Volunteer Services Program Returns to KFL&A

For Immediate Release
August 29, 2011 –

Volunteer Services Program Returns to KFL&A
United Way Program Matches Volunteers, Opportunities

Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington has a volunteer matching program. In response to increasing demand, the local United Way has launched its new Volunteer Services initiative. The service will give not-for-profit agencies an outlet to post their vacant volunteer positions and will publicize them so that individuals interested in volunteering and giving of their time and talents can step forward to fill them.

“We’re excited to be able to make this service available again in KFL&A,” says United Way Board Chair Elizabeth Bardon.  “There are so many generous volunteers in our community and there are so many opportunities for them to lend a hand. What we offer is a way to connect them.”

The focal point of the Volunteer Services program is the United Way’s website, which will serve as a repository for vacant volunteer positions. Not-for-profit agencies can post their vacancies on the website, and volunteers can view the list and contact the agencies directly.   They can also speak real-time to a staff person who will match volunteer interests with agencies and organizations looking for volunteers.

According to the 2007 Imagine Canada Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participating, the demand for volunteer coordination services is high and likely to grow higher in the next few years, especially among workplaces and students. Over the last 10 years, volunteering in the workplace has been a growing trend. As workplaces look for new ways to develop camaraderie and employee loyalty, they increasingly turn to volunteer work as a means of team building and morale boosting.

The report also states that the social services sector has an especially high appeal among volunteers.  The role of volunteers is critical in providing much needed resources to the voluntary sector.  Without their help, many organizations would not be able to operate and serve the members of the community who desperately need their services.

“Because of our ties to not-for-profit agencies in the community and our strong relationships with so many area workplaces, the United Way is very well positioned to serve as a coordinator for volunteer placement,” says Bardon. “Our hope is that this service will make it easier for volunteers to access opportunities and for agencies to find the help they need.”

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Media Contact:
Bhavana Varma, President & CEO, United Way KFLA
613-542-2674 ext. 2, bvarma@unitedwaykfla.ca

For information about current volunteer opportunities, please visit http://unitedwaykfla.ca/get-involved/volunteer-centre/