National Volunteer Week: “Without Volunteers, Our Community Wouldn’t Exist”

April 22nd, 2010 - Posted by OneStar Foundation - No Comments

Every day, millions of volunteers give one of their most valuable commodities: their time. And National Volunteer Week (April 18-24, 2010) is the perfect opportunity for communities to take a moment and tell volunteers how much they are appreciated, and how much of an impact their efforts have had.

In honor of National Volunteer Week, we wrote to Brandi Willis Schreiber, Community Impact Volunteer Director at the Volunteer Center of Lubbock, and asked her to share her thoughts on volunteering and volunteer recognition. When we asked her why volunteering is important, she thoughtfully replied, “The answer to this question probably depends upon whom you ask. If you asked a volunteer why volunteering is important, he or she might say, ‘Because it makes me feel good,’ or ‘I get to make my community a better place.’ If you asked an organization why volunteering is important, their staff might say, ‘It helps us meet the needs of our clients,’ or ‘We couldn’t survive without them!’ And to ask a community why volunteering is important, you could simply look around and see all the good that otherwise wouldn’t happen without the time, resources and commitment from volunteers. The truth is, volunteering is important for all these reasons. It’s a personalized, purposeful action that provides profound results, impacting real people and changing the face of community issues.”

Schreiber also stressed the importance of celebrating volunteers on both a small and large scale, both immediately after an activity and at once-a-year events. At the Volunteer Center of Lubbock, thank-you e-mails are sent shortly after volunteers participate in a project. In addition, the center holds two annual volunteer recognition events: the Cornucopia Luncheon, where individuals, businesses, students and families nominated by the community are honored for their exemplary service; and a Celebration of Service, a youth-centered event that spotlights student volunteers. For National Volunteer Week, the center will be hosting a special Day of Service on Saturday, April 24, 2010. “Volunteers will help us clean up and beautify the grounds and gardens around our center,” said Schreiber. “It will be a great way for people to do a simple project that makes a big impact!”

One of the most remarkable attributes of volunteering is that it can empower and strengthen the volunteer as well as the people they are helping. “In volunteers, I encounter true humility,” Schreiber says. “I meet volunteers all the time who want to change their life, find a job, overcome personal difficulty or live up to the individuals they want to be. A young man from another country came to the Volunteer Center of Lubbock because he wanted to give back to our community. However, he feared that people wouldn’t accept him because he was from another country. After working with him to find the right volunteer fit, he ended up helping someone learn how to read and trained other volunteers. I was touched so much by his humility and courage! I think of him every time I meet a potential volunteer. Without volunteers, our community wouldn’t exist.”

The Volunteer Center of Lubbock is open Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information on the Day of Service, contact the Volunteer Center of Lubbock at (806) 747-0551 or volunteer@volunteerlubbock.org.

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Guest Blogger: Jonathan Wallace, Volunteer Center of North Texas

April 21st, 2010 - Posted by OneStar Foundation - No Comments

Today’s guest blogger is Jonathan Wallace, Manager of Youth Volunteer Corps at the Volunteer Center of North Texas. All Collin, Dallas and Tarrant County residents who are interested in volunteering are welcome to contact the Volunteer Center of North Texas for more information on the opportunities that are available to them.

Every week is National Volunteer Week at the Volunteer Center of North Texas (VCNT). With more than 1,400 member agencies across North Texas, we play matchmaker every week to citizens looking for ways to serve in their community.

No matter what your age may be, or why you are choosing to serve, volunteering is one of the most important things a human being can do. By taking the time to serve someone else, a volunteer helps to provide basic needs to others and to their community. These acts of service pave the way for positive change in relationships, homes, neighborhoods and communities.

Volunteering can be performed in different ways and does not always have to involve a long-term commitment. Due to the busy schedules of people today, the VCNT finds that more and more groups want to volunteer through a short- term project, typically on a weekend. When an individual inquires about volunteering, we guide them towards the best opportunity that fits their desire and focus. Utilizing HandsOnNorthTexas.org as the online outlet for finding volunteer opportunities throughout the North Texas region, more than 79,500 referrals are provided annually. The VCNT also reaches out to the next generation through Youth Volunteer Corps of North Texas, sponsored by State Farm Companies Foundation. Youth Volunteer Corps of North Texas is a civic engagement and leadership development program that promotes service learning for students in middle school and high school.

While volunteering is critical and important, so is recognizing them. Volunteers give their time, energy and skills to tasks that usually would not be completed without them. They are critical to moving the missions of our organizations forward. The very least we must do to sustain the efforts of volunteers is to take the time and recognize their achievements. At the VCNT, we recognize our volunteers in several ways. From a random hug and “Thank you” in the hallway, to putting on our cowboy hats, belt buckles and spurs so that we can celebrate them with a Lone Star Salute!, our tri-county event honoring volunteers who served in their community the previous year. Our first Lone Star Salute! of 2010 will take place during National Volunteer Week on Thursday, April 22, 2010, at the Plano Centre in Collin County. We will hold Lone Star Salute! events for Tarrant and Dallas County residents later this year.

In addition to holding Lone Star Salute!, we will also be celebrating National Volunteer Week through our Student Engagement Department’s promotion of Global Youth Service Day on Saturday, April 24, 2010. Global Youth Service Day is the largest service event in the world, engaging millions of youth in more than 100 countries. With more than a dozen Global Youth Service Day projects occurring throughout the North Texas region, there are plenty of opportunities for volunteers to engage in service!

