Wealthy Donors Give More When They Volunteer

By: Joanne Frtiz, About.com Guide

The Bank of America survey of the wealthiest donors was released recently and painted a post-recession picture of how these sought-after donors handle their charitable donations.

The survey (conducted by Indiana University's Center on Philanthropy) covered donors with incomes of more than $200,000 or a net worth of more that $1-million. It revealed that 89% of affluent donors volunteered in 2011, which was an increase of 10 points from 2009. More than half of those donors volunteered for more than 100 hours.

We know that volunteering in general is positively correlated with charitable giving. In this study, people who volunteered for more than 100 hours gave, on average, $78,000 to charity. For those who spent fewer hours volunteering, the average came to less than $39,000. On the other hand, donors in this study who did not volunteer at all gave an average of $49,742 to their charities.

The message for nonprofits? Don't hesitate to involve high net worth donors. Get them moving and donations are likely to be higher. That may be because volunteers gain first hand knowledge of the good that a charity actually does.

There is much more in the Bank of America's survey. Here are some of the high points:

• Ninety-five percent of the wealthiest households gave to charity in 2011, and their donations, as percentage of household income, held steady at about 9%, compared to 2009. However, the average dollar amount donated by this group of donors did decline by 7%, compared to 2009.
• Wealthy donors favor religious institutions for their donations and then education.
• Support for general operations (overhead) is up among the wealthy...60% of these donors said that their largest gifts were unrestricted, up from 55% in 2009. More than 80% said they expect charities to spend an "appropriate" amount of their donations on administration and fundraising.
• Wealthy donors reported being disappointed and giving up on certain charities more often in 2011. Twenty percent said they stopped giving to five or more groups, up from 13% in 2009.
• Wealthy donors reported that they have more faith in individuals to solve social problems than other entities. Nonprofit groups come in second. Only 30% said they were strongly confident that nonprofits could meet domestic and global problems; 75% said they had almost no confidence in Congress to do so.
• Half of the affluent donors surveyed said whether or not they received a federal tax deduction did not matter, that they would give the same amount even if they got no deduction.
• The wealthy donors in this survey expect charities to use sound business practices (75%); 74% expect to receive a thank you; and more than a third said they had stopped giving to at least one charity because of over solicitation. They also want to know how their gifts are being used, and how they promote a charity's mission.

Compare this survey's results to those that Forbes found recently through a similar survey and its summit of billionaires.

Sources:
Average Gift by the Wealthy Has Declined Since 2009, Chronicle of Philanthropy.
2012 Bank of America Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy Finds Donors Firmly Committed to and Highly Engaged With Nonprofits, Bank of America press release.
The 2012 Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy (PDF), The Center on Philanthropy.

Turn Snow Days into Service Days

4 Ways to Turn Snow Days into Service Days by chicagocares

It's that time again, when Chicagoans crank the heat, pull up the covers and begin their hibernation until the temperatures rise above 20 degrees. Snowy days are a fun chance to slow life down a bit but they're also great times to give back and get to know your neighbors! Here are 4 ways that you can give back this winter:

1) Cook dinner for an elderly neighbor.It's a great way to check in on a senior without seeming abrasive. Plus, your neighbor will enjoy a warm meal without having to worry about getting out of the house to do grocery shopping. This is a great option for families because everyone can help, kids too young to cook can make handmade cards to include with delivery.

2) Shovel snow. Help dig out a random car on your street, clear your block’s sidewalks of snow or offer to shovel a neighbor's walkway free of charge. No one is as beloved as the neighbor who helps with snow removal and you might just score yourself a warm cup of cocoa if you're lucky!

3) Help someone get their vehicle unstuck. You don't have to walk far to find someone revving their car’s engine but not moving anywhere. Tips: 1) Make sure you remain in the driver’s vision at all times. 2) Place a piece of cardboard under the spinning tire to give the car enough traction to get unstuck.

4) Donate your old winter clothes. With windchill temperatures under 20 degrees, many are in need of warm clothes. Drop off your donation of  winter clothes at a local nonprofit organization, church, or Goodwill.

