With the rise in news stories about zombies over the past year, we thought it would be a good idea to revisit how to rebuild society once the zombie apocalypse has passed.

They’re coming.

The shuffling, mindless creep towards the inevitable end of everything we know and love.

Zombies.

What’s the best way to deal with the impending zombie apocalypse?

Start recruiting volunteers to help you rebuild society. It might sound a bit strange to start thinking about rebuilding after the zombie apocalypse before it’s happened, but you always start recruiting volunteers before you need them. Besides, we know not to start recruiting volunteers on the day of our projects, why would recruiting for the zombie apocalypse be any different?

• 6 Tips for Writing an Awesome Volunteer Position Description
• Crafting a Volunteer Recruitment Message

Get ready for the inevitable rise of the living dead. Being prepared is the most important part of any emergency, and different emergencies require different kinds of preparedness. there are some basic steps that you want to follow for all emergencies, though. Make sure that you have a plan in place and everyone in your family knows what to do when the zombies finally come. And remember, you never run out of crowbar.

Braaaiiinnnsss. Once the zombie apocalypse starts to wind down, the survivors are going to need to start rebuilding society. You’ll need all kinds of volunteers to help rebuild, and volunteers with specific skills will be helpful in restoring society to it’s pre-zombie splendor. You’ll want to recruit skills-based volunteers, because the very things that the living dead feed upon will help to rebuild society. Yes, skills-based volunteers keep all of their knowledge in their braaaiiinnnsss.

• Five Tips for Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers

The Double Tap. Not only effective in making sure a zombie goes down and stays down (they’re good fakers, zombies), the double tap can be used in just about every aspect of working with volunteers. Whether it’s making the ask for volunteers, orienting volunteers, training volunteers, or thanking them for a job well done, always take the time to do it twice.

When a disaster strikes, it’s important to be able to react immediately, and being prepared is an important part of being able to react. Having a family plan in case of a disaster is important, and so is making sure you have enough supplies. Here are some more tips that can help you if a disaster strikes:

Have an escape route. Take the time to draw a floor plan of your home and mark escape routes for each room. Make sure children understand the drawings and have a copy in their rooms. Don’t forget to establish a meeting places in the event of an emergency like a fire.

Know how to shut off your utilities. In the event of a disaster, you may be asked to shut off utility service at your home. It is important to contact your natural gas provider for instructions on how to turn off service because different gas meters have different configurations.

To shut off water, locate the shut off valve where the water comes into your home – it may look like this:

Make sure the valve can be completely shut off – if it’s rusted and won’t close you might want to look into replacing it. Label the valve so that everyone in your family knows where it is and how to turn it off.

Know where your insurance information and other records are. Review your existing policies for the amount and extent of coverage that you have in place so you can rebuild if necessary. If you have a hard time understanding your insurance policy, you can call your insurance agent and talk with them about your concerns.

Keep an inventory of your property for insurance purposes. Keep photos or videos of the interior and exterior of your home along with personal items. Keep the inventory, along with important household documents, in a safe place away from your home like a safety deposit box.

Have a plan for family pets. Just like you, animals can be affected by disasters. Make sure you know a shelter you can take your pets to in case of an evacuation. Gather together pet supplies and vet records, and make sure your pet has proper ID. Provide a carrier and leash for your pet. You can contact your local emergency management office, animal shelter, or animal control office for more advice or information.

Know how to stay safe. It is important that family members know how to administer first aid and CPR, and know how to use a fire extinguisher. Check with your local American Red Cross chapter for information on first aid and CPR training.

For fire extinguishers, make sure you have at least an ABC fire extinguisher – one that is effective on wood or paper fires, electrical fires, and liquid fires.

Preparing a disaster kit on a sunny afternoon can help keep you safe when the clouds roll in. While you can purchase a disaster kit with a lot of things that you need in it, you can also build your own. Building your own lets you include things specifically for you and your family.

You can even make a volunteer project out of building your disaster kit by helping others to build their own disaster preparedness kit.

What do you need for your kit?

