Healthy Communities • YMCA Volunteers
Celebrating International Volunteer Managers Day
05 November 2018 - by YMCA of Greater Toronto
Pictured above: Yvonne Cohen from the Brampton Union Street YMCA Health and Fitness Centre, Chhong Heng from the Richmond Hill Bayview Avenue YMCA Employment Centre, Moira MacDougall from the Office of the President and Brandon McClounie from the YMCA Cedar Glen Outdoor Centre.
By: Faiza Venzant
Annually, on November 5th, volunteer engagement professionals around the world celebrate International Volunteer Managers Day. As General Manager, Volunteer Development, it is my privilege to witness people giving of their time to partner with my colleagues and I in the YMCA’s vision of healthier communities. Our CEO, Medhat Mahdy, wrote about our Y’s culture and commitment to the volunteer staff partnership which saw us partnering with 5445 volunteers last year. We are especially proud that over 1500 of these volunteers chose to do their secondary and post-secondary training and development within our programs.
As a staff partner at the YMCA, I wanted to take today to shine a spotlight on a few of the staff at the YMCA whose skill, patience, sense of inclusion and commitment to community make them amazing staff partners to our volunteers. Yvonne Cohen from the Brampton Union Street YMCA Health and Fitness Centre has been partnering with volunteers for 12 years. She says, “the joy someone gets from volunteering their time to teach a class or show someone how to use a machine or teaching kids, that makes me so happy. The advice I would give to volunteer staff partners is that this is a very rewarding job. You’re responsible for these kind hearted people willing to give back to their community.”
Chhong has worked as an Employment Resource Consultant for 7 years, a role that often partners with volunteers. “Working with individuals who have barriers can be challenging as well as rewarding. The most rewarding part of my role is to be able to support and empower volunteers to achieve their career goals, especially foreign trained professionals. Volunteers bring with them knowledge and wisdom that one may not expect. Volunteerism has enriched my personal growth.”
A very active volunteer herself, Moira MacDougall has advice for staff who are considering partnering with volunteers. “It is work, but it does not have to be a burden. You will get so much more from your volunteers than they give, provided you are all focused on an issue or program you care deeply about. I love young adults and supporting them as they launch – aware of how many helping hands were there for me. They have a right to voice on policies and programs that are impacting them. My role is to ensure they are heard and that more experienced staff and volunteers listen.”
Brandon McClounie, General Manager of YMCA Cedar Glen Outdoor Centre said the following when asked why volunteerism is important to him. “Volunteerism is about self-motivated dedication and passion. When people volunteer it is often out of genuine interest and support for the service, program or in our case camp. In an ever growing digital world where it is easy to show your support by sending an emoji, a thumbs up or hitting like, volunteerism remains as one of the most rewarding ways to show your support. There is a mutual benefit when volunteering - not only does the program or service see countless benefits but also the volunteer gains experience and a greater sense of civic duty.”
Yvonne, Chhong, Moira and Brandon embody the YMCA values of caring, inclusiveness and respect in their work with volunteers. Today, I celebrate them and all my colleagues who partner with volunteers. I am immensely proud of the spaces they create to include and uplift and learn from volunteers as we work towards healthier communities.
By: Faiza Venzant
Annually, on November 5th, volunteer engagement professionals around the world celebrate International Volunteer Managers Day. As General Manager, Volunteer Development, it is my privilege to witness people giving of their time to partner with my colleagues and I in the YMCA’s vision of healthier communities. Our CEO, Medhat Mahdy, wrote about our Y’s culture and commitment to the volunteer staff partnership which saw us partnering with 5445 volunteers last year. We are especially proud that over 1500 of these volunteers chose to do their secondary and post-secondary training and development within our programs.
As a staff partner at the YMCA, I wanted to take today to shine a spotlight on a few of the staff at the YMCA whose skill, patience, sense of inclusion and commitment to community make them amazing staff partners to our volunteers. Yvonne Cohen from the Brampton Union Street YMCA Health and Fitness Centre has been partnering with volunteers for 12 years. She says, “the joy someone gets from volunteering their time to teach a class or show someone how to use a machine or teaching kids, that makes me so happy. The advice I would give to volunteer staff partners is that this is a very rewarding job. You’re responsible for these kind hearted people willing to give back to their community.”
Chhong has worked as an Employment Resource Consultant for 7 years, a role that often partners with volunteers. “Working with individuals who have barriers can be challenging as well as rewarding. The most rewarding part of my role is to be able to support and empower volunteers to achieve their career goals, especially foreign trained professionals. Volunteers bring with them knowledge and wisdom that one may not expect. Volunteerism has enriched my personal growth.”
A very active volunteer herself, Moira MacDougall has advice for staff who are considering partnering with volunteers. “It is work, but it does not have to be a burden. You will get so much more from your volunteers than they give, provided you are all focused on an issue or program you care deeply about. I love young adults and supporting them as they launch – aware of how many helping hands were there for me. They have a right to voice on policies and programs that are impacting them. My role is to ensure they are heard and that more experienced staff and volunteers listen.”
Brandon McClounie, General Manager of YMCA Cedar Glen Outdoor Centre said the following when asked why volunteerism is important to him. “Volunteerism is about self-motivated dedication and passion. When people volunteer it is often out of genuine interest and support for the service, program or in our case camp. In an ever growing digital world where it is easy to show your support by sending an emoji, a thumbs up or hitting like, volunteerism remains as one of the most rewarding ways to show your support. There is a mutual benefit when volunteering - not only does the program or service see countless benefits but also the volunteer gains experience and a greater sense of civic duty.”
Yvonne, Chhong, Moira and Brandon embody the YMCA values of caring, inclusiveness and respect in their work with volunteers. Today, I celebrate them and all my colleagues who partner with volunteers. I am immensely proud of the spaces they create to include and uplift and learn from volunteers as we work towards healthier communities.
