Volunteers are at the heart of United Way's work in Stanislaus County and the Mother Lode. Individuals from all walks of life find ways to help through our Volunteer Center. They fill needs that otherwise may not be met - from short-term commitments such as helping to set up a non-profit event to delivering meals to those in need to staffing non-profit thrift stores or helping new parents learn essential parenting skills. If there is a need, you can be certain that volunteers are helping and giving of their time. And, when volunteers show up, the community benefits. People smile. Children laugh. Families come together. It is difficult to put a dollar value on volunteer time. Volunteers provide services not easily quantified. The estimated value of one hour of volunteer time nationally for 2010 is $21.36. The value is slightly higher in California.

The Corporation for National and Community Service estimates about 62.8 million Americans gave 8.1 billion hours of volunteer service worth $173 billion in 2010. Last year more than 2,400 volunteers in Stanislaus County were referred to various organizations through the Volunteer Center. They clocked an amazing 90,000-plus hours of time. More than $1 million went back into the community because these  volunteers gave of themselves and their time and saved organizations and community efforts the  money  for those services had they not been performed by volunteers. The Volunteer Center also manages the Emergency Volunteer Center (EVC) which coordinates with local government and other non-profit organizations to place volunteers with organizations requesting assistance during large events, emergencies and disasters.

92 percent of individuals who participated in United Way supported job development programs said what they learned will help them find and keep a job. 

Here's another Success Story from the Girl Scouts Outreach Program, one of 42 United Way of Stanislaus County funded programs.

Two girls involved in our program dropped out of school, were involved with the wrong crowd and ended up in Juvenile Hall. They were determined to get out, go back to school and find a job. We met with them throughout their time in Juvenile Hall and continued to meet after they were released. Our staff encouraged them every step along the way and the girls learned to trust and admire their outreach leaders.

Today, these girls have grown into confident young women. The decisions they make are well thought out and they have stayed out of trouble. One of the girls has gone back to school and is applying for jobs. The other is getting married and having a baby while working on getting her diploma/GED.

The VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program provides free tax preparation by community volunteers to residents with an annual income of $50,000 or less. Twelve sites open Jan. 31 in Stanislaus County. Last tax season, the VITA program completed more than 1,500 tax returns, and returned $675,000 in EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit).  

All volunteers are trained and certified by IRS employees available throughout the community. Please call 2-1-1 for more information.  

A special thank you goes to our Board Member Susan Windemuth who spent hours working on our Annual Report for the 2010-2011 year.

You can view the Annual Report on our website here. 

A special thank you goes to everyone who uses their SHARES card at Food Maxx or Save Mart.

In January we received a check for $544.56 for the final quarter of 2011.

The SHARES card is a free card you may use when you shop at Save Mart or Food Maxx. United Way of Stanislaus County receives 3 percent of your purchase as a donation.

SHARES CARDS FACTS: 

• Use your card every time you shop
• Each swipe of the SHARES card earns 3 percent of qualified purchases for United Way of Stanislaus County at no cost to you.
• This is one more way you can give back to the community and help people in need of food, clothing and shelter all year long.

Picture this: If you spend $100 per week on groceries at Save Mart or Food Maxx that is $3 per week that will be donated to United Way. That's $156 donated every year through grocery shopping. 

To receive a SHARES card, please contact Christopher Scott at cscott@uwaystan.org or 209-523-4562 

Thank you for using your SHARES cards and thank you for supporting the United Way of Stanislaus County. 

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