02 June 2011

Each year, United Way of Central Virginia’s Day of Caring gives the Central Virginia community an opportunity to reach out and empower others. This year’s United Way Day of Caring, held on May 19, was certainly no exception.

From 8:30am to 5pm, more than 1,000 volunteers from 52 local companies demonstrated what it means to LIVE UNITED.  They donated thousands of hours of their time, a multitude of much-needed supplies and a wealth of passion to complete projects submitted by more than 50 non-profit organizations in the region. These non-profits, which deliver critical services and programs to tens of thousands each year, are deeply grateful to those who volunteered to repair, paint, dig, plant, mulch, purchase, clean and do whatever else was needed to finish these jobs. The value of the Day of Caring volunteers’ donated time and labor surpasses $200,000!

 Our sincerest gratitude goes to all who participated in this year’s event. Special thanks goes to the generous sponsors for the day, including BB&T, Sodexo (Liberty University Dining), City of Lynchburg, Hillcats Stadium, Frito-Lay, Kroger and Pepsi! Their help and support  brought the event together and made it a true celebration.  Close to 1,500 came to enjoy lunch at the Hillcats Stadium!

 On behalf of United Way and the non-profit agencies involved, thanks to all for your great work and for “Living United” to make Central Virginia a region of hope and prosperity.

 Marie Martin

Executive Director, United Way of Central Virginia

06 April 2011

United Way of Central Virginia’s Day of Caring

                        May 19, 2011

The 2010 United Way of Central Virginia's Day of Caring was a HUGE success, and we can do it again this year!

Thanks to over 45 companies and 57 non-profits who participated, LIVED UNITED, and helped to put over $200,000 worth of resources back into the community.  

Day of Caring, now in its 18^th year, is a community-wide event benefiting non-profit agencies in Central Virginia (Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell counties and the cities of Bedford and Lynchburg). Each year, Day of Caring brings together generous, community-focused people under the common mission of creating positive change in the lives of children, families, and seniors.  

Volunteer teams, organized primarily by local companies, work together to complete projects and conduct special programs for local non-profit human service agencies that, much of the time, lack the necessary resources to tackle such important initiatives themselves. Projects range from reading to children at child care sites and engaging them in outdoor activities to landscaping an elderly person's front yard to sprucing up interiors such as washing windows or cleaning baseboards. Participating in Day of Caring provides an opportunity for building relationships among your employees while introducing them to United Way of Central Virginia's impact and importance in our community.   

For more information, please visit http://www.unitedwaycv.org/doc_2011.php.

04 April 2011

National Volunteer Week is April 10 - 16, 2011. Volunteers are invaluable to a nonprofit’s ability to achieve local goals and objectives.  Without volunteers Central Virginia’s agencies could not succeed.  As a result, we would like to take the opportunity to say thank you for volunteering to improve the education, income and health of your community.  By giving of your time, you are creating opportunities for a good life for all.  Thank you for reaching out a hand – one for another – and influencing the condition of all.

27 October 2010

Connie P. Crank has been named Administrative Director of One for Another of Central Virginia.  Over the past 15 years she held positions of director of career development at two liberal arts colleges, providing appropriate programs for college students in various career development stages. She has been involved professionally in the National Association of Colleges and Employers as well as in the state organizations. Connie was awarded the Patricia Carretta Achievement Award for her significant contribution to the Virginia Association of Colleges and Employers (VACE) and the VACE Leadership Award. 

Connie holds a bachelor of science degree in psychology from the University of Maryland and a master of science degree in counselor education from Emporia State University.

 Moving to Lynchburg from Kansas in 2002, she became an active community member with various organizations.  She is a Lynchburg Leadership 2004 graduate and has volunteered with the American Cancer Society, CASA, and the Friends of the Lynchburg Symphony.

 

 

12 March 2010

AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) invites potential Project Sponsors in  Virginia to apply for our teams of developing leaders. This class marks the second year of NCCC’s Southern Region Campus in Vicksburg, MS, and the 17^th year NCCC has been strengthening communities and developing leaders nationwide.

 The Southern Region Campus assigns teams to service projects lasting 3-8 weeks, to help communities meet their most compelling needs. Teams are available during four rounds (see table below)

Round start and end dates listed below are subject to change, and proposed projects need not fill the entire round.

 We have developed a simple two-step process to apply for a team: a Project Concept Form and a Project Application. Potential sponsors must complete a Concept Form. If the Project Concept Form meets NCCC requirements and regional priorities, a full application will be requested.

Class 17 Project Dates	Concept Form Due	Project Application Due
Round 1: September 1-October 16	April 15, 2010	May 14, 2010
Round 2:  October 25-December 11	June 15, 2010	July 15, 2010
Round 3: January 19-March 18	September 1, 2010	October 1, 2010
Round 4:  March 28-May 19	October 15, 2010	November 15, 2010

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To find out what we can do, or submit a Concept Form, contact the project representative for your state:

States: FL, KY, LA, VA, WV, Southern MS Contact: Jen Prall, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ,  601-630-4044

Please allow two weeks for Southern Region staff to review your Concept Form. Upon successful review, you will be invited to submit a Project Application. Southern Region staff will contact you to provide technical assistance with composing the application.  Team awards will be announced about 6 weeks after the application deadline.

