volunteering

Guest blogger – Karine Aviv

A couple of Sundays ago, I took my two older girls (ages 8 and 11) to a community volunteering event (J-Serve), at our local Jewish Centre.  As a mother of 3, I believe that getting my kids involved in community events is important for a number of reasons.  As they grow and develop, being involved in a larger community teaches them about social responsibility.  As a parent, I want them to learn not to focus only on themselves but rather to learn that there is a whole world around them. I want my daughters to learn to be giving, considerate and compassionate towards others.  Volunteering is important for character building in children.  They learn to care for other people and learn that selfless actions feel good.

We have an extra day this year, how will you use it? Is it already filled up? Have you left these 24 hours for exploring something new? Time is something that we all undervalue, that's why we so quickly give it away. So, you have found some time, now what? Happy Feb. 29!

Guest Blogger: Amy Lewis is currently completing her Bachelor of Management, with a major in Marketing and minor in Corporate Social Responsibility from University of Lethbridge. Amy has a diverse range communication experience, including marketing, media relations and, event planning. Amy enjoys exploring the variety of options that Marketing and Public Relationspresents.  

Recently I was approached on the street by a well-known charity and was asked to give. The street educators filled in the gaps of my understanding, clarified a few details and answered my questions. They improved my understanding of what the charity did and whom they served.  After their spiel they asked me if I was interested in becoming a regular donor - I wasn’t comfortable leaving financial information with somebody on the street, regardless if they wok for awell-known cause or not, and agreed that a representative could call me.

I’ve been thinking a lot about why people do-good? Is there one under lining characteristic or motivational factor that do-gooders share that motivates them to do all the good they do? Read more »

My daughter’s first exposure to volunteering came at an early age. I used to be a regular volunteer for Inn from the Cold (IFTC), an awesome Calgary charity that provides a place to sleep and warm meals to families without homes.

Read more »

CFCN, Calgary's local CTV news network aired a piece yesterday entitled, "Charity, What's In It For Me?"  I only saw the tail end of the segment and I wish I had seen it all.  Part of the piece that I saw was an interview with a dear friend and mentor, Tony Meyers.  Tony is a fund development consultant and has led seminars and workshops around the world on donor cultivation and stewardship.  The question that was posed to him was, should there be an expectation of a return for charitable work.  His response was that charity is a transformational experience.  The mere fact that you as a person gets something out of actively participating in philanthropic activities does not mean that you should not participate. 

This sentiment was supported by Carol, a volunteer for Hospice Calgary, who said (I am paraphrasing), "Why would I do something that was drudgery?"  She has been volunteering for the Hospice for a long time and feels that she gets more out of this experience as a volunteer than if she were to be paid to do this.  The act of volunteering is generating a personal/emotional benefit that she feels outweighs what she is giving.

Philanthropy = The Love of Mankind

At some point we lost the true meaning of philanthropy and have equated it with finances and economic indicators.  We are a consumer driven society, as such charities have had to play to our values that we espouse.  The "What's in it for me?" is a driving factor of any relationship, whether it is work, volunteer, personal or financial.  The net result could be a feeling or it could be publicity.  Whatever the reason for participating in the philanthropic act, there is a thought shift that occurs.  What drives us to actively participate in the philanthropic activity has a direct bearing on our values and goals.  Recognizing where we come from and where the purpose for engaging in charitable activities will help us identify the best way to engage in those activities.

It's all about relationships...  I know, we hear that time and again.  People give money to people and not to organizations.  I sat down with Mary Tidlund, founder and CEO of the Tidlund Foundation yesterday to learn from her the process she undertook for setting up her foundation.  I will be posting excerpts from the interview in coming weeks (once I figure out how to put the audio on my website...).  Something really stood out in our conversation that I had to write about immediately.

Mary built her foundation, not out of a set of systems, but based on a set of values.  She knew that she wanted to impact the lives of people through medical and educational support in the developing world.  As she started exploring what this would look like, people from around the world began galvanizing towards her model of international development.  In the 10 years that the foundation has been operating it draws on a pool of over 175 people to implement programs in several countries ranging from Haiti to India.  With a paid staff of two, the foundation's overhead is spent on improving the local economies by employing people in the project region who have the skill-set to deliver on what the community has articulated its needs are.

