I served at local non-profit activity (not PTO) yesterday and pretty much think I visited volunteer heaven.

My normal experience volunteering is that of the many events at school. Definitely great causes and I gladly give my time. But no matter how well organized, "volunteer" usually means "slave". Whether I'm in charge or just helping, there are never enough people, we work ourselves to exhaustion. (Not really complaining - that's just the way it is.)

The event yesterday was an Accessible Internet Rally (AIR) where local web developers form teams and are paired with a non-profit to build them an accessible web site. It's a competition and lots of fun.

The location where it was held was a pretty luxurious business center. (What -we get AIR CONDITIONING??) It's one of those things where you need lots of people in case things go wrong. But if all goes smoothly, there's not a lot to do. Let's see:

• I spent the first 3 hours visiting with really interesting people. (Oh wait, I did greet people now and then, emptied one trash can, and I did apply 2 blue dots to laptop indicating they were virus free.)


• We all got a T-shirt that was not the bargain bin variety and something I'll actually wear again. ("No, no, you don't need to wait to see what's leftover. Take yours NOW and put it on.")


• The food was endless and scrumptious. ("Thanks for volunteering! Can I get you cup of coffee? Which of the 5 gourmet flavors would you like? Have you tried the lemon bars?")

Since they had so many folks, I left and came back for the final two hours - just as they were closing down the gourmet ice cream bar.

[LIST]
[*]"Oh wait, you MUST have ice cream first. You weren't here for the catered lunch were you? Do you want us to fix you a plate?"
[*]Spent another hour talking to great people. (I did wipe down a counter or two.)
[*]Then - and this was our BIG responsibility - we stood in the foyer and clapped and cheered as each team exited.
[*]For the last hour, we actually did do a lot of cleaning and putting the business center back to its original condition. But there were so many willing hands for the CLEAN UP SHIFT, it was fun and easy.
Oh - and every 5 minutes or so the coordinator would see me and gush, "It was great of you to come. Thanks so much for your help. Call me for your next event and I'll come help YOU!"

And best of all this was NOT a dream. It really happened!

Hi JHB-
Thanks so much for sharing. Sounds like a great concept.

So what do you think made so many people come out for this event? -- was it the cause itself, was it the way they promoted it, was it the competition aspect of it? Curious to hear what you think.

Also one thing that came across loud and clear from your message- part of the reason it was great experience for you was the fact that you felt appreciated and valued in many ways. Good for PTOs & PTAs to keep in mind when it comes to volunteer appreciation.

~ Lisa

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twitter.com/ptotoday

It's not an apples to apples comparison, but certainly there are commonalities. Always, it's important to value your volunteers and make sure they know it.

The biggest difference is that it was organized by a company (a 501c3) so, while everyone went far beyond their normal work expectations, there were employees assigned to the event and the company's name was behind it.

As a "real" business, they probably have a different view of the expenses involved. Providing t-shirts/food for the volunteers, having adequate supplies, projecting the right image is part of the investment, not thought of as diverting dollars from the non-profit goal.

The organizer did a great job and everything went like clockwork. But not having a crystal ball, one never knows. Had there been some glitches - there would have been much more for us volunteers to do (besides talk and eat).

Still, it was a very cushy volunteer experience - and fun!

This sounds like a great thing to get involved in .


I also do volunteer work outside of PTO ( that yes can make you feel like a slave and the thanks for your time can be few and far between ) .

I work ( or should I say play ) every Friday in the kitchen at karaoke and Sunday in the kitchen again when we have live bands and bake cakes for the kitchen and cake walk at our local community building .
We always have plenty of help and the woman we (my husband helps also , so you know it must be fun ) help out is always sure to let us know how thankful she is for us . We must hear "if it weren’t for you kids I don’t know what I would do" a million times a day . The people that come are just like family to us . Plus it helps me to remember why I took on the job of PTO president , gives me great ideas to help thank my volunteers and makes me remember to thank them every time I see them . Keep up the good work !

You truly are an angle even if your wings do not show !