GRAVA is a professional membership organization that promotes and supports excellence in the management and leadership of volunteers in the Greater Richmond area through professional development, networking, and advocacy. |
| Call To Action! |
Do these RIGHT NOW to maximize your GRAVA membership: - Register on ConnectVA & subscribe to GRAVA's Volunteer Engagement Message Board!
- Register for GRAVA's Mixer in September on September 25, 2014
- Save the Dates for GRAVA's 2014-2015 Programs and RSVP for October's Roundtable!
|
Register for GRAVA's Mixer in September!
|
Make plans to attend the "Become A Member in September" Mixer on Thursday, September 25th from 5:30pm- 7:00pm at the VMFA. The event will take place in the Pauley Center Parlor and will include a cash bar and complimentary hors devours.
Admission is only $5, so plan to meet new friends and reconnect with colleagues.
Door prizes will be given out and if you bring a guest who joins GRAVA that evening; your name is entered into a drawing for free tickets to an upcoming VMFA exhibit! Docents will be on hand to give tours starting at 7:00pm. You don't want to miss out on this fun evening of networking.
|
RSVP For GRAVA's October Roundtable!
| 
Join GRAVA on October 2, 2014 for our GRAVA Breakfast Roundtable. This will be a follow-up to the September Workshop discussion on Valuing Your Values. We will explore more deeply our personal values and how that influences choices and decisions we make in our professional lives as well as how we interact with others. All are welcome to join in this very interesting and relevant discussion.
RSVP today! |
Tip of the Month
|
Ten Time-Tested Volunteer Recruitment Tips That Still Work
Finding the right volunteers has always been a priority - and the basic principles of recruitment never change. Susan Ellis of Energ!ze shares ten timeless recommendations for attracting new volunteers that we should neglect...and then asks you to share your tips, too.
Click here learn more
|
GRAVA Focus Group: Request for Volunteers
|
Attention all GRAVA members!
Please consider participating in a focus group we'll be holding in September to provide us with your feedback on current programming and areas for growth and innovation to better serve your needs!
Sign up!
|
Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities
|
Do you want to continue on your professional development journey? We know you do, so be sure to check out the line up of classes offered by Nonprofit Learning Point. Some of our very own GRAVA members are facilitating classes this fall. You can register today for:
We hope to see you taking advantage of the great resource we have in Nonprofit Learning Point! Be sure to take advantage of GRAVA's scholarships to pay for this upcoming opportunities! Click here for more information or contact aparker@maymont.org.
We all have volunteers who are interested in using their service as a pathway to employment. Take a look at new research by the Corporation for National & Community Service that may speak to those volunteers!
|
September Workshop Event Recap
|
 At GRAVA's September Workshop, we focused on Valuing Your Values. Ann Deaton of Bounce, a local leadership development organization committed to empowering positive impact, lead the workshop on navigating your personal and professional values. Ann stressed that each day we may touch decisions and choices based on our own values, the values of our organizations as well as the values and ethical code of our profession.Be sure to attend GRAVA's October 2nd Roundtable where we'll dive even deeper into values through peer-to-peer learning activities.
|
Message From the President
|
The older I get, the more convinced I become about the importance of building opportunities for joy into every single day, week, and month. As a value, it certainly ranks as one of my top ten, and I would even say it's right up there in the top three. I don't distinguish between personal joy and professional joy because I've come to realize that another of my fundamental values has to do with alignment. I think this is why volunteer engagement resonates with me on so many levels - it's a profession that aligns so perfectly with who I am and want to be as a citizen, as a parent, as a member of the human race...
So imagine my joy last week, as we launched the 2014-2015 GRAVA membership cycle! I could not have been more delighted with the turnout, with the topic, with the speaker, with the space, with the vibe...It was one of those great moments when the universe feels in perfect alignment and full of joy.
Ann Deaton's simple yet profound presentation on values struck a deep chord with me because I've spent the last five years traveling very intentionally along a path of increased awareness and it has influenced every sphere of my life. And I think I'm a better decision-maker, a better parent, a better leader because of it. And best of all, GRAVA has helped to shape that path for me for as long as I've been a member (coming up on eight years) and will continue to do so as long as I remain in this profession.
What about you? Did you walk away from the workshop thinking deeply about what matters to you and how that manifests itself in the way you think, speak, work, make choices, and interact with others? Are you hungry for professional growth opportunities that would allow you to explore your core values & strengths and apply them to every sphere of your life? If you ask me, there's nothing more exciting than pursuing the things that allow you to be who you really are and lead you to exactly where you need to be. That's pure alignment. That's pure joy.
If you value the conversations, the growth, the support you receive from your GRAVA membership, then I hope that you will make the commitment to attend the Member Mixer on September 25, the next Roundtable on October 2, and the Self-Care Workshop on November 6! The GRAVA board will do everything it can to make sure these are opportunities worth taking advantage of but the joy can't happen without YOU!
|
Volunteer Engagement Message Board
| |
You Asked and We Listened!
GRAVA members have requested a way to communicate and seek real-time answers to important questions and needs related to volunteer administration outside of normally scheduled GRAVA events.
GRAVA has partnered with HandsOn Greater Richmond to bring you the Volunteer Engagement Message Board, powered by ConnectVA.
Learn more and get started!
|
|
See you in October!
Rebecca Butler, PR Chair
GRAVA (Greater Richmond Association for Volunteer Administration) |
|
|
|
Membership Update
|
Currently we have 44 GRAVA members and are well on our way to meeting our membership goal of 100! Please encourage those you know in the field of volunteerism to attend a workshop or roundtable. We always say GRAVA is the best kept secret , but we want to get the work out about how many benefits come along with membership. For only $30 a year you get:
*Admission to 5 Breakfast Workshops which provide training on topics such as advocacy, leadership, conflict resolution, stress management, ethics, recruitment and retention.
*Admission to 4 Breakfast Roundtables where best practices in the field are shared and the Workshop topic is revisited for further consideration
*Discounted admission to GRAVA's annual Professional Development Conference
*Eligibility to apply for professional development scholarships for trainings, books and conferences
*Monthly e-newsletter featuring great ideas, tips, recommendations and resources
*Access to a member only GRAVA directory
*Great networking opportunities
*Members are also eligible to be nominated for the Volunteer Engagement Professional of the Year (VEP) Award
|
|
2015 CVA Registration
| |
|
Registration for the 2015 cycle will open on October 1, 2014.
CCVA sponsors the CVA (Certified in Volunteer Administration) credential, the only international professional certification in the field of volunteer resources management.
Be sure to check out GRAVA's CVA study group and scholarships!
|
|
P.O. Box
|
Membership applications, dues, scholarship applications, and all mailed correspondence should be sent to:
P.O. Box 684, Midlothian VA 23113. If you would like to confirm that your recently mailed membership application and check have been received, please send an e-mail to our membership chair, Melissa Gilmore!
|
|
GRAVA is Social
|
Collectively, GRAVA members have a lot of valuable knowledge and experience to share. And now we have our very own Facebook page & Twitter feed to capture all this collective wisdom! But it's up to YOU to contribute to the interactivity of these accounts. These social media tools are for posting photos and events, sharing tips, and exchanging information & comments.
|
GRAVA Board
| |
Secretary & Hospitality:
Treasurer:
Public Relations: Professional Development: Membership: Conference: President:
|
|
|