Excellent Week of Event Checklist

I am volunteering for Chicago Cares this weekend in honor of MLK Day.  I recently got this check list that they sent to all the volunteers in preparation for the big Day of Service.  It is a tad bit long, but I feel like they addressed absolutely everything that volunteers would need to know in prep for the big day.  Love that they mentioned how to get involved with social media as well.

Well done Chicago Cares, many nonprofits should follow your lead.  The better you can prep your volunteer leaders for the DOE, the more smooth your event will go.

Your Celebration of Service Checklist by chicagocares Hopefully, you're all registered and ready to join us this Saturday at Celebration of Service! This is going to be an inspiring day as we take time to reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and then go out into the city to help keep his dream alive through our service. Below is a quick checklist to help you get your day of service off to a great start: Dress well. This doesn't mean wear your finest, it means dress well for the work you'll be doing! There's a very good chance that you'll end your day with some paint, glitter, glue or scrambled eggs on your shirt; so dress comfortably in clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. Plan your route. Self-pay parking near Union Station is available in numerous public parking lots. However, we recommend taking public transportation to Union Station. Call 836.7000 from all area codes for CTA, Pace and Metra routes/schedules or visit www.transitchicago.com. Get some sleep. It's going to be an exciting and full day, so make sure you hit the hay a little early on Friday night so that you have plenty of energy to enjoy all of the experiences the Celebration of Service has to offer. Eat breakfast. We do not serve breakfast at the Celebration of Service Opening Ceremony. There will be coffee (thanks to our wonderful friends at Metropolis Coffee) but you'll need more than caffeine to keep you going until lunch, so eat up! Pack your lunch. If you pre-ordered your box lunch from Subway, you will be able to pick that up after you check-in. If not, please remember to pack a lunch and bring it with you to your site. No lunches will be delivered to project sites, so don't forget that little brown bag. Be Kind. Almost everyone serving you on Saturday is a volunteer, just like you. Our Production Assistants are volunteers who get up extra early to make sure that you can check-in, pick up your goodie bag, have your questions answered and find your bus. Our Volunteer Leaders have donated many hours to learn the specific needs of your site and get specialized training to lead you well. So please be patient when the inevitable bump-in-the-road has you stalled for a moment. We know they'll do their best to help you have a great day of service. Know the hashtag. We'll be live blogging throughout the entire day and we want to know what you're up to! Use #chicares for your tweet to show up in our live blog feed, or you can mention us @chicagocares. Give details of your project, share an inspiring quote from the ceremony or take a picture with some new friends; your participation will help make our blog extra great! To follow the blog or read through it when you get home, visit www.chicagocares.org beginning Saturday morning. Have an open mind. Whether you're serving a new population of clients, getting to know volunteers who seem different from you or finding someone to sit next to on the bus; you may find yourself in a situation that makes you a bit uncomfortable. Remember, you have well-trained leaders ready to help you at your project site and you're surrounded by fellow volunteers who, just like you, want to make a difference in Chicago. Tell us what you think. At the end of the day you'll be given a short survey, please take the time to fill this out and return it to your Bus Ambassador. We at Chicago Cares look through each and every one of these surveys, taking all of your feedback under careful consideration. We want to provide you with the most meaningful volunteer experience possible, so need to hear from YOU! Plan your next project. We hope that participating in the Celebration of Service is just the beginning of a year filled with community service. You can find more than 215 volunteer opportunities each month on our opportunity calendar. We can't wait to see you on Saturday. If you have any other questions, feel free to check out our Celebration of Service FAQs.

