Volunteer Center Benefits
So what’s in it for Volunteer Centers?  Building programming that serves the faith community will fortify the center’s status in the community as a leader in volunteer initiatives.  It will allow you to draw deeper into the community’s resources to bring people and groups together for good.  Working with faith groups will support the center’s efforts to provide the essential services identified in the Points of Light and National Volunteer Center Network affiliation agreement.

Collaborations between Volunteer Centers and congregations:

• Strengthen the Volunteer Center's networks within the community
• Identify potential audiences for volunteer management training 
• Build community partnerships
• Connect faith groups to nonprofit partners that share common interests
• Create networks for initiatives to improve the community
• Broaden nominations for volunteer awards and attendance at celebration events
• Further understanding of the link between faith and service
• Increase participation in “day of service” projects
• Expand partnerships for disaster preparedness and response
• Facilitate potential use of congregation’s buildings for community activities or trainings

Congregation Benefits
Partnerships by definition bring to mind mutual cooperation, responsibility and investment.  Partnerships between faith groups and Volunteer Centers also bring about mutual reward.  Volunteer Centers can guide faith partners in facilitating the passionate service of members both within the congregation and in the greater community.

Building a relationship with the local Volunteer Center will offer congregations:

• Opportunities to apply tenants of faith through service
• Prospects of bringing more people to faith by involvement in the community
• Access to local and inexpensive volunteer management training
• Access to resources and information on volunteerism
• Assistance to identify and select community volunteer opportunities – often from hundreds of listings
• Help with planning a volunteer day of service
• Links to the community and potential partners for collaborative efforts
• Increased public awareness
• A source for services relating to volunteerism and community issues

Community Benefits
Everyone gains when people come together in organized, strategic endeavors. 
Communities with strong faith-based and nonprofit alliances:

• Serve more people
• Avoid duplicating services and make limited resources stretch as far as possible
• Construct shared experiences as opportunities to learn from one another and about each other and the community
• Build collaborations that combine resources and often uncover new ways to address unmet community needs
• Facilitate citizen action by encouraging and supporting volunteerism
• Build on social capital to secure individual investment in the community
• Create synergy to meet organizational missions and community needs!