Across the nation organizations are tackling complicated issues with volunteerism and engaged citizenry. This blog is an opportunity for us at Nevada Volunteers to share with you exemplary leadership using volunteerism as a solution to Nevada’s unmet needs. I recently…
Find out more about Service-Learning today! University of Nevada, Reno Office of Service Learning and Civic Engagement 775-784-4846 www.unr.edu/service-learning University of Nevada, Las Vegas Office of Civic Engagement and Diversity 702-895-5624 www.unlv.com/service As the Executive Director of Nevada Volunteers, I…
With it being Valentine’s Week, Nevada Volunteers thought it would be a fun to share different reasons why we <3 (heart) volunteerism. February is a month full of hearts, the color red, and love! It’s also American Heart Month. According…
In our busy daily lives, we often see an upcoming holiday on our calendars and think "Great! I get a day of work or school!" But how many times have you really looked at the title of that holiday and…
"Thanks Mom!" is a common phrase yelled as kids run out of the front door of the house or jump out of the carpool mini-van to their sports practice, but how many times do we really take the time to…
Nevada Volunteers, along with NV Energy and MGM Resorts International, bring a variety of national and regional speakers to Las Vegas that will inspire and connect corporate and nonprofit sectors. Among these speakers, Greg Baldwin, President of VolunteerMatch, will share his thoughts on where the future of volunteering is headed during one of the afternoon sessions.
Rethinking the Possibilities: Trends Shaping the Future of Volunteering
From science to social media, CSR to social impact the future of volunteering is emerging today. Take a closer look at key research, trends and insights informing successful volunteer engagement.
Greg Baldwin, President, VolunteerMatch
Greg Baldwin is the President of the award-winning VolunteerMatch service — the Web’s largest volunteer engagement network. Greg joined the founding team in 1998 as its Chief Imagination Officer to build a nonprofit website to make it easier for good people and good causes to connect. Today, as President, Greg oversees the expansion of a network that is already serving 85,000+ nonprofits, 150 business clients, and a quarter of a million interested volunteers a week. Since 1998 VolunteerMatch has helped the nonprofit sector engage more that $2 billion worth of volunteer services. Greg completed his undergraduate studies at Brown University in 1990 with a degree in Public Policy. He lives in Berkeley, CA with his wife Kathryn and kids Ellie and Matt. (more…)
Each year, Nevada Volunteers is overwhelmed by the amount of nominations and the inspiring stories submitted for the Governor’s Points of Light Awards. Our distinguished panel of judges selected the following three finalists for this year. These three individuals will be honored at the awards luncheon on January 18, 2013, and the recipient of the category will be announced. Congratulations to the finalists and thank you for your service to our communities!
Rural Nevada Individual Finalists for the
2013 Governor’s Points of Light Awards
Nancy Barrett (Incline Village)
Nancy Barrett has served with the Northern Nevada Chapter of the American Red Cross for two years, and it constantly working to make the community safer. During the Caughlin and Washoe Drive fires, she helped manage the shelters and ensured that hundreds of evacuees had a safe place to go. Along with the rest of the mass care team, Nancy helped to conduct shelter surveys in all of Washoe County, Douglas County, and Carson City. She became the DSAC (Disaster Services Advisory Committee) Co-Chair, where she leads the Red Cross chapter’s disaster services and advises volunteers on how we can be better prepared. Nancy is also the Mass Care Co-Lead, which is responsible for our sheltering, feeding, and reunification services during a disaster. Nancy recently traveled to New Jersey to help Red Cross respond to Super Storm Sandy. She was also recently recognized as one of Glamour’s women of the year in New York City. Nancy works tirelessly every day to ensure to safety of everyone around her, whether she is home in Nevada or on disaster assignment in New Jersey. Her passion for the mission of the Red Cross motivates everyone around her. (more…)
National Volunteer Week is finally here! Nevada Volunteers is so excited to celebrate the volunteers in Nevada that continue to make our state a better place to live!
This year, Nevada Volunteers will be sharing the great works of volunteers in Nevada, as well as volunteer coordinators/managers that continuously support those volunteers. Each day, we will be posting inspiring stories and pictures – keep checking our blog, Facebook, and Twitter for amazing stories!
Thank you to those that continue to give their time, money, and energy to organizations throughout Nevada! If you are not yet volunteering and want to get involved, visit blue.nevadavolunteers.org to find volunteer opportunities near you!
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Gayle Farley, Volunteer Coordinator at the Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, poses with some of her fabulous volunteers!
I have over 120 volunteers and they are mostly teens and young adults. Many of them come into the Boys & Girls Club to volunteer for school credits and really don’t want to be here in the beginning until they see what is here for them, and that this Club is for them. I see them working with younger kids and loving what they do. They just want to help out as much as they can. Some of these young volunteers go to school, work, and still volunteer because they love it so much. When I call them to see how they are doing, the calls and emails I get back are often, “it is so nice to have someone who cares about what is going on in my life” –makes me feel that I am doing something really worthwhile. I can honestly say, for the first time in my life, and I have worked for many years, that I feel that I am really where I am supposed to be. I watch these young volunteers grow into great leaders with goals and a purpose in their lives because of what volunteering and the sense of what “giving back” has taught them. And you know, they make me feel pretty special too…..everyday. (more…)
April 15th has always been just a normal calendar day for me. My family hires a CPA to take care of our taxes every year, so they have never been much more than a passing thought in my daily life. But as I have grown up and taken on more “adult” responsibilities, I have looked at my own taxes and realized that they are incredibly difficult! It is confusing language, difficult math, and lines leading to more lines. It’s nearly impossible to make heads or tails out of any of it. But as I have branched away from relying on my family and done more of my own taxes each year, I have come to learn how to file basic taxes. I have had the chance to learn because I am surrounded by people who know how to help me, but I also know that I am lucky in that and not everyone has those same people around them. I found myself wondering how others learn how to correctly file their own taxes. (more…)
“Service above self will be the cornerstone of my administration as Governor,” Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval proclaimed. He joined approximately 70 AmeriCorps members bright and early in Las Vegas, Nevada on Martin Luther King Jr. Day morning to celebrate the Day of Service. 
Partnering with Habitat for Humanity Las Vegas, Nevada Volunteers’ AmeriCorps members gathered together to build three special homes in honor of the 25th anniversary of the holiday recognizing one of America’s great heroes, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. More than 40 years after his death, Dr. King’s example continues to guide Nevadans in addressing the state’s most critical issues.
The event in southern Nevada brought together AmeriCorps State members from Great Basin Institute’s Nevada Conservation Corps, Luz Community Development Coalition, and the United Way of Southern Nevada, along with AmeriCorps VISTA members serving southern Nevada nonprofit agencies. The Governor jumped in to lend a hand with the AmeriCorps members, at one point even aiding them on the roof by nailing on shingles. (more…)