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Measuring the Strength of Your Volunteer Program: Summer of Service

Each Monday during our Summer of Service, we're privileged to be featuring a fantastic guest blogger sharing his or her unique and personal perspective on service, volunteering and citizen philanthropy. Today, please welcome Chris Jarvis, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expert and the founder of Realized Worth. Chris reminds us that when it comes to volunteering, the number of people showing up may not be the best measurement of success. The true test of your volunteering program’s strength and sustainability lies elsewhere. Let's find out where....thanks, Chris!

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Measuring the Strength of Your Volunteer Program

by Chris Jarvis

I talk to companies every week about employee volunteer programs. It doesn’t seem to matter if the company is local business or a multi-national Fortune 500 corporation. Invariably the conversation begins with the question of how to get more employees to participate as volunteers. Next, we explore how the volunteering program fits within the company and what the outcomes have been so far. Finally, we talk about metrics. What is the data telling you? Usually, this brings us right back to the beginning of the conversation: participation rates and how to increase that number.

It makes sense that a successful corporate volunteer program is well attended by employees, but that’s not necessarily an indication of strength or sustainability. So in these conversations I try to share at least two alternative measures to use that get at the health of a volunteering program.

1. Motivation. Why are people volunteering?

Understanding the reasons why people participate is essential to discovering the program’s long term potential.  When people volunteer for the first time, they are usually motivated extrinsically. This is completely normal. We all want to help; give back; make a difference. But if we’ve not volunteered before, we usually don’t “own” these motivations. Instead, they are extrinsic to our personal lives and they exist outside of us. They are not intimate. While extrinsic motivations are important, they are not deeply rooted in our personalities.

Eventually, if volunteering programs are designed well, people will begin to discover their intrinsic motivations for volunteering. Intrinsic motivations are tied to our sense of self. This kind of motivation is connected to who we are. It is essential that people transition from a general sense of ‘it’s the right thing to do’ to highly personal reasons.  Why? Obviously the more we are personally invested, the greater our commitment. The question isn’t, “How many people are showing up?” but rather, “How much of each person showed up.”

Follow this link for a video of me discussing motivation.


2. Movement. Do your volunteers feel like they’re getting anything done?

Clearly outlining a beginning point, milestones, expectations and measurements for success will give your volunteers a sense of progress.

One of the single greatest culprits in stealing a new volunteers enthusiasm is a lack of movement. Coming back to the same situation over and over again without seeing any progress is disheartening and emotionally exhausting. If you don’t know whether your volunteers feel like they are making a difference, you’re missing the key metric that speaks to your program’s sustainability.

Take time to explain clearly to volunteers why they’re there and what will be accomplished. I do this by holding a 15-minute brief before each program or activity. Do it every time. It doesn’t matter if you say the same thing to the same people over and over again. You’d be amazed at what people hear me say for the first time on the twentieth brief. Set expectations and be sure to realistically define success. If you’re scooping out food at a soup kitchen you are not solving hunger problems. You’re not making a dent in poverty issues. But you’re doing something equally important. What is it? Your volunteers need you to tell them.

For more ideas on how to offer volunteers a sense of movement, click here.

Whether you’re a company trying to increase participation in your employee volunteering program or you’re a nonprofit trying to recruit, retain and manage your employees better, discovering the answers to these two questions is essential. Ignore them, and you’ll be stuck on the participation metric. Forever.

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Chris Jarvis is a leading CSR blogger and speaker who works with companies to help them connect with their communities. Chris co-founded Realized Worth with his partner, Angela Parker, to help companies create outstanding corporate volunteering programs and utilize social media to create authentic and engaging conversations. Together these 2 elements give companies the power and relevance of action and dialogue; involvement and storytelling; "the walk and the talk." 

Chirs can be found on Twitter at @RealizedWorth and vlogging as the exclusive Canadian representative of 3BLMedia. 3BLMedia works with organizations to tell their CSR, Sustainability and Cause Marketing stories across the social web.

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More Summer of Service

Every Volunteer Can be a Volunteer Organizer, by Debra Askanse @AskDebra

The Art of Demystifying the Millennial Volunteer, by Kari Saratovski @SocialCitizen 

How to Get Involved, by Sloane Berrent @Sloane

De-cluttering Kids' Artwork Without Tears | Tidy Thursdays

Here at VolunteerSpot, we’re committed to simplifying the busy lives of parents, teachers and active volunteers. Along that theme, we’re pleased to support your personal efforts in getting organized and gaining quality time and present guest organization expert April Welch, The Mental Clutter Coach!  Today, April tackles kids' artwork - how to foster your budding Picasso without getting buried in masterpieces. Thanks, April!

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An Abundance of Artwork! 

   By April Welch 

 

Along our Tidy Thursday Travels we've 'taken a break', evaluated the contents of what has 'come home with our students' and now we're ready to focus on any artwork that may need storing.

While the systems I've created with clients over the years were actually born in my very own kitchen, don't let that deter you if you're an avid crafter, teacher or volunteer with plenty of memorabilia.

Yes, there was once a day when my refrigerator was overwhelmed with the Hall of Fame {clutter} of finger painted hand prints and macaroni glued construction paper.

But I digress. 

In order to liberate this poor appliance I first set some guidelines.

1.     We would "showcase" a piece of artwork by only allowing a certain area on the fridge to be used for artwork {think 17"x22"}

2.     When a new "piece" came home the kiddo would decide if it should replace the last one

3.     When an old piece was retired the artist was the one to place it in the storage system

A few things to note here. In doing so you're:

•  teaching the limitations of capacity by allocating a specific area
•  facilitating critical decision making by allowing the owner to determine level of importance
•  providing a healthy systematic process for storing previous work

Once the work comes off the showcase area, placing it into a storage bin is the easiest way to allow some breathing room for the next big decision. This is where summer break comes in.

