Being conveniently situated in Middle Tennessee, I am surrounded by an abundance of volunteer opportunities. The options are really only as limited as one’s willingness to search and reach out to help their neighbor, their community, or the world at large. Recently, I’ve reviewed a few websites that list local volunteer opportunities and, seeing several that highlight the uniqueness of such activities, I’ve chosen to share some of the details of my research here.
Hands On Nashville (often abbreviated as “HON”) is a nonprofit organization that serves as a networking service for other nonprofits, whose mission is “to meet community needs through volunteerism” (HON, Our Story). Since being founded in 1991, HON’s mission is all about linking people seeking to volunteer together with nonprofits local to them, and related to their area(s) of interest; so the latter may achieve their goals using the initiative of the former.
Similar to Hands On Nashville, the nonprofit Volunteer East Tennessee serves as “the region’s volunteer center connecting nonprofits and volunteers” (Vol. E. TN, About Us). Volunteer East Tennessee, which was formerly called Volunteer Knoxville until 2016, originated as a gift to the community by Leadership Knoxville (Vol. E. TN, About Us), another area nonprofit whose goal is “to inspire, challenge, and connect people” in order to accomplish the building of better strengthened and developed community (Knoxville, About). This collaboration is one of great benefit to each organization and an important concept about which further discussion will be directed later. The mission of Volunteer East Tennessee is aimed at inspiring “service by equipping organizations and mobilizing volunteers to connect with one another and strengthen communities” (Vol. E. TN, About Us).
A unique opportunity in Nashville asks for volunteers that are willing to help add to their audio library collection (HON, Talking Library). The Nashville Public Library, a recipient of the Excellence in Volunteer Engagement (EVE) certification in 2018 (HON, EVE), typically requires volunteers to commit to at least a six-month schedule with set weekly hours; however, when working through HON, volunteers may help for more condensed and less regular durations of service (NPL, Support). According to the description on HON’s website, the Talking Library at the Nashville Public Library “is an audio-information service” that provides those that are print-impaired with recorded readings of “current newspapers, magazines, books, and special programs” (HON, Talking Library). Prospective volunteers are advised that there is no set date and time for recording for the library, only that it must be done during their normal business hours of Monday-Friday 9 am to 5 pm (HON, Talking Library). The opportunity leader, and point of contact, is Amy Pearce (HON, Talking Library).
The chance to pass the gifts that are granted with reading, especially to someone without the ability or means to read for themselves, is indeed an amazing opportunity that I find very interesting. This program, I find, aligns perfectly with the Nashville Public Library’s mission to “inspire reading, advance learning, and connect our community” (Nashville Public Library, About). This particular endeavor extends the library’s services to a niche group of people that may not otherwise benefit from the agency. In that way, this volunteer opportunity nearly epitomizes the essence of the Nashville Public Library’s mission.
In Knoxville, the Catholic Charities of East Tennessee are seeking for volunteers to serve at Samaritan Place, which provides “shelter and support for seniors in crisis” (Vol. E. TN, Samaritan Place). I had not heard of either of these entities prior to conducting this research. However, the program at Samaritan Place is one that really hits home with me. This opportunity is listed as needing help with jobs such as yardwork, household organization, and amicably interacting with clients of the program (Vol. E. TN, Samaritan Place). The contact person given is Rena Ishak, and there is the requirement of a background check for volunteers seeking to establish a repeat role (Vol. E. TN, Samaritan Place). No specific date/time is referenced for this opportunity, though it is advertised that volunteers are being sought through December 31 of this year (Vol. E. TN, Samaritan Place). It is also not stated that an orientation would be necessary before beginning as a volunteer at the Samaritan Place, though it seems to be implicit that one may be involved to participate in certain activities.
Also in Knoxville, the American Red Cross is gathering volunteers to aid in disaster relief efforts. For over a century, the American Red Cross has pursued their mission of preventing and alleviating “human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors” (Red Cross, About Us). In this East Tennessee call to action, the Red Cross is seeking people to serve as caseworkers to contact and follow up with clients to ensure and aid in their well being following a disaster such as a home fire or similar tragedy (Vol. E. TN, Disaster Caseworker). As the person of contact, TJ Smith is listed for those interested in lending their hand at the advertised task. Volunteers are being sought to accommodate two to four service hours per week, within the hours of 8:30 am and 5 pm (Vol. E. TN, Disaster Caseworker).
