Center for Association Resources

The Center for Association Resources supports mission-oriented organizations, assisting them in increasing relevance and accomplishing goals.

Volunteers

Essence of volunteers

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

One of the most vital parts of any non-profit organization are its volunteers. These volunteers perform many necessary tasks for nonprofit organizations, such as filing papers, answering phones, basic cleaning, and even interacting with the people the organization is trying to reach. Almost anyone can participate in volunteering at a non-profit organization just by indicating an interest to volunteer to the director of the non-profit, completing a simple background check, and filling out the proper paperwork as required by the non-profit organization.

Most non-profit organizations are always looking for volunteers. Many non-profit organizations have a website that you can visit to find out more about them and what type of volunteer work they need done. For some non-profits, you will need to go to the non-profit organization, itself, or to its nearest office to find out about volunteer opportunities in your area.

There are literally hundreds of non-profit organizations that are constantly seeking volunteers all over the world. The American Red Cross (www.redcross.org) is always looking for volunteers to teach classes, respond to disasters, do office work, and do shelter work. Big Brothers Big Sisters is another organization that is constantly needing volunteers to mentor younger children (www.bbbs.org). Volunteer Match is also a great resource when searching for volunteering opportunities (www.volunteermatch.org). Many non-profit organizations list their volunteer opportunities on Volunteer Match, and the site, itself, is quite easy to navigate, making it easy for you to research volunteer opportunities in your area.

Volunteering is a great way to give back to your community and is very rewarding for the individual, as well as for the non-profit organization. The extra help from volunteers gives the organization’s staff the opportunity to do what they specialize in within the organization. This is why volunteers are so vital to non-profit organizations.

Another reason volunteers are so critical in non-profit organizations is the fact that these are non-profit organizations and, because of this, these organizations do not have very much to spend on salaries. Their money is mostly gained through fundraisers and donations. When a non-profit organization has enough volunteers to satisfy its needs, it can then use its money to pay the staff and to help the community.

Volunteering is a vital asset to non-profit organizations for so many reasons, and it is easy to get involved with a non-profit organization in your area. You can contact any of the organizations mentioned in this article, or go online and search for volunteer opportunities in your area. One word of warning: Make sure the organization you are interested in is a legitimate organization before giving out any personal information.