How to engage your co-workers in volunteering

Engaging Your Disengaged Corporate Volunteers Posted by: Katie Sisum, Event360, December 2011 We’ve all seen it time and time again: the loose change collection jar or the dollar treats in the break room with a “support our charity walk team” sign. We feel good by giving back, and we also feel like we are doing something for our workplace. But donating a dollar only goes so far – how do you make the leap and ask your employees to volunteer an afternoon or even a whole day? Corporate volunteerism takes a lot of time, effort and several resources, there’s no doubt about it. But what could be better PR than a group of 10 of your employees sporting their red “Bank of America” t-shirts and volunteering at a pit stop5K race where 10,000 people will see them? Sounds like a no-brainer to me. Here are a few tips in engaging your co-workers and asking them for their commitment. Ask your corporation to sponsor a group to attend, perhaps this is corporate shirts, or a free day off, utilize what your business does best in your ask for support. Make your ask personal and widespread. Instead of just asking a handful of co-workers in your department for their support, expand your circle. Reach out to other colleagues who work in other offices or departments and tell them why they should care about this cause.   Ask for their support at least a month out so people can get it on their calendar. Schedules fill up quickly, and you want your event to take priority. Make it easy in terms of logistics. Talk to HR about how to take the day off, and plan transportation and food ahead of time. You want to make the experience as simple as possible for the people who are supporting your cause. Engage your co-workers in a heartfelt info blast before the event. Whether it’s a video in the break room or a personal email telling the story of someone you know affected where your cause helped, reassure your colleagues that they are doing the right thing by supporting this cause. You want them to feel the power of their commitment. Engaging your co-workers can be a challenge. Expect some of their commitments to change, and realize that some of your team might back out before your event. Don’t be discouraged by this shift. Move on and focus on finding and engaging more people. Lastly, have fun with your colleagues and enjoy the event that is supporting the cause that you feel passionate about!

Redbox Company Gets It

Redbox (you know, the company with the red automated boxes filled with movies and video games at your local grocery stores, McDonalds, and drug stores) gets it.  They get how to make a difference in the lives of Chicago children.

Recently, the Redbox employees volunteered their time to organize a day the students of John Barry Elementary will never forget.  They rented out a theater, welcomed the students with high-fives and cheers, played ice-breakers, showed the movie Polar Express, and gave out snacks at the concession stand.  Pretty neat, huh?

But wait there is more.  During intermission, they set up the lobby with holiday themed games and fun prizes.  At the end of the day, they sent the kids home with goody bags.  All day, the employees hung out and got to know the students.

Wow, what great role models for not only the students, but all of us.  What a cleaver and creative volunteer event.  What an amazing company.  Blockbuster and Netflix: take notice.

Please support those who make a difference in our community - Redbox.

Catching the Polar Express with Redbox and Barry Students by chicagocares

On December 14, 48 volunteers from Redbox joined Chicago Cares to give students at John Barry Elementary school a very special holiday afternoon at the movies!

John Barry Elementary is one of the neighborhood schools located in the Hermosa community. The school facility serves 796 students Pre-K through 6th grade. 95% of the student body is Hispanic and 3.2% is African American, and 92% come from low-income households. Recently Barry was appointed a new Principal, Estuardo Mazin, who has stepped into a position that was held by an interim Principal for four years. With a permanent Principal, the school will have more stability and can develop its long-term goals. The dedicated staff truly believes “great things are always happening at Barry” and would like to see the school continue to grow.

After renting out the nearby Portage Theater, the energetic employees from Redbox began filling the lobby with games, snacks and goody bags. As students arrived, the team from Redbox welcomed them with cheers and high-fives, getting  everyone excited for what was about to happen.

After getting to know one another with a quick ice-breaker game, the students, teachers and staff picked up some popcorn at the concessions stand and settled into their seats next to the Redbox team, ready to enjoy a screening of The Polar Express.

During intermission, students were invited to the lobby, where the volunteers had set up holiday themed games with enough prizes for everyone. Students enjoyed playing Snowman Beanbags, Pin the Tail on Rudolph and an interactive game where teams used wrapping paper and ribbons trying to disguise one another as sparkling holiday gifts. After a few more snacks, intermission was over and everyone was excited to find out what stop was next on The Polar Express!

In a matter of hours, friendships had formed between Barry students and Redbox employees. The students were loaded up with goody bags, a few more high-fives and then sent on their way. An afternoon at the movies is something that many of us take for granted.

