Indiana Chapter

Volunteer Today

There are many ways you can get involved to support the LFA and its urgent mission.

Volunteer

The Lupus Foundation of America, Indiana Chapter needs your help! If you want to invest your time and talents in an organization that is helping those affected by lupus, then we have a place for you. We have a very small staff and an enormous amount of work to be done.

The LFA, Indiana Chapter needs assistance in reaching lupus patients across the state and educating them about our organization. Based on 2006 census information, it is estimated that 34,187 of Indiana’s 6,313,520 residents have lupus. (Statistically, it is estimated that 1 out of every 185 Americans in the U.S. have lupus.) If that calculation is correct, then 2,671 residents in Lake County have lupus, 865 residents in Porter County have lupus and 597 residents in LaPorte County have lupus. Our current membership is slightly above 200; we have a lot of lupus patients to educate about the chapter! (Lake: 494,202 residents, Porter: 160,105 residents and LaPorte: 110,479 residents)

What can you do?

  • Serve on a committee or volunteer to chair an event such as Walk for Lupus Now in Central Indiana or Walk for Lupus Now in Northwest Indiana, the Chili Cook-Off & Tasting, Patient Educaiton Symposium, Strike Out Lupus or Lupus Alert Day. 
  • Distribute information to medical professionals about the chapter. The LFA needs help distributing the national Lupus Now magazine, local chapter newsletters, patient packets and event information to medical professionals.  Distribute information to your doctor at appointments or deliver information on a regular basis to medical centers. Information can be picked up from the chapter office on a monthly basis. (Please don’t limit yourself to "lupus specialists." Every medical professional should be familiar with the symptoms of lupus and the LFA!)
  • Distribute information about lupus to libraries in your town on a monthly basis. (Lupus Now, chapter newsletter, event information.) Volunteers need to pick up materials from the chapter office in Portage on a monthly basis.
  • Notify the LFA, Indiana chapter of dates and locations of upcoming Indiana health fairs.
  • Submit short articles about LFA activities and lupus to my company newsletter or church bulletin.
  • Volunteer to work four hours at health fairs.
  • Solicit door prizes/donations for various events.
  • Assist with office duties (answering phones, data entry, filing etc.)
  • Be a Lupus Advocate. An advocate educates government officials about lupus and its health impact to insure that proper resources will be made available to lead the fight against the disease. Whether through a letter, fax, email message, phone call, or face-to-face meeting with your U.S. Representative or Senators, you can help get action on legislation important to people with lupus. Make no mistake about it; your voice does make a difference. You can become a lupus advocate. You don't have to be an expert in government affairs. Just share your knowledge about lupus. Tell your elected officials that they need to take action now to address this urgent national health problem. We need you, your family, friends, co-workers, and physicians to contact Congress and urge elected officials to support legislation important to lupus patients and their families. Go to http://www.lupus.org/support/advocate.html for more information.
  • Board of Directors – Three director positions will open up for fiscal year October 1, 2010 through September 30, 2013.
  • Advisory Board – This board is for people looking for a short term commitment. The board meets three times a year. The Advisory Board is for people who want to provide community service with a nonprofit organization. Volunteer opportunities include, but are not limited to, Education Committee, Resource Development Committee, Budget/Finance Committee or serving on one of our fundraising committees; Chili Cook-off, Strike Out Lupus, and/or Walk for Lupus Now.
    Grant Writer – An individual to research and write grants to support educational programs, projects, and capacity building grants.
  • Governance Committee – An individual who can use their skills and knowledge in Human Resources to develop policies and procedures, review job descriptions, and who can help organize the details needed for filling positions on the Board of Directors and Committee Chairs.

The Chapter was founded by volunteers in 1987 and continues to use the support of loyal volunteers to promote the mission of this organization. There are many ways to volunteer. We always need help and you can participate in many different ways -- how much and how long is always up to you. We are very flexible!

If you are interested in volunteering, please e-mail us or call (219) 762-6575 or 800-948-8806 toll free.