East Lyme — First Selectman Mark Nickerson said that, in his travels around the community, he runs into a lot of people who want to serve the town but don't always know how to find opportunities to volunteer.

A new initiative, East Lyme Volunteer Corps, aims to solve that issue by helping people find ways to get involved. Similar to a matchmaking service, the program will match people who want to volunteer with the need for volunteerism, he said.

"It gives people an opportunity to give back to our town," Nickerson said.

People who at some point want to volunteer can sign up in the East Lyme Volunteer Corps database by clicking on the link available on the town website, eltownhall.com, and answering some questions about who they are and their interests and qualifications. Though it was designed with East Lyme residents in mind, one does not have to be a town resident to sign up. The information will be kept private, Nickerson said.

Those who sign up then will receive a monthly email that lists available volunteer opportunities. People then can review the opportunities, and decide whether or not they want to volunteer. If they do, they can follow the directions on how to start volunteering, such as by directly contacting the organization or showing up for an event.

Periodically, when a particular need arises — for example, for an electrician or plumber — specific individuals might be contacted to ask if they want to serve, he added.

Nickerson said he thinks there is a growing need for volunteers, as it is a time when municipal budgets are getting tighter and tighter; students are busier and faced with more outside activities, or may themselves need tutoring as they take more Advanced Placement and honors classes; and the aging population is looking for help getting groceries, traveling to doctor appointments and doing yard work.

Nonprofits, church groups, town facilities like the East Lyme Senior Center and East Lyme Public Library, and youth groups are examples of those that might be looking for volunteers.

Volunteer opportunities could include tutoring students, driving seniors to doctor appointments, participating in beach cleanup days or even becoming a potential "boardwalk ambassador" to help enforce rules for safety on the boardwalk, provide information and point people in the right direction.

If volunteers are needed to help out at events in town — for example, at the triathlon or the Niantic Lions Club's LobsterFest — this would also be a nice way to communicate the need ahead of time to those who wish to volunteer, Nickerson added. In the future, the database also could be used for regional events, he said.

The initiative, coordinated through the first selectman's office, is open to people of all ages. Nickerson envisions that many high-school students might use it to find volunteer opportunities.

Andrew Dezjot, a junior at East Lyme High School and a member of Boy Scout Troop 7, is helping with the initiative as his Eagle Scout project, after seeing a need in his community. Dezjot said he has heard from so many high school students who said they wished they could volunteer, whether for their college applications or to be a better person, but didn't know how to find volunteer opportunities.

"I saw there was a real gap in ways to find opportunities that would actually suit people, especially teenagers, in town," he said.

Nickerson said that while many people already volunteer in the community, for every person that volunteers, there may be two others who want to but don't know where to find opportunities to do so.

He said he believes there is "unprecedented town pride" in East Lyme, as people respect where they live and are grateful for the community.  

"I think this program will spark volunteerism and the opportunity to make our town even better," Nickerson said. "Our town is great because of the people. People step up and do things all the time in our town, and this will take volunteerism and paying it forward to the next level."

Within the next month, the first email blast listing all the available volunteer opportunities is slated to be sent to people who have signed up.

k.drelich@theday.com