 

20 February 2010

Greetings!

Exciting times in Central Virginia as we work together to create a better way of matching volunteers to the needs of the community!

It doesn't happen overnight as we wish it could so we'll be providing updates along the way.   We have an aggressive target -1st quarter 2010.

What is One for Another?  60 Days Young!

It's the Volunteerism Project that originated from the Community Impact Forum held in May 2009.    The project was one of 5 presented to the Committee in August for funding set aside by United Way of Central Virginia to address gaps within the community.  Project launch was September 1, 2009!

The goal is to enable volunteers to match their skills, desires and availability with the needs and volunteer opportunities throughout the Central Virginia Region 2000.

It's a project currently in the discovery phase --

Creating a Volunteer Opinion Group to learn more about what volunteers want from the experience and how servicing one another can fit into today's lifestyles and life situations.   If you'd like to participate sign up here.  Participation is all by email.  Respond to ~10 minute surveys and provide your input regarding questions that arise throughout the project.

Meeting with Service Providers to learn more about how they recruit volunteers, reporting needs and challenges experienced.

Researching and talking to vendors about web-based systems to meet the requirements we learn from the volunteers and service providers.

Applying for grants to prepare for the promotion to be done on behalf of all service providers to promote volunteerism.

and more...

We have a name and logo, assembled a strong Advisory Council, met with many organizations, obtained a technology advisor and there's more to come!!

A Few of the Things I've Learned

The list is long and exciting!  Just to name a couple of fun facts I didn't know .... did you?

Region2000 refers to the 2000 square miles in Central Virginia (see the sidebar to see what areas are included).  I thought it referred to the millennium.   My apologies to the group for misunderstanding!

Australia has a lot of good volunteering habits and a big thank you goes out to the Roanoke Council of Community Services for hosting Martin Cowling, People First - Total Solutions of Melbourne, Australia to speak at their annual meeting.   Martin provided some excellent insights regarding the different volunteer trends by age groups that we should be preparing for ...and we will ... helpful information will be incorporated in training sessions and other methods of getting the word out to benefit Central Virginia.

There is a Department of Volunteerism located in Richmond, VA -- Nikki Nicholau and Cathy Walker are great resources and working hard to make helpful "connections".  View their site for additional information.

The Problem with Thanking People...

you  don't want to miss anyone.  The importance of those two words is immeasurable and often feel inadequate.  However, they come from the heart and below are some of the people and groups I'd like to thank...

The Community Impact Committee and the United Way Board for approving the project.  Three excellent team leaders:   Elizabeth Austin, Randy King and Martha Jones - you'll hear more about them as the project proceeds.   Hopefully we'll add a couple of others too. The Volunteer Opinion Group (VOG) for their input in the electronic questionnaires. A very helpful and supportive Advisory Council - members listed to the left.

Stimulus Advertising for the great program name and logo.

The many non-profits and business volunteer representatives that have given of their time to share their volunteer needs and recruitment processes.

Thank you!
Until next time....

"We make a living by what we get.  We make a life by what we give."  Winston Churchill


Sincerely,
BJ McGraw
Project Director, One for Another

20 February 2010

Greetings!

Our momentum is picking up as more people become familiar with One for Another!

There may be frustrations in your work, life, or with family but one of the things we can control is how each of us, as ONE individual, can do something FOR ANOTHER.  

We're learning from the best! The Volunteer Opinion Group (VOG) members that have responded to date represent on average 550+ volunteer hours per month -- that's over 6,600 hours per year.  The range is from 1 to 41 per month.   All of this is experience we can build from, and will be invaluable in helping the service providers improve the utilization of volunteers.

What can you do to help the project?

-If this is news to you, read the description of the project below so you're in the know and can spread the word.  
-Do you belong to a group that would be interested in hearing more?  If so, contact us and we'll be happy to provide a presentation to your organization -- civic group, corporate volunteer group, Sunday School class -- (10 min minimum time desired.)
-Join the Volunteer Opinion Group (VOG).  To get started sign-in and watch for more emails to come. It's all electronic.

What is One for Another?

It's the Volunteerism Project that originated from the Community Impact Forum held in May 2009.  The project launched September 1, 2009, with funds provided by the Community Impact Committee from United Way.

The goal is to increase volunteerism in Central Virginia by enabling volunteers to match their skills, desires and availability with the needs and volunteer opportunities throughout the Central Virginia Region 2000 -- the 2,000 square miles around Lynchburg, Virginia.   

We're in the discovery phase -- growing the Volunteer VOG, learning more from various Service Providers and gathering requirements and issues in regards to preparing for and utilizing volunteers. Now we're looking into tools that will aid the non-profits and volunteers to make the best, most efficient use of all parties' time to best meet the needs of those we serve.