April is National Volunteer Recognition Month!
Share Your Agency's Recognition of National Volunteer Month with AJFCA

April is National Volunteer Month! It is important that we honor the people who dedicate themselves to taking action and solving problems in our communities. 

One of the greatest aspects of volunteerism is that there are so many different ways to do it, and sometimes, we volunteer without even making conscious recognition of it.
  • Since 1989, the number of people who volunteer has increased by 60 percent.
  • Baby Boomers are 40 percent more likely to volunteer than the same age groups were in 1989.
Not only has the amount of volunteerism increased, but the impact of volunteerism is increasing as well. As corporations encourage their employees to engage in meaningful volunteer activities, long-term, skills-based volunteerism is becoming more popular.  According to Deloitte, nearly two-thirds of Generation Y employees would like to use their business skills in their volunteer efforts.  

Points of Light has a great resource guide for April 10-16, 2016 in particular, which they promote as National Volunteer Week, and are encouraging folks to use the hashtag #NVW2016 in all social media posts recognizing volunteers.

Please share your agency's involvement in National Volunteer Month with the AJFCA Network by emailing Jennie. We'll share your programming or event with everyone!
Liability Issues, Volunteer Screening & Recruitment 

For AJFCA's April Volunteer Professionals Community of Practice Call we are expanding our audience to executives and inviting an outside speaker.  Liability and screening protocols for volunteers are very hot topics at the moment.  We've arranged for Verified Volunteers to share more information about their platform, as well as insights from their survey of the sector.  AJFCA member agencies who are also Verified Volunteers clients will be on the call to share their experience. Please join us and bring your burning questions regarding volunteer screening & its effects on recruitment.

Wednesday, April 13, 2-3 pm EDT - Click here to register.
AJFCA Launches Volunteer Professional Summit this Year in Denver
Building on the success of other gatherings for professionals around key issue areas for our network, AJFCA plans to hold a Volunteer Professional Summit in partnership with JFS Colorado's Director of Volunteer Services, Nancy Benyamin.

The summit will take place in Denver
August 7-8, 2016. 

Share your knowledge and connect with other AJFCA members throughout the network around all things volunteers. The meeting will begin with an evening of networking on Sunday, August 7th to be followed by a day of programming on Monday, August 8th. Want to suggest a topic or present your agency's program? Let us know. Detailed information, including hotel, schedule, and registration information coming soon. Seats will be limited, so save the date today!  

Contact Jennie with questions or to help plan.
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Repair the World Convening Jewish Delegation in Detroit 

Repair the World is pleased to convene the fourth annual Jewish Community Delegation to the 2016 Conference on Volunteering and Service, June 27-29, 2016 in Detroit, MI.
Every year, nearly five thousand leaders from the service and volunteering community in America come together at the world's largest annual convening on volunteer service. 

NCVS provides an opportunity for members of the national service movement to present their work, build connections and be inspired around the impact of volunteerism in communities across the United States. The conference attracts leaders and managers from the nonprofit, corporate and government sectors, as well as AmeriCorps members and alumni, social entrepreneurs, practitioners and philanthropists. For the first time ever, NCVS will be coming to a Repair Community, which will offer lots of opportunities to explore a local Repair site and the intersections between the national service and Jewish service spaces.

This year Repair the World is offering $100 conference scholarships to the first 20 individuals to register for the Jewish Community Delegation. We have also secured a $75 registration discount code (Repairtheworld2016) from Points of Light. (Combined, the first 20 delegates will receive a total discount of $175 on registration) Early bird registration ends on April 30. 

Repair hopes to recruit a diverse Jewish Community Delegation this year, with representatives from all corners of the Jewish service and volunteerism community. We'd greatly appreciate it if you would share this invitation with your network.

CLICK HERE to register for the Jewish Community Delegation.

Remember, you must also register for the conference on their official website: volunteeringandservice.org

Please reach out to Jennie if you think you might attend; AJFCA plans to convene any network members present for additional networking.
newsletter archive

Click here to read March's quarterly Volunteer Initiative Newsletter.

Check out our Volunteer Engagement homepage for an archive of past Volunteer E-Newsletters. Please reach out to AJFCA's Director of Volunteer Strategy, Jennie Gates Beckman at 410-843-7449 or jbeckman@ajfca.org for additional support.