The Red Cross is also seeking people to directly respond to home fires and disasters as a disaster action team member. Mr. Smith is again listed as the point of contact, and the only requirement appears to be an age minimum of 18 years. Those interested in this role will be provided with specialized training, and will need a commitment of one week per month in which the person can be on-call 24 hours per day Monday through Sunday “to come to the aid of those in need” (Vol. E. TN, Action Team). This opportunity is one I am personally interested in; however, due to the required time commitments I am currently unable to help the community in this capacity. Although Red Cross disaster relief caseworker role is something in which I am both interested and can work with regarding the referenced schedule. I think that this role would be rightly suited to someone in the retired community, or that has a lifestyle that can accommodate the on-call commitment that is needed.
One key factor that may contribute to the success of these volunteer opportunities is the collaborative effort that each organization is giving to ensure these community needs are met. Michael Worth, author of Nonprofit Management: Principles and Practice, notes that with collaboration can lead to outcomes “that would have been difficult or impossible to achieve by one organization acting alone” (Worth, 2017, p. 201). Each task I researched may be possible to tackle with the power and abilities of only one organization. Having the force and formidability, however, of multiple agencies is an almost certain way of creating a greater impact on the cause and community being served. There are several notable relationships that have been formed that are helping each organization achieve its mission and goals. One may simply observe the relationship between each volunteer networking service provider and the nonprofits affiliated with them that utilize their services to obtain ready and willing workers. Worth writes of a “continuum of nonprofit relationships” which categorizes interactions of nonprofits with regard to “the extent to which the relationship affects” an organization’s corporate structure, programs, responsibility, and economic model (Worth, 2017, p. 203). Within the continuum of nonprofit relationships, I think that HON and Volunteer East Tennessee have formed a simple collaboration with each nonprofit for which they pair with volunteers. This is evident in that each organization appears to retain their autonomy. Each nonprofit inevitably has the power to make their own decision about the volunteers they accept, and there is no evidence that any organizational commitment is required. The relationships formed appear to be related to the operational strategy of each nonprofit, as the results appear directly “aimed at enhancing…administrative efficiency, preparedness, and execution” (Worth, 2017, p. 181).
Being relatively equidistant from Nashville and Knoxville, there are opportunities to volunteer that interested me in each city and surrounding areas. This is not really an uncommon predicament in which to be; that is, there are always people within any area that are in need. It may be interesting to note, as I conclude this writing, that when first seeking out opportunities to research I had no intention that there would be much similarity amongst the volunteer roles I’d come to review. However, when taking a step back to search for something of continuity between each selection I note that the reasoning behind each opportunity is relative. Noticing that each opportunity is rooted in altruism and the spirit of giving, which arguably every volunteer experience is, I came to read over some of the theories that attempt to determine why nonprofit organizations exist. What really stuck out to me was that such theories can be rather fluid. Determining the reason for a nonprofit requires observation and interpretation, and conducting those tasks without bias is nearly impossible. In most cases, people will be drawn to a conclusion that aligns to their perspective. Worth sums the idea up sufficiently with his comments on having the attitude of a volunteer. He stated that individuals are motivated by the nature of the work as much as anything else involved with their decision to associate with a nonprofit organization (Worth, 2017, p. 61). “Individuals choose to be associated with a nonprofit” (Worth, 2017, p. 61), and for that reason people are likely to gravitate toward volunteering themselves to aid in causes they find are in tune with their values.
References
American Red Cross. (2018). About Us. Retrieved from https://www.redcross.org/about-us/who-we-are/mission-and-values.html
Hands On Nashville. (2018). Talking Library Volunteer. Retrieved from https://www.hon.org/opportunity/a0C1H000011rJdqUAE
Nashville Public Library. (2018). About. Retrieved from https://library.nashville.org/about
Volunteer East Tennessee. (2018). Disaster Caseworker – After Action Response. Retrieved from https://www.volunteeretn.org/opportunity/a0C1J00000GL0Q9UAL
Volunteer East Tennessee. (2018). Serve at Samaritan Place. Retrieved from https://www.volunteeretn.org/opportunity/a0C1J00000GLAAlUAP
Leadership Knoxville. (2014). About Leadership Knoxville. Retrieved from http://www.leadershipknoxville.com/who-we-are/about-leadership-knoxville/
Worth, M. J. (2017). Nonprofit management: Principles and practice. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE.
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