Posts Tagged ‘volunteer appreciation’

Four Tips for A Different National Volunteer Week

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011

volunteer, volunteering, volunteerism, National Volunteer WeekNational Volunteer Week starts on April 10. Traditionally, it’s a time for nonprofits to take a step back and focus on the work that volunteers do to help support their causes.

It’s a time of thank you cards and dinners, a time to recognize volunteers’ achievements over the past year and to celebrate the work volunteers do to support the causes that they’re passionate about.

This year, we’re proposing something a little bit different.

This year we want you to be sure to tell your volunteers how much you appreciate them, but we want you to do something else, too.

Tell everyone that you can how important your volunteers are to your organization.

Write a letter to the editor of your local paper. Tell them how important volunteers are to your organization and how many more people your organization is able to serve because of the dedication of your volunteers.

Write a letter to your mayor, governor, or senator. Tell the story of volunteers and your organization. Highlight the importance of volunteers in providing services to people in need in your community. If there is a particularly compelling story about the impact a volunteer has had on a client, be sure to include it in the letter. Ask the person you’re writing to work to support the work of volunteers in the community so they can continue to achieve great things in their communities.

Write a letter to your funders. Highlight the importance of volunteers in supporting the work that your organization does. Mention your volunteers by name, and point out the important work that they’re doing with the organization. Be sure to talk about volunteers have achieved over the past year and how the organization is stronger because of the dedication of your volunteers.

Be sure to say thank you. If you’re having an event to honor your volunteers, be sure to take a moment to thank all of the volunteers that you work with for their work over the past year. If you’re planning to say thank you to the volunteers you work with as a group, that’s fine. Try taking some time at the event to talk to each volunteer individually and thank them, too.

Don’t forget to thank your volunteers throughout the year, too. While National Volunteer Week is a great time to highlight the work that volunteers have done over the past year and to thank them for their service, remember to thank your volunteers throughout the year for the work that they do for your organization.

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Eight Tips For Writing the Perfect Thank You Note

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

volunteer, volunteering, volunteerism, thank youYou’ve thanked the volunteers that serve with your organization, right?  Thanking them when they’re serving is important, but it’s also important to show them that their service is important even when they’re not serving.  A thank you note sent to a volunteer at their home is a great reminder that they’re an important part of the organization.  Here are eight tips for writing personal thank you notes to your volunteers:

1)      Focus on the volunteer.

Before you write the thank you note, try writing the volunteer’s address on the envelope and write it out by hand.  As you’re writing their address, think about your relationship to the volunteer; think about where they’re living and how they’re serving.  It will help you to write an individual message for that volunteer

2)      Write the note by hand.

Unless the number of volunteers your organization has makes writing a thank you note by hand unfeasible, take the extra time to write the note out by hand.  A hand written note will mean more to your volunteers and shows that you’ve taken the time to focus on each volunteer specifically.

3)      Talk about the volunteer’s service directly.

When you’re thanking your volunteer for their service, include a note about something that the volunteer has done.  Whether it’s figuring out a new way to do something, making sure that the people they work with are always smiling, or being the only one that can figure out how to make the copier stop squeaking, be sure to draw attention to it.

4)      Talk about how the volunteer’s service is changing or improving the organization

If the new way of doing something improves the office work flow, tell the volunteer how many hours the improvement saves over the course of a year.  If the volunteer helps to buoy everyone’s spirits, tell the volunteer how their presence makes everyone’s day a little easier to get through.

5)      Try writing a draft before writing out a thank you card.

Your writing will get a little bit better with each draft.  You can keep an early version of the thank you note in the volunteer’s file where it can serve as a reminder of the great work they’ve done for your organization.

6)      Keep it simple.

Your thank you note doesn’t have to be a complicated and involved.  It doesn’t have to be a Presidential address.  It can be two or three lines, simply written that come from the heart.  Pretty words are great when you’re trying to charm someone, but meaningful words are more important when you’re trying to thank them.

7)      Think of how your organization can serve the volunteer better.

If there is something that your organization can do to make the volunteer’s work easier to do, mention that you’re trying to make those things happen.  Whether it’s a brighter desk lamp, more thorough trainings, or simply involving the volunteers more in the day-to-day operation of your organization, let the volunteers know that you’re willing to support them and the work that they do as much as they support you and your organization.

8)      Write a lot of thank you notes.

If you’re not used to writing thank you notes to your volunteers, write a lot of them.  It will get easier, and you’ll get better at it.  Remember, you can never say thank you too many times.

What are some of the ways that you’ve said thank you to the volunteers you work with?  Let us know about the awesome ways of showing your volunteers that you appreciate them – whether it’s high fives in the hallways or winter wellness kits full of tissues and vitamin c.  Let us know in the comments!

Giving Thanks for Volutneers

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

Thanksgiving is in two days.  Soon, we’ll all be sitting around dining room tables with our friends and family and mountains of food that will keep us in leftovers for days.   We’ll fall asleep while watching football, only to wake up a few hours later to eat pie.  We’ll spend time thinking about what we’re all thankful for over the past year, and into our future.

Have you taken time to give thanks for volunteers?  How do you show them that you, as an individual and as an organization, appreciate the time that they give to you?  You don’t have to hold a huge and elaborate dinner to highlight your volunteers’ accomplishments.  Let your volunteers know every day, and throughout the year, that they’re important to you, and to your organization.  Here are some ideas you can use to show your volunteers how important they are:

  • On the volunteer’s first day, make sure that everything they’re going to need is available for them
  • Set up a “volunteer of the week” section of your organization’s newsletter
  • When flu season starts, put together a wellness kit for your volunteers with tea, tissues, vitamin C and hand sanitizer
  • Make sure volunteers get treated like any other employee in your organization, they’re not “just volunteers”
  • Hold volunteer specific events like lunches, coffees, or educational events to bring your volunteers together
  • Send volunteers cards thanking them for serving with your organization
  • Try to set up some time outside of the organization for volunteers to socialize with each other
  • If your volunteer is in school or employed outside of your organization, contact their boss or school administrator and send that person a thank you note for allowing them the time to volunteer
  • Send notes to your volunteers on the anniversary of the day they started volunteering with your organization highlighting all of the work that they’d done over the past year
  • Be sure to highlight volunteers’ achievements to other staff members whenever possible so all staff members are aware of the volunteer program and can thank the volunteers for their work

Most importantly, don’t forget to actually say thank you to your volunteers.

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