2011 Governor’s Points of Light Recipient Continues to Make Huge Strides Against Hunger through Volunteers

Three Square Food Bank
Governor Brian Sandoval with 2011 Governor’s Points of Light Award recipient Three Square Food Bank’s Volunteer Coordinator, Patti Johnson (middle) and CEO, Brian Burton (right).

With the 2014 Governor’s Points of Light Award nomination process open, we wanted to take a moment to recognize past recipients and highlight their continued success in making Nevada a better place to live through volunteerism. This week, we are taking a look at Three Square Food Bank, the 2011 Governor’s Points of Light Award recipient in the Nonprofit/Community Organization Volunteer Program category.

It was easy to see in Three Square Food Bank’s nomination for the 2011 Governor’s Points of Light Awards, that the organization had made great strides since its opening in 2007 and positioned itself to be at the forefront of the fight against hunger in Southern Nevada.

Hunger was then and still is a huge problem in Las Vegas with the excessive unemployment and foreclosure rates in the midst of economic distress. It was evident to see that Southern Nevada families were struggling with putting food on the table everyday. That’s where Three Square Food Bank stepped in.

With every dollar raised, Three Square can provide up to three meals to someone in need, but only with the valuable service of volunteers can Three Square make sure that those meals are being distributed in the community. In 2010, Three Square volunteers served more than 66,000 hours, the equivalent of 32 full-time employees. In 2013, Three Square volunteers outdid themselves by topping 100,000 hours in service, the equivalent of 48 full-time employees!

A quick trip to Three Square Food Bank proves why volunteers are pushing through the doors to serve with the organization. The Volunteer Room is inspiring with the hundreds of pictures of invaluable community members and organizations that give their time and energy to stopping hunger in the Vegas Valley lining the walls. The organization’s volunteer coordinators meet volunteers with a huge smiles and tons of energy. They strive to make sure that volunteering is not only fun, but that each volunteer understands the impact that he or she is making in his or her community. It is easy to see that the organization’s encouragement, creativity, and organizational skills make it worthwhile for volunteers to keep coming back to serve over and over again — making Three Square Food Bank’s volunteer program a powerful entity. It is inspiring to see Three Square continue to strengthen and grow its volunteer program each year and effectively leverage volunteers to help end the fight against hunger.

Do you know of a nonprofit/community organization’s volunteer program that is making an impact in Nevada communities? Nominate the nonprofit/community organization today for the 2014 Governor’s Points of Light Awards here.

 

 

Share This
FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterlinkedinmail