Contact:
Fred Whiting
Points of Light Foundation
(202) 729-8177
fwhiting@pointsoflight.org

A Day Without Volunteers
by Robert Goodwin

What if you woke up tomorrow and there were no volunteers?

Your child would have to cross busy intersections on the way to school without a traffic guard. He or she might not have someone available to help them with homework after school. No one would be available to clean up your local park or to serve food to the homeless. Your elderly grandmother would have no one to read to her in the nursing home. Most religious activities would cease to exist.

This week (April 15-21) is a good time to think about the value of volunteers because it’s National Volunteer Week. National Volunteer Week is the nation’s largest volunteer recognition event in the country. It is sponsored by Target and the Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Center, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.

The purpose of National Volunteer Week is to recognize outstanding volunteers around the country. Thousands of volunteer recognition events conducted by Volunteer Centers, nonprofit organizations and corporation will take place during this week to recognize the contributions of volunteers to our communities.

National Volunteer Week began in 1974 when President Nixon signed an executive order establishing the week as an annual celebration of volunteering. Since then, every U.S. President has signed a proclamation promoting National Volunteer Week. Governors, mayors and other elected officials also make public statements and sign proclamations in support of National Volunteer Week.

In addition to the outpouring of charitable donations and the unprecedented volunteering in the aftermath of Katrina and the storms of the Southland in 2005, some of the outstanding individuals being recognized this week are:

• Norma Wright of Los Angeles is a Big Sister in the Catholic Big Brothers/Big Sisters’ Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Program. She is fluent in American Sign Language and has introduced her profoundly deaf Little Sister to the Deaf community. “I enjoy Norma,” says Ashley. “She makes me feel good about being deaf, and my life.”



• Chicago resident Chloe Lewis is dedicated to serving children with HIV/AIDS. Although she is only 17 years of age, she has served almost half of her lifetime to help secure a healthy start and a healthy future to other young people around the world: in the US, South Africa and China. “If you stand at a distance, it is impossible to make a real difference,” says Chloe. “Waiting for the world to change only makes us older. For those people in my generation who are struggling simply to live a childhood, there is no time to wait.”



• Elizabeth Carr has made significant improvements to a homeless shelter in Washington, DC, by collecting donations for supplies and by setting up a Web site for hotel donations to shelters throughout the Nation’s Capital. After volunteering at the Salvation Army’s Turning Point Center for Women and Children, she said: “The people were so excited when I came in and said that I was going to help them. I realized that my work would have an immediate impact on someone’s life.”



• Boston resident Mary McHale co-founded Sancta Maria, a shelter for homeless women, in 1971. She has volunteered at the shelter for at least two nights a week in addition to working at her full-time job for more than 20 years. Residents of the shelter regard Mary as their best friend, who always remember how they like their coffee, what their special needs are, and as someone who will keep them safe at night.

Volunteers are one of our country’s most important assets. More than 61 million people volunteered through or for an organization at least once between September 2005 and September 2006, according to a recent survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That represents more than a quarter of the entire U.S. population.

The estimated dollar value of a volunteer’s time is $18.77 per hour for 2006, according to the Independent Sector, a nonpartisan coalition of charities, foundations and corporate giving programs. That is 73 cents more per hour than in 2005. The Corporation for National and Community Service estimates that volunteers donated 8.6 billion hours in 2005; therefore the estimated value of hours volunteered was equivalent to approximately $161 billion in contributed services.

If there were no volunteers, how would we pay for an additional $161 billion in services to mentor the young, feed the homeless and provide comfort to the sick and elderly?

So during National Volunteer Week, let’s all take a moment to recognize the volunteers who make our community a better place. If you would like to be a volunteer, contact call 1-800-Volunteer or visit www.1-800-Volunteer.org. Inspire by example!

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Robert Goodwin is former President & CEO of the Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network.

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