Because of volunteers, children are mentored and nurtured, the hungry are fed, those in pain have a shoulder to cry on and communities that once were broken begin to be healed. Volunteers recognize that it is not a choice to give back to their communities, but rather a civic responsibility. With this attitude, join others during National Volunteer Week to create positive change in your community.

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Because of a Volunteer

April 20th, 2010 - Posted by OneStar Foundation - No Comments

Imagine a world without volunteers.

So much depends upon volunteers—each of them. Every day, volunteers help to provide social services to Texans. They are a crucial part of nonprofits’ efforts to solve community challenges. If there were no volunteers, the world—our world, yours and mine—would be a very different place.

Because of volunteers, many crucial social services are provided, including food delivery, student tutoring, self-sufficiency programs for the homeless, college application assistance, health and wellness information and so much more. Because of volunteers, people receive assistance in rebuilding their lives. Volunteers engage in many different activities, depending on the organization they work with; but they all have that in common—they help to rebuild lives.

Because of volunteers, 556.6 million hours of service were given by 4.1 million Texans from September 2007 to September 2008. Roughly 23% of Texans—nearly one in four people—chose to help fellow Texans by volunteering1.

Here is our challenge to you: Imagine a world in which you are volunteering. What will you do? Who do you want to help? Which lives will you help rebuild?

National Volunteer Week is April 18-24, 2010. Will you join your fellow 4.1 million Texans and be a part of changing your community for the better? Your local volunteer center can help you find the right opportunity, as can the following online volunteering resources:

Imagine what can be done because you are a volunteer. Then, make it happen.

1 These statistics can be found in the Corporation for National and Community Service’s “Volunteering in America” report.

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Mark Your Calendar for Service Events and Deadlines

January 5th, 2010 - Posted by OneStar Foundation - No Comments

Happy New Year! As you break out your 2010 calendar, make sure you add the following events and deadlines to it. These are just some of the many service-related events going on this year:

  • January: National Mentoring Month. The Web site NationalMentoringMonth.org has information about finding mentors, serving as a mentor, partnering with mentoring organizations and more.
  • January 15: Deadline for Coccia Award Nominations. The first-annual Gladys Marinelli Coccia Award through Youth Services America honors young female social entrepreneurs. More information on eligibility is available here.
  • January 18: Martin Luther King Jr. Day. What will you be doing for the first national service day of 2010? Find or post a project through MLKDay.gov or Serve.gov.  In addition, an online project toolkit is available at MLKMobilization.org.
  • January 29: Deadline for Disney Friends for Change Grants. Disney and Youth Service America will distribute 150 $500 grants toward projects that engage children’s service projects focusing on the environment. More information can be found here.
  • February 22: Deadline for Get Ur Good On Grants. Youth Services America and celebrity Miley Cyrus are sponsoring 100 $500 grants for youth services projects to take place on Global Youth Services Day. More information is available here. 
  • March 24-27: National Service-Learning Conference. This year, the country’s largest service-learning conference will be held in San Jose, California. Visit their Web site to learn more and to register.
  • April 18-24: National Volunteer Week. Points of Light sponsors this weeklong celebration of volunteering. Start planning your project now!
  • April 23-25: Global Youth Services Day. Be a part of the largest youth-oriented service-learning celebration in the world. Visit GYSD.org to post your project or find a project.
  • May 1: Join Hands Day. This national service day brings adults and young people together to make a difference in their communities. Go to JoinHandsDay.org to find or post a service project.
  • May 9-15: AmeriCorps Week. What are you doing for AmeriCorps Week? AmeriCorpsWeek.gov can help you find a project, post a project or get ideas for creating a project. The Web site also offers tools to help you spread the word about your AmeriCorps Week project.
  • September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance. Officially designated by the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, this day is a nationwide opportunity to strengthen communities and bring people together through service. More information can be found on Serve.gov.
  • October 23: Make A Difference Day. USA Weekend magazine began this day of service for people of all ages. Find or post a service project through their Web site.
  • November: Family Volunteer Day. Sponsored by Disney and Points of Light, this event encourages families to get involved in volunteering together. Information on the 2009 Family Volunteer Day can be found here.
  • Various dates: Grant deadlines. Don’t forget to check ServiceWire.org for different grant opportunities and their deadlines!

Are there additional service-related dates that you have already added to your 2010 calendar? Share them with us in the Comments section!

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Finding Volunteer Opportunities Online

April 24th, 2009 - Posted by OneStar Foundation - No Comments

National Volunteer Week is about celebrating and thanking current volunteers.  But this week can also an opportunity for people who are not currently volunteering to find the right volunteer opportunity.

Here are just a few of the larger Web sites out there that may help you find multiple opportunities that are in your area and fit your criteria:

  • Volunteer Match.  Search this Web site for volunteer opportunities by city/ZIP code and keywords.
  • ServeNet.org.  This Web site was created by Youth Service America and iBelong Networks.
  • 1-800-Volunteer.  The Hands On Network manages this Web site.
  • Serve.gov.  The Corporation for National and Community Service manages this government Web site, which lists opportunities gathered from Volunteer Match, ServeNet.org, 1-800-Volunteer and more.
  • DoSomething.org This online community connects teens with service opportunities based on specific causes.
  • Idealist.org.  Volunteer opportunities are listed on this online community for nonprofits, run by Action Without Borders.
  • AmeriCorps.  Are you interested in national service?  This Web site explains the different AmeriCorps opportunities that are available.
  • 2-1-1 Texas.  You can dial 2-1-1 any time and anywhere in Texas to locate health- and human service-related information, such as local volunteer opportunities.

Again, this list is by no means exhaustive. We’d love to hear from you on where novice volunteers can go to find the right opportunity!  What Web sites would you recommend?

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