For young kids whose families are struggling with employment and financial burdens, an afternoon of fun, games and a movie theater all to themselves serves to remind Barry students that they are still on Santa's nice list. We're so glad that our 'Volunteer Elves' from Redbox were there to make it all happen!

Use Social Media to Recruit, Retrain, & Recognize Volunteers

Social media tools have tremendous potential for building community around a project among participating volunteers. Once you get volunteers to your project the first time, online community building can help keep them coming back.

Using Social Media for Volunteer Recruitment

Start a Facebook fanpage and invite volunteers to “like” it.  Set up your project as a calendar event on Facebook and invite your volunteers to sign up – and to invite their friends as well. Remember to send a personal message to each volunteer that signs up through Facebook to introduce yourself, confirm their attendance and let them know you’re counting on them showing up.

Create a Twitter account for the project and ask volunteers to “follow” the account. Use Twitter to share #volunteer opportunities. (Using the #volunteer hashtag in the text of your tweet will launch your tweet into Twitter’s volunteer conversation.) You can also share last-minute project updates like changes in driving directions through Twitter. During the project, upload and tweet photos for those who couldn’t join that day to show them what they’re missing.

Create a video that makes a compelling case about why the project is important and asks people to get involved. Share the video through the project’s Facebook page and share it via Twitter.

Using Social Media for Volunteer Retention

Creating a blog can be a great way to build community around your volunteer project. A blog post is a great format for storytelling and can be a place for you to share stories such as: sharing the founding story of the agency or neighborhood partner; sharing stories of the kind of impact you’re having because the project exists; or recognizing a stellar volunteer by telling his or her story.

Invite your volunteers to contribute stories to your blog or to post stories on their own blogs – ask them to reflect on their participation, the difference it makes and why it matters.

(If you don’t have the time to maintain a traditional blog, consider using a microblogging platform like Tumblr where you and all your volunteers can share anything from photos, to stories, to short updates.)

Post project photos to the project’s Facebook page for your volunteers to enjoy and share. Invite volunteers to post their own – on your Facebook page or theirs.

Engage volunteers between volunteer projects by holding a photo or video contest.  Ask volunteers to post their best photo or video footage of the project on your Flickr group page or on your YouTube channel and ask your community of volunteers to vote for the best one.

Crowdsource ways to improve the project by asking volunteers connected to your project’s Facebook page to share their input and ideas. For example, each week after the project, consider posting questions on the project’s Facebook page like:

• What went well at this week’s project?
• What do you think could have been improved / what would you suggest we do differently?
• What ideas do you have for…?”

Experiment with what kinds of content engages your volunteers most.  Do they want to engage online with content that is mostly positive and celebratory or would they rather grapple with ways to address the root causes of your community’s social challenges?

Using Social Media for Volunteer Recognition

Tell a phenomenal volunteer’s story through a blog post.

Enter your project on Foursquare and encourage your volunteers to “check in” when they attend.  Offer some kind of small reward to the volunteer who is the reigning “Mayor” of your project.

Interview your nonprofit partner or a beneficiary of the service project about why it matters to them and share the video with your volunteers online as a thank you message.

Post statistics about the impact your volunteers are making on your Facebook page.

Write a note of thanks on a volunteer’s Facebook wall.

Invite volunteers to help support your social media efforts. Volunteers can manage all of the ideas listed here – and more – as part of their volunteer commitment to your organization.

These are just a few of our starter ideas. What ideas do you have?

Today's post is by Jessica Kirkwood, VP of Interactive Strategy at Points of Light Institute and HandsOn Network. It first appeared on VolunteerSpot’s Summer of Service blog series and has also appeared on the HandsOn blog.

Include Volunteer Hours in Your Budget

Many nonprofit organizations rely on volunteers in some capacity. Food banks use them to pack meals, Habitat for Humanity uses them to build homes, and national parks use them to maintain trails. The scope of volunteer work is huge.

But most of these organizations fail to account for volunteer hours in their budget, and they should! Volunteers provide indispensable services, and many organizations wouldn’t operate without them.

