The countdown is quickly ticking away until the bell rings and the doors swing open. The sixth annual Volunteer Fair is nearly set to take over Servus Credit Union Place and fill it with people seeking to offer their energies to better the world and to the 45 local organizations that are looking for them.
It’s designed to be a ‘one-stop volunteering shopping’ experience to hook people up with volunteer positions. It’s exactly what Glennis Kennedy does on a daily basis, except on a magnified scale.
The co-ordinator of volunteer centre services (at the Community Information and Volunteer Centre) should really be called the co-ordinator of volunteers. Every year, she works with many people who get in contact with the CIVC looking for positions that match their talents and suit their interests. She also works the other way around where organizations contact her looking for people who fit specific aptitudes and skill sets. She plays the matchmaker in the middle, and appropriately calls herself the “go-between.”
On a rough average, she annually meets 1,000 to 1,200 people who get the centre’s referrals. Often, a person will get more than one referral. Kennedy admits that business is always hopping.
“It’s never quiet.”
The reason why the fair is even necessary, she continued, is because she is only one person and the CIVC is a relatively small centre. Demand always outpaces her and so a seasonal smorgasbord of volunteerism helps greatly to accomplish more matching people with organizations – and vice versa – in a short period of time.
“We can only do so much. We can only work with so many people. We have at any given time 300-plus active opportunities. People are shocked that there’s that much. And that’s just with the organizations that we work with. How do you get those people aware of all the different things that there are out there? That’s the idea behind the volunteer fair.”
The event will feature organizations and agencies that represent the breadth and depth of human experience here in St. Albert. They will encompass a wide range of categories including sport, recreation and leisure, service groups, church and faith-based groups, and cultural organizations.
Some of the 45 organizations that are ready to set up booths and take names include St. Albert Stop Abuse in Families, the Arden Theatre, Dogs with Wings Assistance Dog Society, Citizens on Patrol, and Northlands.
The sixth annual Volunteer Fair takes place on Saturday, Nov. 16 for three hours only. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., guests can attend the free event that is practically guaranteed to offer at least one volunteer opportunity for everybody.
It takes place at Servus Credit Union Place (located at 400 Campbell Road) to maximize its exposure with the public at large. There is ample free parking on site as well.
For more information, call the CIVC at 780-459-6666 or visit www.stalbertcivc.com.
People can also learn more about volunteer opportunities in the community by connecting with the CIVC through Twitter or its Facebook page. Just search for “StAlbertCIVC.”
There’s also the www.govolunteer.ca website where volunteer connections can be made directly.