Make a date to go through all the artwork. Establish the easy decisions with these categories:

•  Stay = worthy of keeping long term
•  Gift = ready to let go, but want to give it to someone else {grandparents}
• I don't know = not quite ready to let it go
• Recycle = is oversized and could be used as wrapping paper
• Trash = there is no memory of creating the item and no emotional attachment

When it comes to the "I don't know" category have your artist consider the following questions:

Do you remember what your teacher told you about this project?

{the lesson that went with it or the instructions}

 Who did you work on this with?

{group effort, your best friend in class}

 Did anything funny, exciting, surprising happen during this project?

{doing the assignment outside, used a new tool}

 {Be sure to journal any responses on the back of the artwork}

 If they are still feeling anxious offer some of the following solutions:

• Take a picture of them holding the item {capturing size of project & age of child}
• Take a picture of the item while it has it's time in the Hall of Fame {keep the picture while letting go of the bulk}
• Have them set a time limit before they'll let it go {I'll keep it for 3 more weeks}
• Establish a showcase area in their room for it to live until they're ready to let it go
• Create a scrapbook by sending favorite pieces to a service like DreamSakes & having it scanned {you can also have gift items created for loved ones here too!
• Recycle by asking the local senior center or assisted living if there are any folks who would appreciate some fun artwork for decoration

Most importantly, remember, success comes from the owner of the item determining the destination. Letting the student be in charge with the guidance of a good system will provide skills they'll utilize their entire lives.

Be sure to tune in next week when we dive into planning that family vacation! 

Keepin' it Tidy,

April

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April Welch is the founder of Simply Organized Online, LLC and shares her organizational expertise on her blog, The Mental Clutter Coach. In addition to her company, she speaks at conferences nationwide and gives helpful advice on how to effectively organize anything and everything.

 

 

America's Volunteers are Rising to the Challenge of Hard Times - New Report

Good News for Volunteering!

The annual Volunteering in America Report from the Corporation for National and Community Service reveals the biggest spike in volunteering since 2003. The report found that 63.4 million Americans volunteered last year, an increase of 1.6 million volunteers from 2008. Together, those 63.4 million volunteers donated over 8.1 billion hours of their time, worth an estimated $169 billion.

 

Here at VolunteerSpot, we’re thrilled to be supporting the growing movement of volunteers and making it easier for more people to get involved in their communities. We recognize and celebrate ALL our volunteers and want to give an extra special shout to our super moms out there! Whether it's at school, sports, church, Scouts, or local charities, you can bet a mom is right there, helping the program run smoothly. Women were found to have higher volunteer rates than men across the country, and the report found that working mothers have the highest volunteer rates of all Americans. Go working moms!!!

The entire country is increasing their volunteering efforts, volunteer rates went up among both men and women, as well as all race and ethnic groups. While previous research would suggest that volunteer rates should fall during tough economic times, it appears that the opposite was true for volunteering during 2009. Americans have realized that they are facing a truly difficult time within our nation, and they are working together to provide the help that is needed to find solutions to real problems. 

The press release for the report includes a more in-depth look at the meaning of the results, and a video that describes the report in detail. Below are highlights from the 2010 report.

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2010 Report Highlights

Key Findings and State/City Profiles:

• Overall 63.4 million Americans (age 16 and older) volunteered in 2009, an increase of almost 1.6 million since 2008.This is the first significant increase in the volunteer rate and the largest single year increase in the volunteer numbers since 2003.
       
• For the fifth year in a row, Utah was the top volunteer state with a volunteer rate of 44.2%, followed by Iowa (37.8%), Minnesota (37.5%), Nebraska (37.4%), and Alaska (37.3%). Iowa climbed from the 5th ranked state last year to the 2nd this year.
       
• Minneapolis-St. Paul once again ranked number one among large cities at 37.4%, followed by Portland, OR (37.1%), Salt Lake City, UT (35.8%), Seattle, WA (34.9%), and Oklahoma City, OK (33.9%).
       
• Mid-size cities, particularly those in the Midwest, have on average higher volunteer rates than large cities, and residents of mid-size cities contribute more hours to volunteering.
       
• Among 75 mid-sized cities, Provo, Utah, led the nation for the third year in a row with a whopping 63.6 percent volunteer rate, followed by Iowa City (50.0%), Ogden, UT (47.7%), Fort Collins, CO (40.7%) and Madison, WI (40.0%).

Key Demographic and Ethnic Findings:

• Women again volunteered at higher rates then men. Working mothers have the highest volunteer rates.
       
• Rates increased among African Americans, especially women, this year more than among other groups. The rate of volunteerism among African Americans climbed from 19.1% in 2008 to 20.0% in 2009, and increased by 1.6% among African American women.

Factors Influencing Volunteer Rates:

• The research found that higher rates of homeownership, lower rates of foreclosure, shorter average commute times, more robust nonprofit infrastructure, lower poverty rates, and higher education levels are all related to higher rates of volunteering.
       
• Factors such as the prevalence of multi-unit housing, higher poverty rates, and longer commuting times are associated with lower volunteer rates.

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A big thank you is in order for all of those people who donate their time to help their neighbors, their community and their country. 

THANK YOU!

Resources for Volunteers

Search our AllforGood widget for volunteer opportunities near you.

Organize your own volunteer project with VolunteerSpot's free online volunteer scheduling software.

Every Volunteer can be a Volunteer Organizer - Summer of Service

Thanks for joining us in our third installment of  Summer of Service!  Each Monday in June and July, we're privileged to be featuring a fantastic guest blogger sharing his or her unique and personal perspective on service, volunteering and citizen philanthropy. Today, please welcome Debra Askanase, nonprofit new media expert and the founder of Community Organizer 2.0 as she shares her journey from volunteer to community organizer. We're especially excited about this post as VolunteerSpot gives every volunteer the power to become a community organizer. Thanks, Debra!

