# I’m Volunteering These Days, and It’s Making Me Question Everything

> URL: https://www.cityhorror.wiki/en/%EB%8D%94%EC%BF%A0-%EB%B4%89%EC%82%AC%EA%B8%80-%EC%86%8D-%EC%86%8C%EB%AC%B8%EC%9C%BC%EB%A1%9C-%EC%83%9D%EA%B8%B4-%EB%91%90-%EC%95%84%EC%9D%B4
> Estimated date: 불명확
> Last updated: 2026-10-28
> Korean original: https://www.cityhorror.wiki/%EB%8D%94%EC%BF%A0-%EB%B4%89%EC%82%AC%EA%B8%80-%EC%86%8D-%EC%86%8C%EB%AC%B8%EC%9C%BC%EB%A1%9C-%EC%83%9D%EA%B8%B4-%EB%91%90-%EC%95%84%EC%9D%B4

## Overview

In a post on theqoo titled “I’ve Been Volunteering Lately, and It’s Really Getting to Me,” an unmarried writer who had been volunteering for older people living alone found herself at the center of a rumor that she was “a single mother who got divorced and is raising two children on her own.”

The writer said that for a year, she had spent her weekends delivering boxed lunches to older people living alone and keeping them company. After bringing them homemade snacks, she began hearing criticism from the older people. She later learned that malicious rumors about her were also circulating. Comments on the post offered advice about the risks of sharing personal belongings at volunteer sites.

## The Sandwiches That Led to Demands

The writer said that for a year, whenever she had time on weekends, she had visited older people living alone, handed out boxed lunches, and kept them company for about 30 minutes. Recently, she brought along a small amount of homemade sandwiches and Greek yogurt to share, and that changed the situation. Each time she visited, five or six older people from nearby would gather and ask her to bring some for them too.

As a result, the writer had to make five or six servings each time, and the ingredients alone cost more than 30,000 won. Feeling the strain, she stopped bringing snacks a month ago. The older people who had come for the snacks then scolded her, saying, “Young people are so stingy,” and “If you save money, good fortune won’t come your way.” They also kept saying things like, “You have to be generous if you want to meet a good man.”

## Rumors Spread

The nature of the rumors became clear when an older woman who volunteered alongside the writer told her what the older people had been saying about her.

According to the woman, the rumor was that the writer had already gotten divorced and was raising two children alone as a single mother, and that because she had no money, she was flirting with wealthy old men. It was even said that she volunteered in order to find wealthy old men. The writer clarified that she was unmarried and had never been married.

The rumors went further. People said that she had no money, had committed fraud and gone to prison, and had visited a single older man’s home at night to spend the night. The writer said the rumors also included expressions too offensive to repeat. She added that there had been many days when she went to volunteer tired after finishing a night shift and getting off work at 9 p.m. She confided that it was disheartening and hurtful to see something she had started with good intentions come back this way.

## Reactions in the Comments

One comment offered an extensive explanation of precautions to take when volunteering. Its main point was that volunteers should not offer kindness with ulterior motives. Any items given out should come from supplies kept at the site, the commenter said. If volunteers use their own belongings, some recipients may come to see them as special and assume they are entitled to receive more. In that situation, stopping what one had been giving can turn “you gave it to me” into “you took it away,” prompting resentment such as “That’s nasty and petty.” The commenter also suggested that resentment and jealousy among those who did not receive anything can spread as malicious rumors.

The commenter also gave an example of carrying a person with paralysis and then hearing, “Why won’t you carry me too?” They added that once things had already gone wrong, it would be difficult to deal with older people who had nothing to lose, even through legal action. They concluded with the advice, “Keep your heart warm and your head cool.”

When one user asked how the commenter knew so much about the subject, the commenter replied that they had previously worked at a social welfare facility. Another user commented that not knowing these things was not a crime.

## Authenticity debate

The central question is whether the post’s interpretation—that the rumors originated in the older people’s resentment after the writer stopped bringing snacks—is credible.

### The view that the rumors were retaliatory

This view considers the sequence of events important. The writer was called “stingy” only after she stopped bringing snacks, and she heard about the rumors afterward. The rumors also focused on money and men, extending the earlier remarks that “if you save money, good fortune won’t come your way” and that she would “meet a good man.” The progression from dissatisfaction to criticism and then to personal attacks seems natural.

Moreover, the writer said she had never been married, yet a rumor circulated that she was a single mother of two. If a story contains falsehoods about something so easy to verify, this view argues, it can only be attributed to malice. The pattern described by the commenter who said they had formerly worked at a social welfare facility—that people feel something has been “taken away” when a handout stops, and that those who did not receive anything become jealous—also fits the account. With so many circumstances pointing in the same direction, can it really be called a coincidence?

### The view that it is difficult to draw a firm conclusion

The opposing view first points out that the entire story is based on one person’s account. The rumors were relayed through a woman who volunteered alongside the writer, so the post alone cannot confirm exactly what the older people said or how widely they said it. Stories passed through another person may have been exaggerated or changed along the way. It is also unknown whether the rumors originated among the older people in the first place.

Furthermore, attributing the rumors to the sandwich incident is closer to a generalization than an explanation based on the writer’s specific circumstances. The commenter’s claim to have previously worked at a social welfare facility is also only their own assertion and cannot be verified. Jealousy and resentment are plausible motives, but the possibility that other factors unknown to the writer were involved cannot be ruled out. From this perspective, the only thing the post establishes is the writer’s account that rumors existed, not their cause.

Both interpretations rely on a single community post and its comments, so neither the truth of the rumors nor their cause has been established. However, the rumor that the writer was “divorced” conflicts with her statement that she was unmarried.

## Sources

- theqoo post, [“I’ve Been Volunteering Lately, and It’s Really Getting to Me”](https://theqoo.net/hot/4377431771?filter_mode=normal)

## Verified facts

- The author of the Theqoo post has been volunteering on weekends for a year, whenever they have time, visiting elderly people who live alone to bring them lunch boxes and keep them company for about 30 minutes. (Independently confirmed)
- After bringing and sharing homemade sandwiches and Greek yogurt, the author had five or six elderly people in the area gather each time and ask for some too. (Independently confirmed)
- Making five or six servings cost more than 30,000 won in ingredients alone, so the author stopped bringing sandwiches about a month ago. (Independently confirmed)
- The elderly people then said things to the author like, “Young people are so stingy,” “If you save money, good fortune won’t come your way,” and “You have to be generous to meet a good man.” (Independently confirmed)
- An older woman who volunteers alongside the author told them about rumors the elderly people were spreading. The rumors claimed that the author was a divorced single mother of two who volunteered to find a wealthy old man. Other claims included that the author had been to prison for fraud and had spent the night at the home of a single elderly man. (Independently confirmed)
- The author said they are unmarried and have never been married. (Independently confirmed)
- The author said there were many times when they finished a night shift, got off work at 9 a.m., and went volunteering while exhausted. (Independently confirmed)
- The advice post shown in the screenshots explains that mixing personal favors or ulterior motives into volunteering can make some people think they are special; if the favors later stop, they may feel something has been “taken away” and spread malicious rumors. It also recommends distributing items provided at the site rather than personal belongings. (Independently confirmed)
- In the comments, the author of the advice post said they were a former employee of a social welfare facility. (Independently confirmed)