What Are The Strengths And Disadvantages Of Volunteer Programs?

Volunteer fire departments everywhere have staffing problems. If you take a drive past any fire department you will probably see a volunteers needed sign. A fire chief in Pennsylvania stated “I would like to have a greater turnout of firefighters on scene than what we currently have,” he said. “We have a lack of volunteers who are able to respond during daytime hours” (Shawgo, 2014, p. 17). There are several reason that there is not as good of a turnout as there used to be. Back in the 1970s and 1980s the thing to do in town was to hang out at the fire house. There was not as much going on as there is today. People today want to spend more time with their family and go out to the movies or mini golfing, things that family’s did not do as much back in the day. The average amount of training that a volunteer must go through is about 130 hours. Most people see that as too much time to sacrifice. Also, in today’s economy many people work a second or even third job in order to make ends meet. There are also more single parent households then there used to be, which does not allow for hardly any time to volunteer. Due to the reasons stated above it is very difficult to properly staff fire trucks in volunteer departments. The average age of members continues to increase. The few people left who still find time to volunteer often work a regular job during the day, which makes day time emergency calls even harder to respond to with proper staffing. The typical fire truck holds 6

The reason that I believe that volunteer work and work in general is vital to success in the today’s world and society is because the generation that I am apart of is lack of a better term lazy.The motto of the entitled generation is procrastination is key. The most important part in forming a generation comes from the parents. The outcome of a generation’s attitude always leads back to the source (the parents). Volunteer work in present time is very important for the youth, but is equally as important for adults too. Some local organizations in Juneau are Love Incorporation, Helping Hands-Healing Hands LLC, Saint Vincent De Paul, and Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). It is a non profit organization that provides health care for residents of Southeast Alaska. Saint Vincent De Paul is an organization that provides housing for low income families in Juneau, Alaska. Service is an essential

volunteering is important in the public sector because it helps the public services save money other than the military as the military reservists get paid but it is still voluntary. I got all my information from the websites which are for the organisation. the benefits of volunteering are:

Our country’s current economic crisis is drastically affecting not just individuals, but businesses and organizations as well, especially when it comes to those that are non-profit. Funding for necessary programs held by non-profit organizations, such as Moses Cone Behavioral Health, have been cut annually, making it more difficult for their institutions to prosper. Due to these substantial declines in donations and funds, local volunteers are needed now more than ever. I chose to volunteer at Moses Cone Behavioral Health Hospital to help combat this loss in funding.

Volunteers of America is not only a nonprofit community organization but also a ministry of service that is committed to helping people in need to rebuild their lives and reach their total potential. The organization is effective in helping people in need to rebuild their lives through its huge workforce that consist of approximately 16,000 paid professional employees. Moreover, the organization also accomplishes its mission through various human service programs such as housing and healthcare. Throughout its history, Volunteers of America has continued to support and empower the most vulnerable groups in America including at-risk youth, homeless individuals and families, veterans, people returning from prisons, and individuals recovering from addictions. Generally, through integrating deep compassion with the highly efficient programs and services, the organization's work touches the heart, body, mind, and spirit of the people it serves.

Volunteering in America is something that has helped this country to grow the way it has. Services that were given through volunteering are a necessary part of how this country has dealt with its challenges. Beyond the wars that have made and changed the lives of Americans, this country has also had to deal with tragedy that strikes with natural

Our volunteers are the heart and soul of the program. Collectively they spent 39,000 hours this year delivering meals along with “human contact and kindness” to our clients. We thank them for the generous gift of their time.

sometimes does take a while to get food delivered. When I asked the individuals (I was able to interview) questions regarding the other programs (Friendly Visitor and Transportation) They were unable to provide an answer as none of them used the other services. Despite the great services offered by the city of Alexandria there are some concerns with the programs. For example the DOT Para Transportation program the trip has to be scheduled at least one day in advance and they do not offer an emergency service (e.g., if a client needs to get to a friend). When I spoke with a representative from the Friendly Visitor program it was reported they lose some consumer's because the attendants are not allowed to advocate for the consumer's. The representative reported there program does not train and therefore it is a liability. I asked all the programs I contacted if the have any social workers who volunteer with them and to my surprise all the programs reported having only 1 or 2 social workers involved. All the programs reported they need more volunteers. This lack of volunteers got me to thinking how could these programs gain more volunteers? As the programs are doing very well the only concern is the lack of volunteers. In order to