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Models of Volunteering:

The Volunteer as a Community Organizer

by Debra Askanase

I grew up in a family that prided itself on volunteering, spearheaded by my mother who deeply believes that donating time to worthwhile causes can change the world. The cause most dear to her heart was feminism, and especially the promotion of women in politics. She is of the era that led the charge to open opportunities for herself and her daughters. She spoke of Gloria Steinham, EMILY’s list, and Marlo Thomas. Of course Free To Be You And Me was a household staple!

As a child, during election season, we always had a folding table set up with envelopes and papers ready to stuff – and we were encouraged to stuff envelopes whenever we had a minute. I remember the bustling energy of my mother’s female friends coming to the house to stuff envelopes, lick stamps, or coordinate some aspect of an election campaign for a female political candidate.  My mom worked hard on the campaigns of Eleanor Tinsley, the first female city councilor in Houston (who eventually became a close friend), and Kathy Whitmire, the first female mayor of Houston. My mother, volunteering day and night during election season, and off-season too, was a volunteer organizer. Bringing people together to change the community. 

And it wasn’t only political-season volunteering: my mother spearheaded Mitzvah Day at our synagogue, coordinating hundreds of volunteers for a day of service. She wrote the grant proposal to fund the first teen pregnancy center in Houston and brought us there to volunteer. We were taken to community cleanup days, and we watched votes being counted during local elections. We were taught that volunteering is a necessary requirement for being a good citizen.

And that it can really make a difference.

Not surprisingly, my career path led me to nonprofit work. After moving to Boston, I worked as a tenant’s rights advocate at an anti-poverty organization, helping tenants understand their legal rights and also finding emergency fuel for the winter in times of need. The second winter I was there, many of the same tenants called again asking for 100 gallons of heating oil. That was my “aha!” moment: I could locate donated heating oil every winter for tenants in need, or work with the community to change living and working conditions. Like my mother who believes so strongly in the power of organizing to bring women into politics (now a given fact that women belong and can succeed in politics), I understood that organizing communities can make a lasting difference in the way the community functions and in the lives of community members.

And thus I became a professional community organizer – organizing a multi-issue low-income organization north of Boston, taking on issues in the community that members had the power to change. I worked with hundreds of community volunteers. Members organized for stricter lead paint testing and fair pricing at the local supermarket. I worked with tenant organizations to purchase their buildings cooperatively from their building owners, and organize building owners to make safety repairs. Everyone I worked with volunteered his or her time to change their communities.  Everyone was a volunteer organizer. The “volunteer as an organizer” made a difference: dreams of home ownership realized, safe living conditions, affordable food in low-income communities. Hundreds of community members volunteer thousands of hours to make their dreams a reality.

Eventually, I transitioned from organizing into the field of economic development. I became a volunteer organizer myself for Potters for Peace, organizing pottery cooperatives in towns in Nicaragua so that female potters could pool resources to break the cycle of poverty. After joining the cooperatives, the annual income of the potters I worked with improved 200%. I saw the possibilities in the volunteer as organizer model for economic change.

When I returned to the United States, I became the executive director of the Hyde/Jackson Main Street Program, working entirely with local volunteers to improve economic conditions in the neighborhood. Through the “volunteering as organizing model,” local volunteers donated hundreds of hours to their neighborhood to make it a strong economic center, and a vibrant and livable community. Conversely, without the volunteers, there would never have been an organization.

Every person chooses the model of volunteerism that suits him or her best. Volunteerism comes in many shapes –from donating office equipment, to stuffing bags of food at holiday time, to coaching your child’s softball team. Each one is a strong model of volunteering. I think it was inevitable that my preferred volunteer model would be the “volunteer as organizer.” And it’s been incredibly rewarding to be a small part of community change. 

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Debra Askanase is the founder of Community Organizer 2.0, a social media consulting firm specializing in customized social media strategies, solutions, and training for nonprofit organizations. Before founding Community Organizer 2.0, Debra worked for 20 years in nonprofit organizations in many positions, among them executive director, program director, fundraiser, and community organizer. She was named one of the Top 29 Nonprofit Bloggers to Follow by the 300,000 Twitter followers of twitter.com/nonprofitorgs.

(Image Courtesy of Beth Kanter)

Debra's award-winning professional blog, www.communityorganizer20.com, offers advice, strategies and opinions about using social media in the nonprofit sector. In 2009, the blog won Web Host Magazine's Editor's Choice Award for Practical Application of Web 2.0 Concepts. She is an international speaker and presenter on engagement strategies creating online community. Debra can be often be found chatting away on Twitter @askdebra.

Volunteer Spotlight: Ellen Chambers, One Fair World, Salem, OR

One Fair World (formerly known as Ten Thousand Villages) began eight years ago as a dream by a group of resourceful people who had no retail experience but were excited by the idea of bringing a fair-trade store to Salem, Oregon. The store is committed to its mission of alleviating poverty in developing countries. Other than the store manager, the store is run entirely by volunteers who bring dedication, creativity and skill to their tasks.

Today, our Volunteer Spotlight shines on Ellen Chambers, volunteer coordinator for One Fair Trade.

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Please tell us about your organization and your volunteer needs.

One Fair World is a non-profit, Fair Trade store in Salem, Oregon. We are a marketplace for handcrafted items from over thirty countries and our mission is to reduce poverty in developing countries. The store is staffed mostly by volunteers with just one paid manager. Volunteers work as sales associates and day managers in the store and also do window displays, paint fixtures, unpack orders, and more. We also have special events and off-site sales.Volunteers pack, transport, set up displays, make presentations and work at the events.

How did you get started as a volunteer leader?

I have volunteered for a long time. My involvement with One Fair World began 10 years ago when a group of people joined together to bring a fair trade store to Salem. My current role is volunteer scheduler and board chair.

What’s one piece of advice you have for volunteers or their leaders?

Never underestimate the talents and skills of volunteers!  Our dedicated volunteers bring AMAZING abilities to a variety of tasks.

Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?

