Taking Volunteering to another Level

by erica ~ June 3, 2009

Did you know that there was such thing as Make a Difference Day (the fourth Saturday of October), National Volunteer Week (the third week of April) or Be the Change Day (this year, Oct. 3)? These are not observed holidays, but are there to remind us of events happening around the world.

According to the New York Times, you can now add Mandela Day to your calendars, which will be on July 18. This day is set for people around the world to be “urged to perform 67 minutes of community service to honor the 67 years (and counting) that Nelson Mandela has fought for racial and social equality.”

A $5 million campaign will soon begin that will focus almost entirely in New York State and will introduce the holiday and try to break down the barriers that prevent people from volunteering in the first place. There will be a website available that will help people find their 67-minute volunteer opportunities by searching for work based on cause and ZIP code.

Although connecting holidays with volunteer work has become something of a trend among nonprofit organizations in recent years, it has been receiving some backlash from other non-profits. “In the volunteer community, we think it’s absolutely insane,” Susan J. Ellis, president of the volunteer consultancy Energize and the author of several books on the subject. She makes a good point by saying, “The problem I have is with the 67 minutes; it’s very hard for me to imagine any organization being thrilled to get a stranger in for an hour. By the time you explain something to them, they’re gone.”

Any new business or non-profit that thinks outside of the box and presents new ideas and/or products will always face some kind of criticism. Although the 67 minutes may not seem too realistic to make a change, I believe that those 67 minutes will be very beneficial for those who are participating and involved in helping the community for the better.  

Erica Berkovich is an Associate Account Executive at Mediashop PR.  She is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Corporate Communications at Baruch.