Volunteer Alberta Members are leaders in the nonprofit voluntary sector. Last year, we started a new blog series called Member Spotlight to highlight and share their successes and leading practices in our communities across Alberta.
By sharing each other’s knowledge and expertise, we hope to strengthen, promote and connect the sector. After all, we are better, together.
For January, we thought we’d kick off the New Year by celebrating the amazing work of our members. Here is how our members led the way in their communities in 2018.
Capacity building
Grande Prairie Volunteer Services Bureau (GPVSB) provides a range of services to nonprofits and recognition programs for volunteers in their community. “Our impact on the community becomes more visible as the fruits of our labour become more apparent,” says Carol-Anne Pasemko, Executive Director. “As people become more aware of what we offer, we’re getting busier and busier. When you’re successful with one organization, it brings two more in the door.”
Volunteer Lethbridge helps local nonprofits grow volunteer capacity is by promoting and leveraging the Serving Communities Internship Program (SCiP) in their community. SCiP connects nonprofits with post-secondary students by facilitating internship opportunities for students to apply their skills and knowledge.
Community outreach and services
Cold Lake & District FCSS is building a vibrant community with neighbourhood block parties. “Once somebody has a block party, they’re hooked,” says Leanne Draper, Volunteer Services Program Facilitator at Cold Lake & District FCSS. “Individuals and families get to meet each other and form social bonds that they might not have otherwise.”
The Information Volunteer Centre (IVC) for Strathcona County generously gives back to their community through their various programs and services. But, one program, in particular, is unique in how it supports other nonprofits in the community. The ‘We Care… so We Share!’ program helps to enhance the effectiveness of other nonprofits by providing much-needed equipment or items free of charge.
Through its various outreach programs, Stony Plain FCSS builds a local network that supports and establishes community resilience. Stony Plain FCSS’s most recent program, Cut it Out, leverages existing community relationships to create a safe haven for victims of family violence.
The Voice of Albertans with Disabilities is a provincial organization actively working to reduce barriers by encouraging and advocating for full participation, accessibility and equality. Through their programs and services, they are dedicated to improving the quality of life of people with disabilities, as well as ensuring people with disabilities’ voices are heard.
Youth engagement
carya encourages youth engagement by hosting a full day leadership conference for 12-18- year-old girls, called ‘HERstory’. Last December, HERstory provided young women the opportunity to connect with each other outside of their regular social circle and explore their power to make a positive difference in their community.
Vegreville and District FCSS takes a unique approach to encourage youth to volunteer through a program called, Youth Making a Change. The program successfully engages students in grades 10-12 in board governance, and as a result, encourages succession planning for the future of our sector.
Volunteer Airdrie breaks down barriers for youth engagement through the Leadership Empowerment and Achieving a Difference (LEAD) program. LEAD is a ten-week program that is free of charge for youth grades 7-12 with ten in-class sessions and 20 hours of community service or volunteering.
We hope our members’ stories from 2018 encourage and affirm your own organization’s initiatives and community outreach. Stay tuned for more inspiration and feel-good stories as we will continue to spotlight Volunteer Alberta Members in 2019.