I used VolunteerSpot through another organization. When I saw the wonderful service it provided, I signed up. We had been using a paper calendar in the store, but often people forgot their appointment books or needed to check at home before signing up.  Now, they can sign up at home when all their information is available. I especially like being able to administer the sign-up calendar from home since I'm not in the store everyday. The automatic reminder notices for volunteers are also a great help!

Anything else you’d like our readers to know?

Fair Trade ensures that disadvantaged artisans and farmers receive fair payment for their products and gives them dignity and a path out of poverty.  Where you shop does make a difference!  Look for Fair Trade stores in your area.

You can find Once Fair World here:

4 Court St NE, Salem OR 97301

Open Mon-Fri: 10:00 - 6:00

Sat: 10:00 - 5:00;  Sun: Closed   

503.585.1636

[email protected]

www.onefairworld.org

Facebook!

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We salute Ellen and all the volunteer heroes out there in our communities. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing, and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at [email protected].

Tips for Cutting through Clutter After School & Major Projects | Tidy Thursdays

Here at VolunteerSpot, we’re committed to simplifying the busy lives of parents, teachers and active volunteers. Along that theme, we’re pleased to support your personal efforts in getting organized and gaining quality time and present guest organization expert April Welch, The Mental Clutter Coach!  Today, April is keeping the organizing momentum going by giving advice on how to jump into your clutter-free summer by taking stock of the school year leftovers treasures. Thanks, April!

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The Black Bag

By April Welch

Welcome back to another addition of Tidy Thursdays!

Now, if you took my advice last week {Preventing Summer Brain Drain} you should be wrapping up a week of blissful laziness. And, if so, you probably are surfacing from your carefree stupor evaluating exactly what has happened to your personal space in your absence.

{work with me here}

As an expert who walks my talk I too am surfacing & evaluating. First thing I noticed was the lovely present my soon-to-be middle school child has left for me in the front entryway.

A black garbage bag ... contents unknown.

Well, that's not entirely true. I'm aware of what might be lurking in there. Nice of his teacher to send it home resembling garbage {grin}. This bag is what he was sent home with on the last day of school ... the guts of his desk.

All those used up workbooks, half sharpened pencils, tidbits of crayons ... and among the chaos ~ the treasures I'd like to rescue. Things like the A+ on his math exam or the drawing he did for art class {that no longer resembles splatters of paint but actual budding talent}.

Honestly, it's just like finishing up any major project ... there's leftovers.

So, what do you do with all this miscellaneous stuff?

Many of my clients find it helpful to throw out the garbage first. Then move on to searching backpacks and lunch boxes for any food remains. It may be timely to give them both a wash and a day's long sun bath. {Be sure to include the kiddos in this process, it helps them learn personal responsibility for taking care of their belongings.}

 

Gather up the workbooks and study guides and make a space on a well-trafficked bookshelf for summer learning. Younger ones may enjoy playing 'school' and older ones may use them for reference during summer review activities. Alternatively, consider moving them out all together and opting for online summer learning fun instead.

Next, determine what supplies could be re-purposed and create a storage area for the summer. Think calculators, rulers, markers, pads of paper, notebooks, labels, and newly fresh-smelling backpacks and lunch boxes. Insider tip for relocating that storage spot: Mark in your calendar {probably on the August page} where you put the items.

If you're wrapping up a big volunteer project and know you won't be reusing the supplies for the same type of project, consider creating an "office supply" storage area. Then when you start with a new project you'll have a place to grab from. If you feel you're well-provisioned, donate the supplies back to the nonprofit or school you were supporting for their other volunteer teams.

As for those special items, tune in next week. I have some great ideas for kids artwork, bulky memorabilia and how to de-clutter without tears.

Keepin' it tidy,

April

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April Welch is the founder of Simply Organized Online, LLC and shares her organizational expertise on her  blog, The Mental Clutter Coach.  In addition to her company, she speaks at conferences nationwide and gives helpful advice on how to effectively organize anything and everything. 

 

Summer of Service: The Art of Demystifying the Millennial Volunteer

To inspire everyone to get out and give back to our communities this summer, we're excited to be hosting the Summer of Service on our blog!  Each Monday in June and July, we're featuring a fantastic guest blogger sharing his or her unique and personal perspective on service, volunteering and citizen philanthropy. Today, please welcome our second guest, Kari Saratovsky, Vice President of Social Innovation at the Case Foundation and publisher of the foundation’s Social Citizens Blog. Thanks, Kari!

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The Art of Demystifying the Millennial Volunteer

by Kari Saratovsky

As the graduating Class of 2010 trade in their caps and gowns for a heaping dose of reality -- their idealism is impressive, but so are the challenges they are up against. Sure, the Millennial Generation enters the workforce as the most widely educated and technologically adept generation in history but it will take far more than good intentions to resolve the global realities of climate change, energy shortages, and extreme poverty that face us all.

Even so, there’s something about the Millennial Generation’s resiliency that is fascinating to watch. Many are looking at their next chapter as a time for self exploration. They’re trying to find meaning in their jobs and are delaying the traditional workforce and enrolling in programs like AmeriCorps in record numbers - or heading overseas to focus on Global Health equity in developing countries. They’re leveraging technology to innovate and create new solutions to complex environmental and social problems. Millennials are seen as ambitious and hopeful. But they are also debt ridden and anxious. Whether the world will live up to their great expectations is an open and yet to be answered question.

Having already seen and experienced so much, Millennials have established themselves as a new breed of activists and doers – but for the average nonprofit, understanding how to engage them in your volunteer work can be seen as a mystery.  I’ve written the following as an attempt to demystify the Millennial volunteer, and firmly believe that the problems our local and global communities are faced with call for exactly the values that Millenials believe in – collaboration, teamwork, openness and transparency.

What does your nonprofit need to know about engaging the next generation of volunteers?

Provide experiences based on skills: The Millennial Generation in particular recognizes that it’s not just one sector that will help solve our most challenging social problems, but rather a blending of sectors and structures that will create meaningful impact. As such, they are looking for ways to put their professional skills to use when they volunteer. It’s not enough to ask them to sort cans or paint murals – they have skills in technology, business development, communications and other key areas that nonprofits are in desperate need of. So, make sure to take the time to get to know your volunteers and what skills they bring to the table. 

