COMMENTARY ON VOLUNTEERISM : The Postcard’s Beautiful but There’s Ugliness in Background : In case you hadn’t noticed, not everyone in fantasyland is doing fine. It’s your call whether to make a real difference.

Each day in Orange County, thousands of tourists pass by and purchase postcards of our beautiful county. The cerulean blue skies, the peaceful harbors, the graceful swallows, the sensuous beaches all attest to the fact that we live in a virtual Nirvana of tranquillity and beauty.

We like that here. Many of us moved here for those very reasons--the fun, the sun, the laid-back lifestyle, the affluence.

However, all is not so good in our fantasyland--there’s trouble lurking behind the postcard, and some of us haven’t noticed yet.

If we were all the postcards would promote, then perhaps there would not be a record 240,000 alcoholics in treatment programs in the county, or the highest rate of diagnosed breast cancer in California.

Perhaps we have neglected the fact that AIDS was the leading cause of death among Orange County residents ages 25 to 44 in 1990, and most likely in ’91 and ’92.

Yes, lurking and surviving, if you can call it that, along our sensuous beaches and byways are an estimated 380,000 low-income persons who are at risk of hunger and malnutrition on a daily basis.

Perhaps with the brightness of the sun, or the darkness of our Ray Bans it is difficult to see the estimated 10,000 homeless who must diligently seek out our 1,000 available shelter beds each evening.

Maybe the days of 80-degree weather cause us to forget the 779 victims of floods, mudslides, tornadoes and fires the Red Cross served last year.

Perhaps our days with our families at Disneyland or Knott’s Berry Farm have pacified us past the point of noticing the 500 women and children served by Interval House for physical and sexual abuse.

Of course, the problem isn’t that we don’t care.

The problem is that we don’t do anything about it.

We must recognize that Orange County is a microcosm of the entire nation; no corner of our county goes untouched or untroubled by societal ills.

We used to be much more responsive to giving money to solve these ills in our county, more ready in fact to give our cash than to volunteer.

For so affluent a county, the figures are appalling.

In 1989, nationally, households donated an average of $738, while in our county we gave only $223. We must have thought that even that was too much, for in 1991 we dropped the average donation to $146.

So our county nonprofit agencies struggling against the oncoming tide of social problems are robbed of helping hands, possible professional expertise and the money to keep the doors open.

Money will never be enough to solve the problem, and if we are going to be a county where people count, money should never be enough. We simply can’t pay someone to care.

According to the most recent Gallup Poll, 54% of all Americans (nationally) volunteer in some capacity each year, whereas here in Orange County, the land of leisure, the land with also a notably-recorded amount of leisure time for residents, our statistic falls miserably at 29%.

Think about that. Only 29% of our county’s residents volunteer. (In a recent survey that 29% is comprised of mostly senior adults and students.) What are the rest of us doing on Saturday afternoon, or Monday evening?

It is a fairly simple proposition. We must put our caring into action. We must put “drive into the jive.” Volunteering into the community.

We have every available statistic to prove that volunteers enjoy a great sense of satisfaction in helping others, solving problems and working on projects they believe in.

Volunteers actually live longer on the average. Volunteers get to meet new people, make new friends, learn new skills. Seniors give years of valuable experience where it’s needed, youths get the value of work experience and professionals can lend their expertise to nonprofit agencies which could not otherwise afford their services.

Volunteers battle against a void in morals and values. Volunteers set a positive example. Volunteers provide the lifeblood for Orange County’s nonprofit community.

It is relatively simple and pain-free to volunteer, much easier than waiting at the DMV or driving on the Riverside Freeway. How? One phone call and you can join the growing army of Orange County volunteers. One phone call to the Volunteer Center of Greater Orange County (647-2600), the county’s clearinghouse for volunteer information and opportunities will get you to the charitable organization that meets your needs and skills.

Not to be too dramatic, but that one phone call could change your life--and the life of Orange County. Make that call today.

Let’s work together to make a difference and make those postcards a reality once again.