Written by Kasey Murphy

This week, the Volunteer Coordinator Resource Community has not been as chatty, but there have still been many great topics brought up! We wanted to shed some light on these topics and help potentially get a conversation going!

Volunteer Recognition Plans

While we have had many people discuss volunteer appreciation, and volunteer recognition. Is there any sort of plan behind all of your efforts? We know that some organizations will create a volunteer recognition or volunteer appreciation strategy. 

So, how do you format that strategy for volunteer recognition? Comment on the post here to let us know or to express your opinions! 

We think you could potentially set up a calendar style to showcase when you would want to prioritize volunteer appreciation or volunteer recognition. You could do one week every 3 months, or one month a year. 

Then, you can write down all the activities and the amount of time you estimate they might take, and schedule them out accordingly! You could also use a calendar to help give reminders to check in with volunteers, or do certain preparation techniques for volunteer recognition activities! 

Here are some more resources on volunteer recognition to get you started! 

• Different Ways To Show Volunteer Appreciation During The Pandemic

• Volunteer Incentives and Engagement Ideas That Won’t Cost Your Organization A Dime

• Organize Volunteers and Your Volunteer Program With Volunteer Software

• How Volunteer Organizations Can Use Social Media

Unique Volunteer Appreciation Activities 

This post got a lot of attention simply because of how unique it was! If you are doing anything out of the box with your volunteers, please share! Volunteer Coordinators everywhere would love to learn more about unique volunteer appreciation programs!

To view the full post, go here! 

Volunteer Appreciation Activities seem simple, but it can be very hard to come up with a unique idea that really puts a smile on volunteer’s faces. Although some more time might go into the planning portion of these unique ideas, it is a great volunteer appreciation opportunity, which leads to volunteer retention! So really, you’re putting effort into two important factors, not just one! 

To tackle finding a unique volunteer appreciation activity, we suggest doing the following: 

• Personalize the volunteer appreciation activity to each volunteer - in some small way! 

• Recognize specifically what the volunteer has done for the organizations - explain their value! 

• Allow the opportunity for the volunteer to be seen by others outside of the organization, that might want to congratulate them, or also express appreciation! 

• Add an extra element of showcasing potential progression within the organization! 

Now, the actual physical volunteer appreciation part - that is totally up to you! We will put some other articles down here that show examples of volunteer appreciation, though! 

• Virtual Volunteer Appreciation, Volunteer Schedules, Volunteer Applications, and More!

• Volunteer Motivation Towards Hard Work, Volunteer Recognition Towards Hours Volunteered, and more!

• Virtual Volunteer Appreciation Week Prep and Other Volunteer Topics

Volunteer Self-Care 

This next topic is really inspiring and interesting because it showcases well-being for volunteers both inside and outside of volunteering. So, how much of this could you, as a volunteer coordinator, take on? 

If you have any experience providing incentives for volunteers to take care of themselves outside of volunteering - comment on this post! 

We think that it is a great touch to promote wellness to volunteers outside of volunteering, and of course, it is always good to check on volunteers and their personal lives. But, this must be done without an invasion of privacy. 

Some ideas might be: 

• Give out local business coupon books 

• Promote mental health by providing thought journals 

• Have “guest yoga instructors” teach meditation and classes for volunteers to relax - this can be done virtually, too! 

• Provide resources for COVID vaccines, tests, and other necessary health items. 

What other ideas might you have? Let us know!

If you are starting to think about Vaccinated Volunteers, Or Bringing Volunteers Back To In-Person Volunteering - Check Out These Articles 

• Restarting Your Volunteer Program With Vaccinated Volunteers

• How To Enforce COVID Protocols With Vaccinated Volunteers