Show the impact of your/their work: Having grown up in a 24-7 news cycle with instant messaging, and the immediacy of platforms like Twitter and Facebook, it’s no secret that MIllennials expect to see immediate results. The same holds true for their volunteer work as they desire to see the immediate impact of their work. Even if the progress is only incremental, make sure that you are sharing it with your volunteers. If they can see the value they are adding, you’ll keep them coming back for more.

Always have a clear call to action: Today’s volunteers may be savvier when it comes to finding volunteer opportunities on their computer or iPhone, but they expect an experience that matches the ease to which they found it. While today’s unprecedented technology allows organizations to reach out to new audiences, the call to action must be clear, it must be actionable, and it must show impact.

Openness and transparency are key: Go beyond providing good volunteer opportunities to creating more of a relational experience between volunteer and organization. Solicit feedback, provide follow up, and ask what you could do better. Sites like Great Nonprofits allow folks to rate their experiences and share knowledge so that others can make more informed decisions about where to give or volunteer – so take the first step and be an active participant in those conversations.

It’s easy to make generational generalities when it comes to Millennial engagement – yet perhaps more than any other generation, Millennials emphasize doing good into everything they do. They are comfortable with collective action and especially with activating their own social networks and they are volunteering at higher numbers than generations before them. This presents a great opportunity for nonprofits, but only if they are willing to tweak their approach.

If your organization is engaging with Millennials we want to hear from you -  what’s the secret sauce to getting it right?

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As Vice President of Social Innovation at the Case Foundation, Kari Saratovsky is an evangelist for all things social media for social good. With experience in the government and nonprofit sectors, her favorite role is that of a connector -- connecting passionate people, good ideas, and new approaches in an effort to address social problems. Kari serves as the publisher of the foundation’s Social Citizens Blog which calls attention to the way in which Social Citizens (and Millennials in particular) are using new technologies for social good and their potential for impacting broader participation in civic life across all generations. You can also follow her on twitter (@socialcitizen).

 

 

 

Volunteer Spotlight: Naomi Levin, Breast Cancer Community Leader, Beloit WI

When Naomi Levin discovered she had breast cancer, she turned to an organization called Sharsheret for help. Sharsheret is a national not-for-profit organization for young Jewish women and their families facing breast cancer. Their mission is to offer a community of support to women, of all Jewish backgrounds, diagnosed with breast cancer or at increased genetic risk, by fostering culturally-relevant individualized connections with networks of peers, health professionals, and related resources. When Naomi began to feel better, she decided to organize a concert to raise money for Sharsheret. The concert will be held on Saturday, July 31, 2010 in Beloit, Wisconsin.

Today, our volunteer Spotlight shines on Naomi Levin, breast cancer survivor and self-organizing community leader! 

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Please tell us about your organization and your volunteer needs.

I am a breast cancer survivor who decided that I had to give back now that I am doing well.  So I developed the idea of a concert and awareness event to raise funds for a National Organization which helped me during my time of need.  They are called Sharsheret.  It is Hebrew for chain  - and they form a chain of women who mentor and educate as well as provide quality of life programs for women and families with breast cancer.

How did you get started as a volunteer leader?

I was self designated!  I decided that I wanted to prove to others in my situation - that after all one has been through - it is still possible to do amazing things.  I want people to realize that life is precious and early detection can save lives.  I want to be able to make a difference, if only in one person's life.

What’s one piece of advice you have for volunteers or their leaders out there?

I believe everyone who offers help has a value. Find each volunteer's strength and delegate appropriately for the best success. START VERY EARLY - and select reliable people.

Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?

I needed a better way to facilitate sign up and timing.  This site seemed to be a great way to help me feel organized and when I feel organized I am not panicking.

Anything else you’d like our readers to know?

Well - my organization is a basic "one woman show" who gets by with a little help from a lot of Breast Friends!  Volunteering is very gratifying I can not wait to see the faces of happy people - it makes me feel alive - I recommend it to everyone, to have the same great feeling that giving to others makes one feel.

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To learn more about the concert, please visit www.BreastFriend.org.

To learn more about Sharsheret, visit www.Sharsheret.org.

We salute Naomi and all the self-organizing volunteer leaders working to help others and support the causes they care about. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing, and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at [email protected].

Websites That Make Summer Learning Fun | Tidy Thursday

Here at VolunteerSpot, we’re committed to simplifying the busy lives of parents, teachers and active volunteers. Along that theme, we’re pleased to support your personal efforts in getting organized and gaining quality time and present guest organization expert April Welch, The Mental Clutter Coach!  Each Thursday through Labor Day, April will share helpful tips and tricks to help us all de-clutter our lives. Today, April takes on Summer Learning -- thanks, April!

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Fun Websites that Prevent Summer Brain Drain

By April Welch

Driving The Teenager to school this morning I couldn't help but notice how empty the high school parking lot was and in the back of my mind I could hear The Pipsqueak's voice "only 2 1/2 days left of school Mom!"

This brings such a mixed reaction for most of us out there.

On the one hand ~ Whoo-Hoo! Vacation time!

On the other hand ~ how am I going to keep summer slacker habits from becoming the norm?

By now, we're all so exhausted from 'end of the year' events that coming home & flopping down sounds pretty enticing. And honestly? I encourage you do to so! {yes, you read that right. The Organizer just told you to be lazy!}

Once you've given your mind and body a good rest ~ then what?

For most of my clients, they like the idea of having a "family meeting" and discussing what they want from their summer. In my own family, I start with the following question:

"In the fall, how would you like to answer the infamous question:

  'What did you do this summer?'" 

The discussion quickly gets going...  

