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Volunteer co-ordinator position dropped for this year |
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Wednesday, 09 April 2008 |
This year, Taber and area will not have a co-ordinator for National Volunteer Week.
By Jennifer Elves
Taber Times
However, the area's former co-ordinator is encouraging local organizations to donate their time to ensuring their volunteers still receive the recognition they deserve.
For the last couple years, the Taber and District Chamber of Commerce facilitated the co-ordinator for National Volunteer Week, and was therefore responsible for hiring the temporary part-time co-ordinator. This year, however, the chamber decided not to facilitate the position.
As part of facilitating the co-ordinator, the organization has to be a member of Volunteer Alberta, which calls for a minimum fee of $50. If the organization decided not to hire a co-ordinator, Kinniburgh noted, they would have to do tasks she took care of in the past, like filling out the application form for Enhanced Funding and providing Volunteer Alberta with a report after the week's events take place.
"It's not that we're not supportive of volunteer week but we're not facilitating the co-ordinator through the chamber," said Louie Tams, president of the chamber.
The chamber, he said, came to the decision because since the project was not something the chamber directly controlled or managed, the organization did not receive official reports from the co-ordinator.
Colleen Kinniburgh was hired by the chamber last year and in 2006 as the co-ordinator. For five years prior, she was hired by Taber and District Community Adult Learning as co-ordinator for National Volunteer Week.
After learning the chamber was not taking on the role this year, she went around to various organizations, to see if she could find one to facilitate the co-ordinator's position but she was unable to find any interested parties. It is possible, she noted, organizations she approached did not want to take it on because they may have not understood the process, as it is hard to explain the specifics.
She is hoping local organizations will still acknowledge their volunteers during National Volunteer Week from April 27 to May 3.
"They could hold their own coffee break, which is what we have done for the last three or four years. It was a fun little morning. They could even create their own posters and put them up around town - thanking their volunteers however they wanted to do it."
Kinniburgh, who acted as co-ordinator for Enchant, Lomond, Hays, Vauxhall, Barnwell, Grassy Lake, Milk River, Warner, Coutts and Taber, has roughly 10 Captain Volunteer costumes organizations could borrow from her.
Even though volunteers generally do not volunteer to receive any recognition, she stressed it is important to show them they are appreciated.
"It's not that volunteers want to be recognized. Volunteers are out there volunteering because they enjoy doing that for whatever reason. It's like you see those young kids out there trying to make their own world better," said Kinniburgh, referring to Taber's Youth4Youth and the youth group at her church. "Volunteerism is self fulfilling in a way too because when you're doing something for someone else, it makes you feel better. It doesn't just help them."
When organizations hold events or do projects to recognize their local volunteers, she added it creates awareness on various organizations in the area for those new to town. Kinniburgh also stressed it lets people know what others in their community are doing and may encourage them to get involved as well. The Web site, www.volunteeralberta.ab.ca, she noted, indicates 40 per cent of Albertans volunteer.
Any organizations interested in assisting the co-ordinator next year or individuals who may want to fulfill position of co-ordinator (even just for their own town) can call Kinniburgh at 223-9046 for more information. |
