Tag Archives: volunteer

Thanksgiving volunteer opportunities

Posted on by
Reply

With Thanksgiving (Nov 24, 2011) being just around the corner, we thought it would be adequate to list a few web resources where you can find volunteer opportunities in your neighbourhood.

While there are some gazillion lists on the Internet, some more up-to-date than others, to provide you with information on Thanksgiving volunteer opportunities, this list (or rather, list-of-lists) is pretty much a work in progress – so if you think that another site should be listed here, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with an URL at fundraisr.org(at)gmail.com!

Continue reading →

Crisis boosts US volunteerism, a recent study shows

Posted on by
Reply

Volunteerism in the US has seen a substantial growth since the beginning of the economic downturn, with the number of American volunteers soaring at its six-year peak, according to a recent study commissioned by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

In 2009 there were 2.6 million more Americans who contributed some kind of volunteer work than in 2008, up from 26.4 percent to 26.8 percent in terms of the entire population, representing the most significant year-on-year growth since 2003, the study concludes.

The overall value of the 8.1 billion man-hours contributed by Americans last year is an estimated $169 billion according to the calculations of the Corporation for National and Community Service. The organization established a website Volunteering in America back in September 2009 to assemble information on various forms of volunteering, providing data for all US states and nearly 200 cities.

According to the study, there is a tight connection between the economic crisis hitting the United States and the increase seen in the number of volunteers. “As the economic crisis affected many individuals personally and sent shockwaves across the country, Americans reached out to help through service,” the report states. A key finding of the study also highlights that through volunteering, people tend to support the vulnerable populations hit  hardest by the economy and help create a stronger, more stable future.

According to the study, the significant rise was mainly driven by larger volunteer rates among women, primarily women between the ages 45-54; among individuals who are married, especially married women; and among those who were employed, especially individuals working full time. children under 18 years old in the home and individuals with a high school diploma or college degree are also among the populations with higher-than-average volunteer rates. The increase in volunteering among African American women also had a major impact: volunteer rate for individuals who identified themselves as African American/Black rose from 19.1 percent in 2008 to 20.2 percent in 2009, the increase mostly driven by women in this field as well.

While the number of volunteers, and the number of work-hours contributed have both seen an increase, the organizations and the activities volunteers chose to contribute to remained relatively unchanged. Most volunteers participated in fundraising/selling items to raise money (26.6% of volunteers do this activity), while other popular activities included collecting, preparing, distributing, or serving food (23.5% of volunteers do this activity), engaging in general labor or providing transportation (20.5%), and tutoring or teaching (19.0%).

When comparing volunteer rates to certain community factors, the study finds that the greater the sense of attachment to the community is in certain areas of the US, the higher volunteer rate that area altogether shows. Indicators such as homeownership and the number of multi-unit dwellings help determine residential stability and whether residents have a long-term commitment and attachment to their communities, the report concludes. The volunteer rates between home-owners (30.4%) and renters (18.0%) makes this distinction extremely clear, the study highlights.

The state-by-state breakdown of volunteer rates is led by Utah (44.2%), and the final place sees New York (19.0%), while the ranking of large cities is led by Minneapolis, MN (37.4%) and closed by Miami, FL (14.8%)

The data for the recently published study was assembled in September, 2009, using a representative sample of some 60,000 households (approximately 100,000 adults) in partnership with partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Volunteers are defined as “as adults ages 16 years and older who performed unpaid volunteer activities for or through an organization”. The study also notes that it is unable to cover all types of contributions made by community members.

Bono turns street musician for charity

Posted on by
Reply

Okay, it is news of yesteryear by now (quite literally), but still I am positive that it is worth a mention what Dubliners may have witnessed this Christmas Eve if they happened to walk the shopping streets of their city.

U2's Bono turns street musicion for charity on Christmas Eve in Dublin

U2's Bono turns street musicion for charity on Christmas Eve in Dublin

U2 frontman Bono teamed up with Swell Season’s Glen Hansard to become street musicians and play for charity. Bono and Glen were also joined by highly popular Irish songwriters Damien Rice and Mundy in the fundraising action, that aimed to help Irish charity Simon Community, that supports homeless people in various communities throughout Ireland.

The busking-turned -superstar-jam-session took place on Dublin’s well known Grafton street, that, interestingly, was also a most important location of hit cult movie Once, in which Glen Hansard’s character was a busker playing on the very same spot.

“That was incredible,” Hot Press quoted an astonished onlooker. “I was out innocently doing my shopping when I saw a crowd gathered. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I had a closer look – you might expect to see someone like Mundy doing something like this for charity, but there were three huge stars there, giving it loads. It really added to the Christmas eve atmosphere. The only problem is I had one more present to get but the shop is closed now!”