 "a family road trip"
"go fishing"
"build a neighborhood fort"
"have a movie marathon"
"learn to cook a favorite meal"
"go camping"

{yes, these are all real answers from my kiddos} 

 As the ideas fly, the record keeper, takes notes. Once we've all voiced our thoughts we pull out the calendar & take a look at schedules. Dad's work, Mom's travel, any camp dates and then we start filling in the various adventures we intend to have. My only request is that we have at least one day home a week as a family for "off the radar" time.

Once all that is in place I move into the academic expectations. {surprisingly, no moaning & groaning here!} I'm aware of all those scary statistics out there about how the mind turns to mush in the matter of weeks when skills are unused! {often called Summer Slide or Summer Brain Drain} So, in preparation, I seek out ways to keep it fun. 

 Last summer we took a road trip as a family for 4 days. I had everyone choose a landmark they'd like to visit in our state and we planned our route accordingly. The morning we were set to leave I shared with everyone {including Dad} that I had pre-paid for our hotel stay however, the remainder of our budget was in "the envelope". As I pulled out of the driveway Dad opened "the envelope" to disclose $300 cash. {yes, a shocked look followed}

During our trip the kids had a bit of a wake up call while doing the math after we paid to fill the car up with gas. The Pipsqueak quickly became the Penny Pincher in the car. {He's usually my "I want ..." child}. They read the map & kept us on course. They took pictures of interesting sites and later told other family members about the historical items they saw. And all along they never realized I was sneaking in education!

This summer I'm taking a little more techno approach. I've found a few sites that I think will help me in my quest:

 

Math:     

TenMarks - I gotta say, I can't wait to dive into this site with the Pipsqueak! Based on your state's standards as well as your child's grade level {both exiting & entering} these guys create a personalized math curriculum! Best part? You create a reward system for them ~ hello motivation! I think the Pipsqueak will earn an iTunes song for every week he completes this summer {and maybe a trip to his favorite restaurant at the midway point! Yum yum!} 

 Reading:

Getting Boys to Read - This is an amazing site for all of us out there trying to help our non-reading boys get their necessary skills in {love their "out of the box" thinking}

 Ann K. Dolin, M.Ed., literacy expert and the president and director of Educational Connections, Inc., an in-home tutoring company in the D.C. area, recommends these other terrific summer reading sites: 

Headsprout - Early reading and reading comprehension (ages 4-10)
 
Study Dog - Interactive reading program in video game format. Pre-K to 2nd grade

 Scholastic - Summer Reading Challenge for students K-8; Click on Student Activities for writing.

If you have a reluctant reader, use Books on Tape.  Have your child read along to the author’s narration of the book. 

Writing:

Weebly - This is a site I use for our family website. Their template based site makes it easy to "drag & drop" elements and get a blog going ~ all for FREE! This is how I sneak in writing skills ~ the kids each have to write something about their adventures on the site.

I'd love to know what your plans are for keeping slacker habits at bay & avoiding that "summer slide" this year {let me know if you've found any good links I might of missed}. Be sure to leave comments so we can all learn!

Keepin' life tidy all summer long,

April
 

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April Welch is the founder of Simply Organized Online, LLC and shares her organizational expertise on her  blog, The Mental Clutter Coach.  In addition to her company, she speaks at conferences nationwide and gives helpful advice on how to effectively organize anything and everything. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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At VolunteerSpot, we thought TenMarks was such a good idea that we enrolled in their affiliate program! If you’re interested in preventing the ‘summer slide’ and keeping your kid’s math skills up to grade level, please click the link below to learn more.  A percentage of your purchase helps support VolunteerSpot.  

 

 

{NOTE: All young people experience learning losses when they do not engage in educational activities during the summer. Research spanning 100 years shows that students typically score lower on standardized tests at the end of summer vacation than they do on the same tests at the beginning of the summer. (White, 1906; Heyns, 1978; Entwisle & Alexander 1992; Cooper, 1996; Downey et al, 2004). Most students lose about two months of grade level equivalency in mathematical computation skills over the summer months. Low-income students also lose more than two months in reading achievement, despite the fact that their middle-class peers make slight gains (Cooper, 1996).}

Summer of Service: How to Get Involved

To inspire everyone to get out and give back to our communities this summer, we're excited to be hosting the Summer of Service on our blog!  Each Monday in June and July, we'll be featuring a fantastic guest blogger sharing his or her unique and personal perspective on service, volunteering and citizen philanthropy. Today, please welcome our first guest, Sloane Berrent, a nationally recognized speaker on community building and "cause-filled living" and author of the blog, The Causemopolitan. Thanks, Sloane!

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How to Give Back

by Sloane Berrent

 

 
I know what many people say. They want to give back but they don’t know how. They want to get involved and volunteer in their community but they don’t know where to start. Well, I’m here to help!

In just one hour, you’ll have the ideas, tools, resources and hopefully – motivation to get started. So let’s start this summer off with a new sense of how to give back. As my childhood babysitter used to say, “Time waits for no one.”

For a lot of people, they go online to volunteer websites and start scrolling through the options. Everything looks good, or nothing, or somewhere in between but they’re not sure what to pick. This is the vortex of indecision, and not where you should start!

First, block an hour from your calendar when you won’t be distracted and can sit and focus on the task at hand. Sit in a comfortable place with a blank piece of paper or in front of a blank document on your computer (with your browser closed!) and follow along with the exercise below. You’ll be identifying the key components needed to finding a nonprofit right for you and then we’ll provide the resources where you can find that match.

Ready? Let’s go!

Write down the names of nonprofits that interest you. These can be nonprofits you’ve donated to in the past, maybe you’ve participated in a walk or event or have read about a cause or charity and are interested in learning more. Geographic location doesn’t matter; just start making creating a list of those nonprofits.

Write down the type of nonprofits or causes that you’re passionate about. My list would look something like: economic development, grassroots environmental groups, women’s issues (specifically girls’ education and financial literacy), health issues (specifically malaria prevention and treatment) and poverty alleviation. For you maybe it’s children or pets or house building.  There is no right number to write down, if the list gets longer than five, prioritize your list to make going back later and looking at it easier for you.

