Nevada Volunteers <3s Nevada's Volunteers!
During this Valentine’s Week, we want to share some of the reasons Nevada Volunteers LOVES Nevada’s Volunteers. We hope that you’ll take a moment to see how special the volunteers are that are making an impact in our communities. We would LOVE for you to fall in LOVE with volunteerism too!
Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum
The Discovery LOVES our volunteers! We have a committed, diverse and energetic group that helps us provide spectacular learning opportunities to our community. Our volunteers are our biggest asset and we appreciate all the time, love and excitement they bring every day to our organization. Volunteers do everything from leading exciting science demonstrations with our visitors, helping create beautiful works of art, reading to children and working closely with our administration staff behind the scenes to make sure we are able to provide amazing experiences to all who visit. We even have a little fun along the way! Paid staff and Volunteer staff truly are a team! To join the Discovery volunteer team, contact Stephanie D’Arcy: sdarcy@nvdm.org or 775-398-5953.
Foster Grandparent Program
The Foster Grandparent Program pairs senior citizens with at-risk children through tutoring and mentoring in schools, Boys and Girls Clubs, Jan Evans Juvenile Detention Center as well as other agencies. Currently there are 95 volunteers in Reno, Carson, Silver Springs, Fernley, and Yerington.
Not only are these volunteers investing in the children, their welfare, and their education, they are “cheerleading” on teachers’ efforts, encouraging the teachers and supporting them on a daily basis. Many of them develop a bond with the teaching staff that goes beyond the classroom. This volunteer program offers volunteers the opportunity to be the encouraging, loving, supportive, caring, giving grandparent pushing students and staff onward and upward!
ESL In-Home Program of Northern Nevada
ESL In-Home Program of Northern Nevada is a community volunteer organization working with some of the brave and resourceful men and women who came to this country in the hopes of becoming productive members of our society and fulfilling their dreams. Instead, many find themselves trapped in poverty by their deficiency of English language skills and cultural awareness. In its seminal report “Living in America” (2006), the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation identified lack of English language skills as one of the most profound challenges faced by those trying to assimilate into American society, and one of the primary reasons so many are forced to live in poverty.
Our tutors have changed lives. Currently, we have 171 community volunteers teaching English, GED Preparation, Computer Literacy and Citizenship Study to 382 adults. These volunteers are incredible. Some have been with the ESL In-Home Program of Northern Nevada since its inception 10 years ago. They have helped over 2,000 adults in English language skills, while breaking the language barriers in their communities. Our students have found jobs, have been promoted in their employment, now help their children with homework, communicate with their children’s teachers and medical personnel without interpreters, shop in English-speaking stores.
The obstacle is not confined to adults; children from families who do not speak English at home face the hurdle of having to learn a new language when they first start school, which places them at extreme disadvantage compared to their English-speaking peers; disadvantages which they often do not overcome until third grade or beyond.
ESL In-Home Program represents enormous value for our children’s futures, as well as the future of our community. Therefore the challenge in recruiting more community volunteer tutors. It takes 1-1.5 hours to train; commitment is 1-2 hours per week. We need volunteers in the 5 counties we exist: Carson, Douglas, Washoe, Churchill, and Lyon. To find out more information, email Florence Phillips, Executive Director at eslinhomenv@aol.com.
Crisis Call Center
Crisis Call Center volunteers are a group of people from many different walks of life that each hold unique and powerful traits. What all of these diverse people have in common is their ability to listen to our callers and give them the rare gift of empathy. The volunteers remind callers of the beauty in the breakdown by offering them compassion in times when the caller is unable to ask for that from anyone else in their life. In order to work the lines, volunteers are required to attend 56 hours of in-class training and become certified in Crisis Intervention and Suicide First Aid (ASIST) after which they spend 16.5 hours of listening to calls and answering them with direct supervision. Once a volunteer graduates, the program asks that they dedicate one 4-hour shift per week that they schedule at their convenience and commit to helping Crisis Call Center for a year. If this sounds like a cause you would like to be a part of please contact Kayla Ortiz (Crisis Line Program Assistant) at clpa@crisiscallcenter.org or by calling 775-784-8085.
The Down Syndrome Organization of Southern Nevada
The Down Syndrome Organization of Southern Nevada could not exist without dedicated volunteers willing to give of their time, energy and talents to make the events and programs at DSOSN run smoothly and efficiently. There are multiple opportunities to volunteer To volunteer, call 702-648-1990 or email dcline@dsosn.org.
Donate Life Nevada
The volunteers for Donate Life Nevada are a special group of individuals – many who have been personally touched by organ and tissue donation. Many are alive today because someone, somewhere said “yes” and they received a life-saving organ transplant. Others are family members of those who gave the gift of life and know, first-hand, the pride and peace they feel knowing that others are alive because they cared.
Donate Life Ambassadors are the faces of organ and tissue donation – educating and advocating – and encouraging others to register as donors. Anyone interested in becoming a volunteer can contact us at www.DonateLifeNevada.org or by calling 775-825-700 (Reno office) or 702-796-9600 (Las Vegas office).