• Three-day supply of non-perishable food.Try to avoid overly salty foods. Look for foods with a high water content. Canned foods are great for this, but don’t forget a can opener!
• Three-day supply of water – one gallon of water per person, per day. Buying commercially bottled water is best here. Be sure to pay attention to expiration dates!
  
• Portable, battery-powered radio or television and extra batteries. Emergency radios that run off of a hand crank are great to include. No need to worry about extra batteries!
  
• Flashlight and extra batteries. Forever flashlights (flashlights that run off of a crank or can be charged by shaking) are great here too. No worries about batteries for these, either!
  
• First aid kit and manual. You can buy a first aid kit, or you can put one together yourself. FEMA has great suggestions about what to include in a first aid kit.
  
• Sanitation and hygiene items (moist towelettes and toilet paper).
• Matches and waterproof container.
• Whistle. A whistle is a great way for letting people know where you are!
  
• Extra clothing.
• Kitchen accessories and cooking utensils, including a can opener.
• Photocopies of credit and identification cards.
• Cash and coins. Think about setting up a bank account specifically for emergency funds. Be sure to keep cash with your disaster kit, too.
  
• Special needs items, such as prescription medications, eye glasses, contact lens solutions, and hearing aid batteries. Don’t forget to check your prescriptions regularly so that you’re not keeping expired medicine with your kit.
  
• Items for infants, such as formula, diapers, bottles, and pacifiers.
• Other items to meet your unique family needs.

Pack your disaster kit in something that’s easy to move in case you have to leave your home. Backpacks are great for packing your disaster kit in. Look for one that’s a bright color so you can easily find it in a hurry.

When you make your disaster kit, don’t just throw it in a the back of a closet and forget about it. Every few months, check on it to make sure all of the items in it are still good (food, water, prescriptions, and batteries all go bad).

Do you have a disaster kit in your home? What have you included in yours to help you feel safe? Let us know!

(If you want to be super prepared, add a crowbar to your disaster kit. You never know when the zombie apocalypse will happen!)

With Make A Difference Day coming up tomorrow, we thought we’d share some tips on finding the perfect volunteer opportunity! These are great tips for every day and Make A Difference Day!

You’ve got skills. You’ve got talent. You have a desire to serve in your community.

But maybe you just don’t know where to start to find your dream volunteer position. Here’s some tips to help you find it.

Know what you’re looking for.

Do you want to work with youth? Do you want to be a mentor? A tutor? A leader? Someone to show them that things aren’t as bad as they seem?

Make sure you have an idea how you’d like to volunteer before you contact a specific nonprofit about an opportunity. It will help you to find something that you’ll be happy doing.

If you don’t know what you want to do, though, there are plenty of ways to try out some different things while you’re looking for that perfect volunteer position. A HandsOn Action Center or local volunteer center is a great place to start finding volunteer opportunities.

You can even start your own volunteer project if you’re not sure what you’re looking for.

Know what an organization is looking for.

Call the organization that you want to volunteer with and see if you can set up some time to talk to the volunteer manager. They’ll be able to tell you everything you’d want to know about the program, and probably some things you didn’t even think to ask.

Try to find out if there’s any kind of volunteer orientation that you can attend before committing to serve with the organization. You’ll be able to get an idea about what the organization is looking for this way.

If you can talk to a volunteer that does the same kind of work, do it. You’ll get another perspective on the type of work you’ll be doing, and if it’s really the right position for you.

Learn about the benefits and ask questions.

Let’s be honest. We’re looking to get something out of our volunteer experiences, whether it’s a resume boost, the chance to learn a new skill, playing with puppies and kittens, or just the warm fuzzies that you get from volunteering, we want something back from our experience.

It’s ok to ask what you’ll get out of your volunteer experience. Asking questions about the tasks you’ll be doing helps you to find out if the opportunity is right for you. Make sure you know the kind of work you’ll be doing, the time commitment the position requires, who you’ll be working closest with, and what kind of recording procedures the organization has.

Find out how you can get more responsibility if you want it.

If the volunteer position you’re interested in isn’t quite what you’re hoping for, find out if the position can be changed to make it something closer to what you’re looking for. It’s possible that the organization has never thought about using volunteers in the way you’re looking to contribute. It never hurts to ask.