Write down the type of skills or environment you want to volunteer in. Are you looking to lend your current professional expertise like create a marketing plan for a small nonprofit or provide legal counsel in a pro-bono setting or are you looking to do something completely different like plant a garden in a school or walk dogs at shelter? Do you want an opportunity you can do at home like translation services for an international aid organization or do you want to be around a group of people? Volunteer opportunities vary greatly as do the types of skills that they are looking for. Many nonprofits need volunteers to do critical items for them (mailings to donors and phone banks) but also offer other opportunities that aren’t as vital but provide one-on-one interaction with who they serve.

How much time do you have to give? Do you want to be a regular volunteer (once a week or once a month) or would you prefer to be called in as-needed? Do you want to sign up for a commitment for a certain period of time? Do you want to volunteer at night, or on weekends or during the day? Are you looking for an opportunity for a specific period of time like two weeks in July or something on-going? Do you want something local or are you looking for a destination volunteer opportunity? All of these questions help with the roadmap that is creating a filter system in advance to help you find the perfect match.

Many nonprofits could use pro-bono services or in-kind gifts. Volunteering doesn’t have to be a silo, if you can offer a mix of services, go for it! For example, last year I helped a homeless shelter start an e-newsletter to their donors but also fed the homeless. While they needed my hardware skills, I also really wanted to do the software part and was very upfront with them and we created a schedule that let me do both!

Remember, volunteering is not always the best place to pick up a new skill! Reading to inner city kids or becoming a mentor often come with mandatory training, but a nonprofit’s resources are extremely limited and it’s hard on them to be teaching all new skills. If you really want to help a nonprofit in an area unfamiliar to you, do your research first and educate yourself and then go to them with your new skill set.

Hopefully, you now have a list in front of you that defines what causes you are passionate about, what interests you, how you are looking to give back and how often. Now all you have to do is find a place to volunteer! Reach out to people you know who are active in the community and be specific about what you’re looking for, use social media to tell your friends you’re looking to volunteer and asking them for help finding the right opportunity. Do your online research!

Volunteering is one of the most rewarding activities in my life; I hope this activity helps you find the same passion to create a cause-filled life of your own!

Resources to Get Started:

Idealist

Volunteer Match

Serve.Gov

AllforGood's search tool on VolunteerSpot

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Sloane Berrent is the founder of Answer With Action, an integrated marketing, public relations and fundraising consultancy specializing in cause-based campaigns. A former Kiva Fellow, she is the co-creator of “Cause It’s My Birthday,” a nationwide malaria prevention campaign. In January 2010, Sloane attended the World Economic Forum as the citizen journalist for MySpace and The Wall Street Journal. She is a nationally recognized speaker on community building and "cause-filled living" and writes on her blog, The Causemopolitan.  Currently residing in New Orleans, she co-founded NOLAlicious, a weekly e-newsletter about New Orleans and organized the first CrisisCampNOLA. You can also find her on Twitter (@sloane).

Fourth of July Celebration Planning - the Free and Easy Way

 

It’s that time of year – school is over (or ending) and excitement is in the air as we all look forward to summer’s favorite holiday: Fourth of July!   At VolunteerSpot, we’re proud to be supporting Fourth of July festivities of all kinds – from helping neighbors & families plan parades and picnics, to helping parks and rec. departments organize hundreds of volunteers for community concerts and fireworks shows.  School groups are using VolunteerSpot's free scheduler to coordinate volunteers at their fireworks stand fundraisers and corporate volunteer captains are organizing fun runs and 5Ks to kick off the day’s fun.

Whether your July 4th celebration is intimate or grand, adding a few fun embellishments will make the day more festive for the whole family. We’ve asked party expert, Lisa Kothari, of Peppers and Polliwogs, to share some fun, low-cost party ideas to make your Fourth of July a star-spangled success.  Thanks, Lisa!

Fourth of July Party Ideas: Fun & Low Cost

Decorations

• Instead of filling vases with flowers, fill them with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. This is yummy and festive looking. Guests can scoop the berries out and add whipped cream for a truly red, white, and blue treat!

• Mix and match red, white, and blue solid paper ware. Cloth napkins in the same colors would also add an elegant touch.

• Sprinkle red, white, and blue confetti and candies around the table.

Activities

• Have the kids make small US flags and place them into red, white, and blue sand pails that have sand filler at the bottom! Turn this decoration into a game. Divide the kids into two teams and have them run, grab a flag, and quickly walk back to the team line, where the next person must do the same. The team that has all of the flags in hand most quickly wins! Let the kids take the flags home as a goody!

• Boil a dozen eggs and color some red and blue (be sure to keep some white)! Have an Egg Spoon Relay Race. Divide the kids into two teams, and provide each team with a spoon and eggs. The kids must balance a colored egg on their spoon and walk quickly from one end of the yard to the other and return. If the egg drops, the team member must begin again. The first team with all members completing the relay race wins!

• For older kids, water balloons will be loads of fun. A fun twist on traditional water balloon games is to create a small hole in each balloon, and then fill it with water. Let the kids toss the leaking balloon, which will become a bit of a time bomb as you don’t want to be the last one holding it when it finally runs out of water! Quick, easy, and fun!

• Have the girls add red, white, and blue star beads to their shoelaces for added fun.

Tasty Treats

• Freeze blueberries and raspberries in ice cube trays to make star spangled cubes.

• Make a rocket pop drink. Fill a glass with ice cubes. Carefully pour cranberry juice, blue Gatorade, and 7-Up into the glass directly over the ice cubes to maintain the patriotic colors. 

• Make a batch of cupcakes and have the kids frost them and decorate them with red, white, and blue sprinkles.

So much fun for so little money and time. Happy Fourth of July planning!

        ~ Lisa Kothari

Please visit  Peppers and Polliwogs for party-planning tips and ideas for fun and memorable parties all year round!

