Nearly 175 years ago, Alexis deTocqueville noted in his book “Democracy in America” that there was something very different about American democracy.

“Americans of all ages, all stations in life, and all types of disposition ... are forever forming associations. There are not only commercial and industrial associations in which all take part, but others of a thousand different types — religious, moral, serious, futile, very general and very limited, immensely large and very minute. ... Nothing, in my view, deserves more attention than the intellectual and moral associations in America.”

The United States, according to deTocqueville, was a nation of associations where people came together for common purpose resulting in a vibrant civil society of citizens who acted as a group to improve quality of life. Indeed, it is an active citizenry that makes a democracy work.

By 1993, this nation of joiners and citizens that so impressed deTocqueville had changed radically. Not only was a smaller percentage of citizens voting, but millions fewer were involved as volunteers and in civic organizations.

In his 2001 book “Bowling Alone,” Robert Putnam notes that though the U.S. has more houses of worship per capita than any country in the world, participation in religious services and other church-related activities has decreased by nearly 20 percent since 1960.

Membership in other organizations, such as the PTA, dropped from 12 million in 1964 to 7 million between 1960 to 1990. Boy Scouts volunteers decreased by 26 percent. There were 61 percent fewer volunteers helping the Red Cross during the same time.

So what if U.S. citizens don’t volunteer, aren’t engaged, don’t work with their neighbors to address troubling social issues?

The result is a society where trust is low, fear is high and still nothing improves.

Margaret Mead said it best: “Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

The social issues facing our country — hunger, illiteracy, homelessness, neglected children, forgotten senior citizens — are too big for any one person to take on alone. Unless people come together to change the things that break our hearts, erode their communities and reduce our standard of living, then our nation will become what we allow it to become.

What can one person do? Start by making a promise to be part of the solution. It doesn’t have to be a big promise, even small promises add up.

Make a commitment to say hello to the senior citizen who lives next door to you, ask if you can bring a meal over once per week. Offer to pick up the child of a mother who works when you take your own child to soccer practice.

Contact the Red Cross and see if it needs help for the next blood drive. Coach your child’s baseball team. Agree to be the greeter at church for a month.

What difference does volunteering make?

There’s a story about an old man walking the beach throwing beached starfishes back into the ocean. A little boy tells the old man that he is never going to make a difference to the thousands of starfishes on the shore.

Picking up one more starfish, he tells the boy as he returns the starfish to the water, “it matters to this one.”

Though there’s much to be done and the tasks may seem daunting, when you volunteer, it matters to this one. And when the volunteering opportunity is well suited to the volunteer, it matters to the volunteer also.

Volunteering gives you a sense of satisfaction, a chance to use your special talents, an opportunity to learn and practice new skills, and a peace of mind knowing you’ve made the difference to that one.

How can you get started? Begin by thinking about what’s important to you, what you love to do.

Next, find out which individuals or groups need your special skills. Go to www.volunteermatch.org and discover hundreds of options.

If you love art, find a way to share your talents; teach art to children, take a neighbor to a gallery, give one of your creations to a nursing home.

If you like to fish, contact a youth group to see if they’d like to have a fishing outing.

If you lost a family member to cancer, ‘adopt’ a family that is going through the same stress you experienced, make dinner for the family one day a week or sit with the ill person so the spouse can take a walk to clear her mind.

Use your imagination.

In the end, take the challenge to be the change you’d like to see in the world.

Tell others about your experiences as a volunteer. Build a group of thoughtful, committed citizens determined to leave the world a little brighter.

Alice Kaiser-Drobney is director of Slippery Rock University’s Institute for Community, Service-Learning, and Nonprofit Leadership. The institute coordinates SRU’s volunteer and community outreach initiatives. For information go to http://academics.sru.edu/TheInstitute/index.html or contact the Institute via email at theinstitute@sru.edu or by phone at 724-738-CARE.