What have you done to find the perfect volunteer position? Let us know in the comments!

Volunteers are the lifeblood of many organizations, therefore it is important to keep them engaged in their work.  To keep a volunteer engaged, it is vital to provide ample recognition, rewards, and opportunities to volunteers.

Recognize volunteers publicly and privately.

Whether you are working with one volunteer, ten, or a few hundred, it’s important to recognize their efforts.   There are many ways to recognize volunteers, from giving them a hand written thank you note, or one of many other ways to say thank you.  Getting to know your volunteers will help you to know how they would best like to be thanked for their work.

Reward volunteers with creative gifts and gestures.

Gifts for volunteers don’t have to be big and they don’t have to be expensive. The best gifts for recognizing volunteers are things that will be useful to them.

Give volunteers opportunity to grow.

It is important to check in with volunteers on a regular basis to make sure they are still interested in their tasks or want to change their responsibilities.  Many volunteers want to learn and grow by doing new tasks over time.  Make time to meet with volunteers once or twice a year or quarterly to catch up on both personal and volunteer related topics.

If you think a volunteer would work really well in a paid position that’s open, ask them to apply for it. Even if they can’t take it, it lets the volunteer know that you and your organization appreciate their work.

Provide food at volunteer functions.

Providing something to eat, in addition to a well planned event,  is a key way to draw volunteers to events. Rather than offer the same cookies and punch at each event, keep it interesting with theme related snacks. Don’t forget to check if your volunteers have any dietary restrictions so everyone can enjoy the food!

Give volunteers a break.

It’s important not to tax volunteers by overloading them with difficult or strenuous tasks that they didn’t initially agree to do. At the same time, try to realize that volunteers’ might not want to do the same task for the entire time they’re working with your organization.

Check in with your volunteers to make sure they’re happy with what they’re doing, and let them try something new or take some time off if they want to.

Say thank you.

At the end of the day, most volunteers just want to know their work is appreciated and they’ve done well.  Strive to say a genuine “thank you” to volunteers whenever you get a chance.

The key to recruiting and retaining boomer volunteers is for nonprofits and volunteer centers to develop an ongoing dialogue with boomers and tailoring service opportunities to meet their needs and desires around service. Here are some tips for focusing on boom recruitment and retention:

• Recruit boomers through wide outreach, including media, community events, and through peer-to-peer outreach.
• Develop recruitment materials tailored to reflect language, interests, and self-image of boomers.
• Provide orientation and training to help boomers understand the nonprofit world, the opportunities that are available, and their role and responsibilities as volunteers.
• Screen and match volunteers based on an assessment of skills and interest.
• Create ongoing opportunities  through trainings, social events, and group projects for boomer volunteer to learn, gain new skills, meet other boomers, share stories, and work together with other boomers.
• PRovide recognition opportunities that are meaningful to your volunteers – getting to know your volunteers as individuals is the best way to find out how they would like to be recognized as volunteers.

Do you work with boomer volunteers? What are your tips for recruiting and retaining them?

Why are boomers the future of volunteering? First, because of their sheer size: boomers represent about 77 million potential volunteers. They also have longevity on their side; this group has an average life expectancy of 83 years. That, coupled with higher levels of income and savings than earlier waves of retirees, suggest they have both the time and resources for volunteering.

Could you benefit from boomer volunteers? Here are some tips to help recruit them:

• Boomers may be highly resistant to a group that includes the previous generation. They may be highly resistant to words like “senior”, “older adult”, “golden years”, “mature adult”, etc. Be creative – anecdotal evidence shows that “experienced” may appeal to this demographic. “Experienced” avoids negative connotations associated with aging and highlights the fact that you value their experience and skills.
• Be highly aware of the images used in materials targeted towards boomers. According to the Boomer Project national survey, boomers see themselves as being at least 12 years younger than their chronological age. Images of individuals they perceive as “elderly” may be unappealing to boomers – they want to see people who reflect their own self-image.
• Consider using words other than “volunteer” which is often associated with negative images of PTA lunches or menial tasks unappealing to boomers. The Montgomery County Volunteer Center came up with the name “Pro-Bono Consultants” after several volunteers felt as if they were continuing their professional work – but in an unpaid capacity.
• According to the Harvard study, Reinventing Aging, boomers are less likely to volunteer out of a response to civic duty or obligation. For goal-oriented boomers, a message shows how they can make a difference in their community is more effective.
• Boomers may need to have a sense of “what’s in it for me?” Recent studies have shown the health benefits of volunteering, as well as the social benefits that may be important as boomers leave the workplace.
• Bear in mind that boomers may never fully “retire” – they express a strong interest in continuing part-time work or self-employment. Even a boomer who works a few hours a year may not consider themselves “retired” – tailor you messages, as well as your opportunities, accordingly.