Get Ready for Tidy Thursdays - Your Spot for Organization Tips and Tricks!

Here at VolunteerSpot, we’re committed to simplifying the busy lives of parents, teachers and active volunteers. We take care of the administrative busy-work in getting people signed up for your activities, and give you more time for meaningful work. Along that theme, we’re pleased to support your personal efforts in getting organized and gaining quality time and present guest organization expert April Welch, The Mental Clutter Coach!  Each Thursday through Labor Day, April will share helpful tips and tricks to help us all de-clutter our lives.

April is the founder of Simply Organized Online, LLC and shares her organizational expertise on her blog, The Mental Clutter Coach.  In addition to her company, she speaks at conferences nationwide and gives helpful advice on how to effectively organize anything and everything.

Big Thanks to April for sharing her organization expertise with our readers -- get ready for Tidy Thursdays!

 

Hey Thanks! {April here}

I'm so excited to be guest posting for Volunteer Spot this summer! Tidy Thursdays are going to be chock full of different topics like Vacation Planning, Dealing with Kids' Artwork and De-cluttering your Car.

Of course, as we get closer to the fall we'll round the series out with Overwhelming Schedules, Systems for Paperwork {that actually work} and back to school topics like Planning Healthy Lunches.

Many of my readers are already familiar with my low-key, non-judgmental style but don't be surprised if you find yourself laughing too! My Organizing Philosophy is to figure out what's already working, make it stronger and have a great sense of humor along the way! See you right here next Thursday!

Warmly,

April

The Mental Clutter Coach

 

 

Women Building Stronger Communities through Social Media

Join us at Evo '10

Women are the social fabric of our communities and new media like blogs, twitter, and collaborative web applications makes us even more powerful. Evo ‘10, a conference celebrating the evolution of women in social media, is the place to learn how to leverage new tools and new relationships for even greater impact. Our VolunteerSpot founder, Karen Bantuveris, will be joining a panel of fantastic social media leaders - including Donna Novitsky (Big Tent), Leah Segedie (Mamavation), Lorraine Robertson (The Blogrollers), and Laurie Turk (Tip Junkie) – exploring forming and nurturing communities online and in the real world.

Please join us in Park City, Utah on June 24-26!

Can’t make it in person? Please follow #Evo10 on Twitter

Using Kids to Raise More Money at Your Auction

Silent auctions and live auctions are tried and true fundraisers for many schools and nonprofits.  Whether it's a simple community event in the school gym or a large formal gala in a ballroom, incorporating kids into your auction will boost revenues and build bonds with donors. Sherry Truhlar - founder of Red Apple Auctions joins us as a guest blogger and shares ideas for making more money at your next auction, through kids.

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Four Simple Strategies for Boosting Auction Revenue With Kids

 

One solid strategy for raising money – regardless of the economy – is to show guests how their donation impacts children. If you have a natural angle involving kids that you can incorporate into your event, consider doing so.  If it makes sense to bring children to your event - terrific!  For example, a nonprofit benefiting community arts may have kids perform a song or dance number for guests.

Even when the children aren’t attending your benefit auction, there are several ways you can still successfully include them in the fundraising plan. Below are four such strategies that are fairly easy to deploy.

1.  Signage stationed around the silent auction

The most common way to showcase how your organization is helping children is to incorporate photos of the children into displays. These can be on free-standing display stands, or mounted on the walls.

At a school auction with a western theme, "WANTED" posters showcased the kids.

Pro:  Easy to do. Signs are reusable for other events.

Con:  Not as eye-catching; easy to gloss over in the hustle of the silent auction

2.  Incorporate images into the decor

If your gala has a theme, one way to make the signage stand out is to create a visually appealing display around it.

 

For instance, at this school auction with a western theme, several walls were set up around the silent auction and registration areas.  The walls had all of the children’s photos on them, and each child had been photographed in western gear.  A volunteer had taken the time to write cute phrases for each child such as, “The Masked Bandit:  Last seen in the valley,” or “WANTED:  For cactus wranglin’.”

Because it was clever, many guests visited all of the walls to admire the creativity of the project.

Pro: Adds to the decor. Helps reinforce the “why are we raising money” message.

Con: Takes more upfront time to create the individual shots.

3.  Let a Powerpoint slide or video tell the story

In a ballroom, Powerpoint slides can provide imagery.  At this gala raising money for heart-related causes, a child’s photo was displayed with the text, “Nora Grace’s heart was mended by Dr. Bill Hammill, and she hasn’t stopped dancing since.”

Pro: Easy to create. One slide can be broadcast on multiple screens so everyone can see.

Con: Unless a speaker specifically refers to the slide, guests might never bother to read it.

4.  Reach out and call (or text) someone

This strategy incorporates older kids into your gala.  Granted, these kids might have outgrown their “cuteness factor,” but they have the advantage of being able to thank donors with an added degree of articulation! 

One fundraising auction was raising money for college scholarships.  As you can see in the photo, each table had a table tent listing a student’s name, general information, and his or her telephone number. Over dinner, guests were encouraged to text or call the student to chat and say, “Congratulations on your scholarship!”

Pro:  It’s as high-touch as you can get without having the recipient attend the event.  It brings a donor directly into contact with the recipient of their donation. 

Con: Requires coordination in advance so recipients know they could be called anytime during the evening. Not all recipients will be choice candidates to speak with a donor.

Please try these strategies to make for a more memorable l evening, and get to your donor’s heartstrings and wallets!

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Thanks Sherry for your AWESOME tips!

After working for more than a decade in sales, events, and marketing for top 10 companies, Sherry Truhlar founded Red Apple Auctions.  The boutique auction firm specializes in benefit auctions and teaches volunteer auction chairs how to raise more money selling their donated items.  To learn about other terrific auction ideas, download the company’s FREE Auction Item Guide.  The Guide lists the top 100 best-selling auction items to offer at your event.  Get your Guide at www.RedAppleAuctions.com.

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