The
Volunteer
Page
Stan Morris
Contact Information:
Stan Morris
Volunteer Coordinator
916-921-6414
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Volunteer Facts…You're Not Alone
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Volunteering among adults has increased significantly over the past decade.
- An estimated 109 million adults aged 18 and over volunteered in 1998 (the latest statistics available), up from 93 million in 1995. Eighty million adults volunteered in 1987.
- Fifty-six percent of adults volunteered in 1998, an increase of 13.7 percent over 1995, when 49 percent of adults volunteered. This is the highest rate of volunteering in more than a decade. In 1987, 45 percent of adults volunteered. While the number and percentage of the adult population that reported volunteering increased significantly over the last decade, the amount of time people spent volunteering declined slightly.
- The 109 million adult volunteers gave a total of 19.9 billion hours during 1998, an average of 3.5 hours a week.
- In contrast, 93 million volunteers contributed a total of 20.3 billion hours in 1995, an average of 4.2 hours a week. In 1987, 80 million adult volunteers gave 19.6 billion hours, averaging 4.7 hours a week. Volunteer efforts are a valuable commodity.
- The volunteer work force represented the equivalent of over nine million full-time employees; their combined efforts were worth $225 billion; the assigned hourly value (for 1998) was $14.30.
- In 1987, total volunteer efforts were worth $149 billion; the assigned hourly value was $10.06.
Who volunteers?
- Women volunteer more than men (62% vs. 49%), but men who volunteered gave more time than women (3.6 hours vs. 3.4 hours).
- Seniors are volunteering in greater numbers, as are members of minority groups.
- Forty-three percent of seniors aged 75 and over said they volunteered, an eight percent increase since 1995.
- Forty-six percent of Hispanics volunteered in 1998, a six percent increase since 1995.
- Forty-seven percent of African-Americans volunteered in 1998, 12 percent more than 1995.
Can you imagine the SPCUG functioning without volunteers? Well, it wouldn't function, because we depend 100% on our volunteer force. And we will need a strong force going into 2002 to meet the challenges of a constantly changing user group. Our members depend on us to get the information and services out; we depend on them to supply us with new volunteers to replace the overworked and weary.
See if you can help in 2002. Check the SPCUG Web site and our Sacra Blue and eBlue newsletters for new volunteer openings. Or let me know you are interested in volunteering at stan@gohawk.com.
Thank You, Volunteers
You may have seen the unofficial "Snack and Beverage" table in the back of the main room at SPCUG general meetings. You might have even sampled a finger sandwich, a muffin, some cake, or a warm beverage from the table. This table is the result of the efforts and personal expenditures of Jonathan Bernard. We've never asked Jonathan to do this, but it appears, from looking at the nightly trail of visitors to the table, that it is very appreciated by the group.
Thanks, Jonathan! And thank your helpers for us.
New Volunteer Openings
Please take a look at the following volunteer openings. If you think you can help, contact the "contact person" for that position or email me directly.
Membership Director
This is a volunteer job with lots of details, so you do need to keep accurate records and be organized, as there are several deadlines monthly and quarterly that you will need to observe. The Membership Director is responsible for maintaining the Sacramento PC Users Group membership database, sending out monthly renewal notices, issuing membership cards, and making monthly reports to the Steering Committee.
The database is maintained on the group's lap (486 system with DOS/-DbaseIV program), but we are working on converting it to Microsoft Access. A large and powerful dot matrix printer goes with the job for printing the renewal notices and cards.
Public Relations Director
This job entails collecting information on each month's speakers, potentially rewriting a press release, and faxing or e-mailing it to contacts at various media. An Excel spreadsheet contains contact information for newspapers and magazines, TV stations, radio stations, and other organizations that we reach out to. The goal is to have as complete a contact list as possible.
Each month, two weeks ahead of our general meeting, the PR person sends a press release to those on the list with details of the upcoming meeting. These notices are faxed and e-mailed.
You would be starting in March, but need to begin the small amount of training for this job before that date.
Contact for both positions: Diana DeMuth.
More Openings
Online Service Tutorial Coordinator: These duties will involve directing and organizing a team of volunteers that will go out to members homes on an "on-call" basis to help the members with setting up and accessing the Internet. More specifically, this is designed to encourage and assist new members with using the eBlue Web site. Operating procedures and a disclaimer have already been written and approved by the Steering Committee, and are now ready to be implemented.
Group Benefits Coordinator: We need someone’s help right away. Marsha Leonard was the last GB Coordinator and did the job of listing the many benefits available to members that you may not be aware of from month to month. Is anyone interested in filling the "Group Benefits Coordinator" position? Contact: Stan Morris
Computer Store Representative: We need several volunteers who will visit as many computer stores as possible on a monthly basis and ask them to have our membership information available to their customers. If we could get into the big stores like Fry's, CompUSA, and Computer Warehouse, we would probably get a lot of coverage. Other big computer sellers include office stores like OfficeMax, Staples, and Office Depot. Also, include electronic stores like Good Guys, Circuit City, Best Buys, and even Radio Shack. Then the other computer-specific stores like the Gateway stores, and all the mom-and-pop computer stores. Contact: Ken Hopkins
Newsletter Writers: Writers are needed for both Sacra Blue and eBlue. You could be writing tips for tips column (may also be used as filler). Also could write news articles about current events. Evaluate hardware and/or software and write product reviews, or write stories on how you solved some computer problem. Contact: Ken Hopkins
Newsletter Typists: Many articles in other user group newsletters would provide useful information to our members. Unfortunately, we cannot always obtain these articles in electronic format. We need volunteers to type up articles the editors have already selected. Contact Tom Anderson
I am sure you will find this volunteer work very rewarding and it could even create some interesting opportunities for you. You may be surprised how little time is involved in some of these volunteer positions.
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