I asked Mary how she goes about raising funds for her foundation.  She said that when she started she had put together a strategy, but it was a lot of work and not a lot of return.  What she noticed was how the Foundation's volunteers became the story.  The more people in the various countries that participated in her programs either as a recipient organization or as a volunteer or as a donor, the stronger the Foundation's story became. 

As the Tidlund Foundation became more sophisticated and grew, so too did the volunteer model.  These past two months have seen some new additions to the volunteer training model.  In the past volunteers were provided with cultural training before going overseas and debriefing upon returning.  Now volunteers are part of a larger circle that includes in-country support sessions, educational opportunities and what I found most interesting draws upon several different cultures from the Traditional Wisdom of Eastern religions to the Talk Sticks of North American Indians.  This opportunity to share with each other as people are immersed in the volunteer experience has provided the Foundation with even more stories of strength and success.

Everyone has a different approach to how they see their foundation operating.  Not only is going to be private or public.  Questions around how to engaged donors and volunteers or other family members are asked.  There is no right or wrong answer, it all depends on the values that you bring to the table and the type of systems that work best for you. 

No matter how you choose to invest in community, whether it is by starting your own foundation, donating directly to a charity or investing in a social enterprise/venture; it is the people behind the project that you are putting your money into.  The organization and its recipients are who you are investing in.  As long as they align with what you believe in and they can show you that they are accountable to you as well as to each other then considering that investment should be an easy decision.

The Globe and Mail recently ran an article by Jonathan Drew on the selfishness of altruism.  His article entitled, "This is Good You can be Selfish and Altruistic - Employer-supported volunteering programs prove rewarding to communities, volunteers and companies" comes at a fitting time.  Trends indicate that volunteerism across Canada is down and just as there is discussion on donor-fatigue there is also discussion around volunteer-fatigue. 

More and more people are looking for the quick volunteer opportunities.  Companies use volunteer projects as team building exercises.  But how does this impact the organization on the receiving end of the one-off volunteer?  Many organizations rely on multi-day, longer-term volunteerism.  That is how committees work, board's work and consistency is maintained.  In fact, I would argue that one of the biggest challenges is the fact that organizations struggle with the corporate volunteer program when it is only one day out of the year. 

Enter the NEW WORKFORCE... The new workforce is demanding time from work to make community an integral part of their lives.  Several companies, of all sizes are giving employees one-day-per-month leave to participate in community activities. This approach to corporate philanthropy is building stronger communities and it is providing non-profit organizations with a consistent volunteer body. 

So how do you integrate a volunteer program in your company or small business?  Organizations like Volunteer Calgary can help.  Most major cities have similar type agencies working with individuals and businesses to identify volunteer opportunities. 

What does a Volunteer Program look like?  A successful program will take into account the number of employees that are going to participate in the day, the type of organization you want your company to associate with, the number of hours/year (or month) that you can contribute, the cost of lost labour for that day as it compares to the retention cost and a happy work environment (a key question... what will be my return on this investment), and your area of professional expertise (many organizations are looking for people to donate their business acumen). 

The same thing applies for individuals and families who want to get more engaged in community.  Before you accept any volunteer project, ask yourself some basic questions:

1. Do I have the time to make this commitment?

2. Is this an organization I want my name affiliated with?

3. Who else can I engage in the activity?

4. How does this organization reflect my overall value system?

5. How will my time be best utilized?

Several companies have adopted a volunteer program.  One such company is Suitcase Interactive.  Each month staff members donate their time to a local soup kitchen and once a year the entire staff go to Mexico to build playgrounds.  Their foundation, Project Smile, was the creation of CEO - Ryan Gill.

This is only one of many such companies.  Does your company have a volunteer program?  Email me and I will highlight it in a future posting.

For more information on creating a volunteer program in your business please contact me at .  I will be happy to facilitate an introduction with a Volunteer Centre in your community.