3 minute read
Volunteering Canterbury
Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” – William James
To continue to support both volunteers and the organisations which rely on volunteers to provide their services to communities, Volunteering Canterbury stays abreast of trends within volunteering, both here in New Zealand and overseas.
The Volunteer Centre Network Aotearoa, with its 17 Volunteer Centres spread across New Zealand, shares tips and challenges via regular zoom calls and looks forward to annual hui which provide an opportunity for face to face sharing as well as professional development.
While there may appear to be clear differences from region to region around what volunteering looks like – including the diversity of available roles, volunteers, and ‘what works’ – underpinning that, there is always the motivation of the volunteer.
What motivates people to gift their time to one of the many community organisations in their area, all of which would likely welcome them?
These days, many identify volunteering as a way to gain skills and experience which can be transferred into the paid workforce.
Quite a different motivation that we saw in the past when people often had time on their hands – particularly later in life – and being involved with an organisation enabled them to remain engaged with their communities. Lifestyles are significantly different now to what they were a decade or two ago!
Our older folk often stay in paid employment longer than may have previously enabling them to retain an income and lifestyle which may be compromised by retiring from the workforce.
Others are choosing to live in retirement villages where a self-sufficient community provides ample opportunities within a stroll from their homes to remain socially engaged.
And still others find themselves taking up caregiving roles for grandchildren to assist their own children who maintain two income streams to maintain a lifestyle which comes with increasing housing and living costs.
Recognising the constraints of these trends, Volunteering Canterbury works hard to identify opportunities to fill some of the ‘gaps’ within our volunteer force.
For several years, for example, a Group Volunteering programme has been running. This programme is supported primarily by local businesses which provide, along with standard annual and sick leave provisions, the opportunity for staff to take a day or half day of volunteer leave.
Other groups are also accommodated within this programme – high school and tertiary students, special interest groups such as U3A, and faith-based groups.
In 2021, this Programme alone contributed 3,000 hours to community organisations within Christchurch and nearby surrounding areas.
For some of the participants in those projects, this may have been a first volunteering experience which could not otherwise have happened due to commitments in and out of working hours.
Similarly, Volunteering Canterbury identified that families have limited time together.
The introduction of Family Volunteer Days was in a bid to find a time and place where the whole family could do something in the community, and for the community, together.
The value of these days is seen on the day itself when people from within the community work as a team (which spans generations) on a project which is simply not something they would normally do. The ability of a group of people who likely do not know any of those who they work alongside during that project, to achieve an amazing final result, with little organisation and guidance but loads of friendly chatter, enthusiasm and laughter is of itself a joy to witness.
