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Volunteering ideas
By Cam Tait
May 29, 2006
I feel a little, if not, very guilty right now. The past few weeks have been so busy with travel, work and family - not in that order, of course - that I forgot to share a few thoughts about an event that, in my humble opinion, is one of the most important salutes we have: National Volunteer Week, which takes place every year at the end of April.
Volunteers are heroes, often unsung, and they need to be recognized. We need to be reminded of just how vital they are. But everything has peaks and valleys, highs and lows. This is in no way a criticism of National Volunteer Week - in fact, if I did have a comment, I think it's that we should make it National Volunteer Month to appreciate volunteers even more. But since I'm not in charge of such things, I'll pose this question instead: is National Volunteer Week still doing what it was intended to do? Or, with time, do we need to tweak a few things and make minor changes to the event?
I honestly don't know. I don't have a handle on how groups are viewing NVW. Has it become just another event that slips between the cracks because we have become too consumed with other things? Or is it something groups hang onto and allocate resources to because they know the difference volunteers can make? Is the week just about saluting volunteers? Or does it serve another role by providing great role models - community leaders who, hopefully, encourage more people to volunteer? Are the events - lunches, teas, receptions, dinners, or perhaps even concerts - in need of some new formats and themes?
And what about the volunteers themselves? Do they like the yearly event? Are numbers going down because they've been there before, and have the T-shirt and the coffee mug to prove it? Or are there more people coming to be recognized, counting themselves among a wonderful team of volunteers? Perhaps the more important question is this: how do volunteers want to be recognized? In fact, do they even want to be? That could be the key to the deal. Not, I stress again, that there is anything wrong with the deal. But, at the same time, it would be interesting to know what ideas existing volunteers might have about attracting new volunteers rather than being recognized themselves.
Then again, if it ain't broke, why fix it? True, but National Volunteer Week is a time of celebration, a time when we can be inspired and motivated by some of Canada's greatest community leaders. And like anything we're proud of, we owe it to ourselves to make it better, year after year. The idea is splendid. How can we make it better?
So, if you're a staff member of a nonprofit group, a board member, a volunteer, or anyone who has an opinion on the subject, please share it. And Volunteer Canada...congratulations for organizing another National Volunteer Week. If you would like to comment, please feel free. We will post your feedback in the weeks ahead. My e-mail address is at the end of this column.
Volunteers are wonderful people who, quite simply, are the backbone of our communities. We owe it to them to be as supportive and understanding as we can. I'm looking forward to hearing from you. Any volunteers?
Cam Tait is a sports reporter for the Edmonton Journal. He covered charitable issues for almost 20 years. Thoughts, comments, ideas or a simple hello are welcomed at cam@charityvillage.com.
Opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of CharityVillage.com®.
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