In every community, there is a volunteer who shows up for every single shift and sometimes takes on extra work without being asked. There are board members who have offered their governance expertise for years, often across multiple organizations. These are the people we count on to keep showing up, and the question is: do they know how much they matter?
Many organizations keep volunteer recognition on a checklist—a shoutout in the annual report, a thank-you note during National Volunteer Week, maybe a gift card at the end of the year. And while those gestures matter and are part of a good recognition practice, our research report, Bringing Meaning to the Volunteer Experience, tells us that what volunteers really want to know goes a little deeper. They want to know if their specific contribution made a difference.
Meaningful recognition doesn’t require a big budget or a formal program. It can start with understanding what is important to volunteers and making a few intentional shifts in how you show up for them.
Volunteer Participation Research
After hearing from 839 Canadians in our Volunteer Participation Survey for the Bringing Meaning to the Volunteer Experience report, we found that 70% of respondents wanted to feel recognized and appreciated for their contributions, and that recognition is closely tied to their sense of belonging and their reasons for continuing to show up. This tells us that volunteer recognition is a key part of any volunteer retention strategy.
What Recognition Means to Volunteers
Our research also found that beyond familiar approaches to recognition, such as certificates, shoutouts, and end-of-the-year celebrations, volunteers want to feel seen as people, not just as pairs of hands filling a role.
Respondents were clear that the most meaningful experiences were those where they felt they belonged. It was their relationships with staff, peers, and the people they served that made the work feel worthwhile. As one respondent put it, “The best experiences made me feel like I belonged—like I mattered.”
Recognition appears to be less about the gesture itself and more about the message that their time and contributions made a difference, and that the organization they volunteer with genuinely cares about them.
“The best experiences made me feel like I belonged—like I mattered.”
Four Ways to Make Volunteer Recognition More Meaningful
Our research indicates volunteer recognition is an ongoing process that requires intentional relationship nurturing, effort to show volunteers their impact, and ensuring volunteers feel genuinely seen. Here are four ways to start putting these practices into action:
Make it specific
Instead of saying “thanks for everything you do,” tie your appreciation to a specific moment or outcome: “Because you showed up every Saturday this month, we were able to serve 40 more families.” Specificity shows that you were paying attention and helps volunteers understand the concrete difference their service makes.
Ask before you assume
Not every volunteer wants a public shoutout. A simple question asking, “How do you like to be appreciated?” during intake or at a check-in can make all the difference and signals that you see them as an individual rather than a role to be filled.
Recognize the unseen work
Our research highlights that volunteers can feel invisible in quieter, less visible roles. Some examples of these quieter roles include the person who sends the agenda before every board meeting, the volunteers who stay late to stack chairs and tables after an event, or even those who drive all over the city to collect bottle donations. One way to ensure volunteers feel seen in any role is to name all kinds of volunteer contributions, whether verbally or on paper. As one respondent shared: “My volunteering has been rewarding because my impact is noticeable, recognized, and appreciated.”
Don’t save it all for the AGM
Recognition means the most when shared closest to the moment of contribution. This can look like a quick email after a shift, a thank-you at the end of a meeting, or a personal message after a tough event. These timely gestures often mean more than an acknowledgement months later.
What Matters Most
Volunteers show up because they care deeply about the causes and people they serve. Our research reminds us that in return, they’re asking for organizations to show them that they matter.
The organizations that get this right aren’t necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets or the most elaborate appreciation events. They’re the ones that build recognition into the rhythm of how they operate and make it personal, timely, and genuine.