes so natural because you’re constantly advocating and wanting to make things better for people.”

Stoffey encouraged others to get involved. She noted that many groups have Facebook pages and more information can be found there.

“If anybody is looking to get involved with anything, we are always looking,” she said. “They are all small groups but they are wonderful.”

In addition, Stoffey serves on the Coaldale Borough Council.

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