National Volunteer Week
Posted Apr 22, 2013 12:34:36 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s National Volunteer Week all across Canada, and locally, the Volunteer Action Centre of K-W started celebrating already last week!
They had the Volunteer Impact Awards and also participated in the Volunteer Service Award. This week they will be featuring volunteer salutes.
Taryn Graham, the Communications and Membership Coordinator at the centre tells 570 News last month, they reached out to the charities and not-for-profit organizations they work with.
“20 to 25 of them sent all in volunteer salutes saying we have this many volunteers, this is what they do and this is what they make possible. So those will be available on our website and our blog.”
Graham adds many organizations and businesses are thanking volunteers on their own this week, whether formally or informally.
The Volunteer Action Centre of K-W has also made it easy for it’s members to thank their volunteers.
“We also have partnered with a local graphic design artist who has created a bunch of thank you cards and certificates that folks from around the community can then download from our website if they’re a member at the volunteer action centre. They can print them off and customize them. That’s one of the things that’s tricky about being a volunteer manager. Often your day is filled with wearing many hats and so the time to sit down and thank your volunteers, you may not have time to make something or buy something.”
In Waterloo Region, Graham says 170 thousand people volunteer, and each year, each person gives an average of 165 hours of their time.
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, there are a number of opportunities.
The centre has set up a detailed volunteer search on their website. You are able to search by special events, organizations or areas of interest. Graham says the results are displayed like a job board, telling you what skills they are looking for, and how long volunteers are needed.
She also adds special events are good if you have a short period of time to volunteer in or are just looking to get your feet wet. For long term opportunities, Graham suggests searching by organization, or areas of interest.
Graham says it’s important to volunteer and to also recognize volunteers.
“It really expands your horizons, it allows you to share skills that you have with others who are often in need of them or to build skills that you have. I mean it can be great for building friendships, your community network, for building your community overall. It helps people feel like they belong in a community…Volunteers give a lot of themselves, so it’s important to recognize them so they don’t experience burnout, so they still feel connected to the organization and the community.”
This year, the centre is also participating in the Change the World Ontario Youth Volunteer Challenge. The goal is to highlight the ways youth can and do volunteer in the province. Last year in the region, they had over 650 students participate. Last year provincially, 20 thousand youth took part, and this year, they hope to bump that number to 30 thousand.
Graham adds “It’s an ambitious goal, but I think we can do it.”