Although there is no word on how much the bunch of superstar buskers managed to raise for the good cause, but they were reported to play for over an hour. The “show” included U2’s One, Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door and You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere, Ben King’s Stand By Me and a version of Mic Christopher’s Heyday, performed by Mic’s best friend, Glen Hansard. Obviously all of these songs were joined by the numerous audience singing along with the artists.

While Bono has been well known for his charity work (well, for other things, too), Glen Hansard is no different. A few days before Christmas, on Dec 21, 2009. Hansard was the special guest for the Dublin Simon Community’s ‘The Longest Night’ fundraising concert. The concert arranged on the longest night of the year (which is the worst night for the homelesses) aimed to raise EUR 100,000 ($144,000) to support homeless Dubliners. On the video above you can see a part of his show given at Dublin’s Button Factory.

The Dublin branch of Simon Community aids some 2,000 homeless people on a daily bases.

Disney offers free tickets to volunteers

Posted on by
Reply

Some 1,000,000 volunteers will be granted free entry tickets to Disney theme parks for offering a day of volunteer work in the frameworks of Disney’s recently announced promotion. The campaign will run throughout next year, and free day’s admission tickets will be given to guests who offer a day of volunteer work for an eligible volunteer project approved by the company.

Free Disney Park tickets to volunteers

Disney offers free tickets to 1,000,000 volunteers

The campaign titled “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” is a joint action of Disney and the HandsOn Network. Disney launched the volunteer promotion last Tuesday (Dec 22.) by sending 1,000 volunteers, including employees from Disney and Southwest Airlines, to work on projects around the country, from a Habitat for Humanity site in Los Angeles to the Bethune School of Excellence in Chicago.

Although the promotion was announced last week, but it will be live only on January 1, 2010. Once the campaign will be on its way, volunteers will be able to register at www.DisneyParks.com and search for approved volunteer projects to participate in. According to Disney company, several locations will be available, such as various US sites, Canada or Puerto Rico. After completing the volunteer work, participants will receive an email from Disney containing a link to print out a voucher to redeem at a theme park for a free one-day, one-park admission. Of course not everyone is interested in spending a day in a Disney theme park, so the company’s website wisely suggests: “…and if you’re unable to use the ticket, it can be donated to a charity designated by Disney.”

Although the whole family can be (and is encouraged to be) involved in the volunteer projects, official (ie. registered) volunteers have to be at least six years old. The number of free entry tickets offered by Disney is limited to 1,000,000 (quite a lot, we have to admit).

“We are trying to inspire 1 million people to volunteer in their communities and we’re inspiring them to do that by giving them a free day at a Disney park,” chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Jay Rasulo told the Associated Press in an interview. He called the promotion “very timely,” citing the increased needs of nonprofits in the weak economy, as well as President Obama’s national volunteering initiative. “The spirit of our country is very much behind that, whether it’s the first family or whether it’s the average family,” Jay Rasulo added.

HandsOn Network, that Disney chose as its partner for the current promotion has 70,000 affiliated agencies, from Habitat for Humanity to local food banks, churches, health care centers, and educational programs. It will be the HandsOn network that will professionally verify volunteer jobs before Disney will grant free tickets to participants. Examples of volunteer opportunities currently listed on HandsOn’s Web site range from drivers and bingo callers to a book drive organizer at a senior center in Scranton, Pa., to a docent at the Oregon Maritime Museum in Portland.

Via: Momlogic, Chicago Tribune, Disney

Pledge 24 in 2010 campaign seeks volunteers for a day

Posted on by
Reply

Women focused US television channel WE.tv joined up with the guys at Goodwill, to announce the launch of their joint “Pledge 24 in 2010” campaign yesterday. The campaign aimed at women tries to encourage women to offer at least 24 hours from their time for volunteer work in the upcoming year.

Participants can enter their pledges through WE.tv-s online form that will be available through January 31, 2010.

Although users have to give their (valid) email addresses during the registration, and have to opt-in for at least one of WE.tv’s thematic newsletters, SVP of marketing for We TV, Kenetta Bailey, emphasized that building the network’s e-mail database is not a primary goal of the campaign. “But if people are interested in more information on We TV, we want to give it to them,” she was quoted as saying by DM News.

As a part of their campaign, WE.tv was also reported to reach out for over 150 charity organizations, to urge their volunteers to register for 24 in 2010.

According to WE, the organization that receives the most pledges during the registration period, will receive a PSA package from We TV, including 60 PSA spots to run on sister network Wedding Central during April 2010, national volunteer month. The winning nonprofit will get a one-month spotlight as “Charity of the Month” on WEVolunteer.tv with a banner that links to a full-page profile.

Actress Cynthia Nixon of Sex and the City is also rumored to appear in a series of We TV PSAs in 2010 encouraging consumers to volunteer with the tagline “What a difference a day makes.”