Since my arrival in the United States I have never been to volunteer organization before, but all it changes when I come to the Tri City Volunteers. Tri-City Volunteer “is a non-profit organization that provides food assistance and low-cost clothing and household items to the residents of Alameda County.” Our group, The Ace, choose Tri-City Volunteer based on the recommendation of my team member. It is located on Fremont, 18.3 mile away from my home. I had to took an Uber there because I do not have a car. I arrived early in the morning to pack all the ingredients that were given by the donors. Volunteers are people who came there regularly. Most the people there had 1.000 hours of volunteers. Moreover, there two special groups which always there to help volunteer which are the autism group and the deaf group. Even Though, they were not paid, but they still love to help other people. This is the sensation that people who volunteer looking

The term ’Volunteers’ is a defining aspect of the Nonprofit and voluntary sector. Volunteers are a necessity for the sectors in some way or the other. Volunteers are a necessity for these sectors in some way or the other. According to the 2003 National survey of Non-profit and Voluntary Organizations, almost all of Canada’s estimated 161,000 nonprofit and voluntary organizations involve volunteers in some way. It has been reported that that collectively there are around 19 million volunteers and out of these one million of them serve on boards of directors. They are engaged in program delivery and fundraising. Many voluntary organizations face an ongoing need to recruit new volunteers. Many have also had to become more sophisticated in their recruitment strategies in order to attract volunteers who are reflective of the population. However, recruitment is only half the battle. The knowledge of experienced volunteers is an important asset for an organization. Retaining experienced volunteers is, therefore, a critical issue for voluntary organizations.

I volunteered for an organization called Service Works. It’s a nationwide organization that helps young adults in developing communities to build acquired skills to prepare for college and their career paths. Service Works provide success coaches for young individuals as role models, and people that they can interact with if they have any problems, questions, or need advice regarding their career paths. Service Works is an organization that is hosted by Jersey Cares, a nonprofit organization that has been around since 1993. They recruit and engages volunteers in rewarding effective efforts that help address community-identified needs. According to Jersey Cares.org, their mission statement is to, “increases

After becoming a member of the National Society for Leadership and Success, I participated in countless hours of volunteer work for my community. One particular event that I always attend is the Raid for Kids. This event is a community Halloween event that provides children with a safer alternative to trick or treating. The event occurs on the University campus during day light hours and is supervised by volunteers and organizers. Later on I joined Habitat for Humanity in Albany, Georgia. Last year we participated in neighborhood clean-up projects. Recently Albany, Georgia had a destructive tornado that wrecked havoc on the city. So after the storm we came together to offer our help to people who were less fortunate than we were. This service

Another non-profit organization called, KFB (Keep Florida Beautiful) is a state affiliate of KAB (Keep America beautiful). This group work with a million of volunteers in order to improve Florida by cleaning beaches, and increasing recycling. Therefore, KFB want to encourage people to change something

In chapter 5, LeRoux covers how community service and voluntary action fuel the mission of many organizations. Volunteers are an important aspect of non profit organizations especially. It was very interesting to me to read about the research that has been done about volunteering and how to keep and attract volunteers. Better understanding the motivations behind volunteers is an important part of the non profit sector. Many organizations are working hard to figure out ways to make the volunteer experience personalized to each individual and making it a good and inspiring experience for both sides. Making the experience important to the volunteer and the cause or organization keeps volunteers volunteering and keeps the organizations moving. The reading about college volunteering mentions the importance of hands on experience for students and how it can be a great service learning opportunity and way for students to express the causes that they are passionate about.

Nonprofit agencies depend on volunteers. Volunteers can be central to an agency’s core service and possess scarce and important resources: time, talent, and information about clients.