For grant writing purposes, I recommend including volunteers in your budget’s in-kind column.  Remember: Not all income arrives in the form of cash. Donations–material or otherwise–should be accounted for. Volunteers included.

By including in-kind donations and volunteer time in your budget, your organization will look even more competent. Not only are you soliciting buy-in and support from the community, you’re also doing more with less: You’re running a $250,000 program with only $50,000 cash because you’re able to secure and utilize in-kind donations and volunteers. Good on ya!

The Independent Sector helps you calculate the hourly value of a volunteer’s time in a particular state, and Hands on Network helps you determine that calculation for specific jobs. Be sure to keep these calculations on hand for your budget narrative.

See article on LinkedIn here.

8 Tips for Promoting Volunteer Success

Volunteers are the lifeblood of most non-profits, associations and clubs. But many organizations – especially small-staff or volunteer-led groups – struggle to effectively recruit, train and manage their volunteer base.

While I’m no volunteer management expert, I have been on both sides of the volunteer equation: as both a staffer and volunteer at a number of non-profits. And from what I’ve seen and read, it seems that in order for volunteers to have an enjoyable and productive experience and for organizations to reap the full benefits of their labor, it requires some basic volunteer management planning. Here are my thoughts:

To successfully match volunteers with tasks or projects, organizations need to:

1. Set clear objectives:
o Exactly how will volunteers help?
o What are the specific goals for the volunteer in terms of: activities/tasks/projects
2. Create job descriptions for different volunteer roles
3. Identify a basic recruitment process and contact person for responding to volunteer applicants

To be effective in their roles, volunteers need to:

1. Be screened and matched to the appropriate opportunities (e.g., if they are professionals, do they want to use these skills as a volunteer or do they want something totally different; do they prefer face-to-face work or are they more suited to helping out online?)
2. Receive an orientation to both the organization as a whole and to the commitment they are making (e.g., if they are a Board member – what exactly does this entail?)
3. Be trained on the specific project/task. Your well-intentioned volunteer may not have canvassed or staffed an information booth before. A little training can go a long way to ensuring success and volunteer retention.)
4. Have an identified supervisor or mentor (e.g., staff, committee chair, out-going chair, etc.) – Be sure it’s clear – literally: “who do you get in touch with?”
5. Receive ongoing encouragement and recognition. You really can’t say thank you enough!

Charting Your Volunteer’s Journey
If your organization has never formalized your volunteer recruitment and orientation process, the eight suggestions above might seem a little daunting. But just as you want to match the right volunteer with the most appropriate tasks, you might also find that those of you tasked with organizing your recruitment process might have pertinent skills to offer. For example, if one of you is process-oriented, you could create a basic flow-chart diagram that will illustrate your volunteer’s journey from the first phone call or email, through the orientation and training process. Sometimes creating a diagram helps to identify logical steps that need to be taken and how these might intersect one-another.

Want More Tips and Ideas?
For more tips and ideas about making the volunteer experience more effective, check out the October Non-profit Blog Carnival – being hosted by the Wild Apricot blog on October 27th.

Article by Lori Halley, Wild Apricot blog
Read full article here

Criminal History and Volunteers

I came across this question today and wanted to get some more thoughts and opinions.

Does your nonprofit have a policy and/or procedure for people who want to volunteer that have a criminal history show up on their background check?

Does your organization run background checks on all your volunteers?

Do you allow people doing "community service" to volunteer?

Do you take into consideration the type of the crime or the amount of time that has passed since their offense?

My first nonprofit organization I worked for ran background checks on absolutely everyone who wanted to volunteer, even office volunteers. If any sort of criminal history showed up, we did not allow them to volunteer. No questions asked; no exceptions made.

My most recent nonprofit employer did not run any background checks on individuals so we would have no way of knowing whether they had any sort of history, however, we only dealt with event and office volunteers - no direct contact with consumers.

What do you think? Should "criminals" be allowed to volunteer at your nonprofit? Can a nonprofit gain anything from allowing these individuals to volunteer with them? Is their risk involved?