Do you work with boomer volunteers? Share your experience and tips in the comments!

An organization’s ability to not only survive, but also thrive in the future is directly proportionate to its capacity to learn. People within organizations, both individually and collectively, need to develop the ability to reflect on their work and willingness to uncover, understand, and reconsider the basic assumptions that underlie the work.

Out with the old, in with the new.

Remain aware of the changing social, economic, and demographic realities of today as they have a direct bearing on your ability to attract and retain volunteer involvement. We are quick to recognize the need for change in how we raise funds, address personal issues, and conduct marketing, but more often, we are less likely to focus on updating their volunteer management strategies.

1. Consider the possibility that some assumptions are no longer valid and limit the way you think and behave
2. Welcome new ways to stay connected to volunteers through workforce diversification, volunteer feedback, and the use of technology.

Diversity as a goal.

In this increasingly multicultural world in which a variety of lifestyles, cultures, age groups and value orientations seek to coexist, leaders should speak knowledgeably and sensitively about the changing demographics in their communities.  Recognize the inherent importance of engaging people from all these groups as volunteers in order to remain truly responsive to the whole community.

Lend an ear to a volunteer.

Try to learn as much about volunteers as possible. Find out what motivates them, and the quality of their experience with the organization. Use these as clues on how the organization can better adapt and change in order to better sustain and support this vitally important human resource. Always keep in mind the volunteers are grassroots enforcers of the mission!

What do you do to build strong connections with your volunteers? Let us know in the comments!

Check out some more posts were about building connections.

• 4 Tips for Connecting Volunteers With Staff
• Four Tips For Connecting Volunteers With Your Mission
• Connecting Volunteers to Your Organization’s Leadership

1) Volunteer at a Medicinal supply organization! With so many countries unable to provide proper medical care to its citizens, local nonprofits have willingly stepped in to provide proper medical supplies to these developing nations. Volunteering at one of these organizations is rewarding as this allows you to bond with everyone around you, hear stories of the various countries receiving the supplies, and ultimately realize the impact of volunteering your time.

2) Volunteer for a 3k, 5k or go the distance and do a marathon! Whether you’re actually volunteering or helping runners sign up for the race, the distance you choose doesn’t matter. It’s the cause behind the race that makes the biggest impact. Many races are fundraisers that raise money for research, causes, and organizations. Whatever the reason, races are beneficial for you and your family as they provide valuable family time and help support important causes.

3) Volunteering is mentally healthy! More than likely (well we hope) you want to be volunteering so you’re already in a good mood and guess what? The people you’re around also want to be volunteering. Overall people are happy to be volunteering, the good vibes are felt and shared throughout the experience. As you reflect upon your volunteering experience, you  will realize all of the heartening memories generated from the positivity and you’re already looking forward to the next time you volunteer!

4) Volunteering as a Baby Boomer! For Baby Boomers and retirees volunteering reshapes the perceptions of aging, shifting the focus from frailty and dependency long associated with old age to being active, productive which leads to improved health and longevity.

5) Help make our returning soldiers and Veterans healthy! If you’re a counselor or mental health professional, you can use your skills to provide free mental health services to members of the military, veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, and their loved ones. These services help soldiers to cope with the psychological and emotional consequences of a decade of war.

With these ideas, tell us how you plan on doing “healthy” volunteering during the holidays and through out the year.

For more information or to find local “healthy’ volunteering experiences near you go to HandsOn Network.

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