The GiveJoy Foundation’s Post

🚨Giveaway alert! 🚨Does your organization want the chance to win one of four $750 prizes available every week of the Community Challenge? Register your organization's physical activity initiatives, events, programs and/or activities on the web portal, track the number of participants and engage with the challenge here on social media! Here's what else you need to do to win these prizes: 🟣 Early bird prizes - Register your organization on the Community Challenge portal before the end of May. Prizing period ends May 31. 🟣 Spirit prizes - Showcase your organization’s Community Challenge spirit. Prizing period starts June 7. 🟣 Inclusion prizes - Tell us how your Community Challenge activities are demonstrating inclusion. Prizing period starts June 14. 🟣 Capacity-building prizes - Tell us what capacity-building need you would fill with $750. Prizing period starts June 21. 🟣 Participation prizes - Register and track your organization’s programs and events. Prizing period ends June 28. To participate and be eligible for all prizing, organizations must first register for the challenge on the ParticipACTION website: https://hubs.la/Q02yqPbt0

Breaking news: tomorrow Friday May 10 at 1 PM PDT (4 PM EDT), we are having our inaugural "Corporate Giving Chat Fest". While we hope to do these in person in the future, the event tomorrow will be virtual. It's free and all we do for one hour is talk about anything and everything Corporate Giving, Sponsorships, Employee Volunteerism, Corporate Foundations etc etc. Join us. Here's the link. https://lnkd.in/gZ4kt3CQ Just two rules: 1. you share your name and organization and 2.) you participate by asking questions, sharing your experiences which means we can see your smiling face. See you tomorrow and for those on the east coast, I bet there's a cold beer or glass of wine that you'd like to bring to the meeting. :) It's almost 5 o'clock.

There is so much to be thankful for this season and a lot of amazing causes to support this Giving Tuesday. We ask that you consider ICAN today, where your dollars will go to support local families in a multitude of ways. Working with ICAN, families: • become stronger • communicate better • gain needed tools to succeed • are empowered • support each other • avoid out-of-home placement • break cycles • map out a path for long term success • and stay together! Give to ICAN today. When families thrive, entire communities thrive! https://bit.ly/3jMOoQG

When inspiration is limited because capacity is low, empowering creativity becomes the 'antitode'; principally obtained by volunteering. This affirms the reason why EMPOWERING CREATIVITY: THE EVOLVING ROLE OF VOLUNTEERING IN THE CREATIVE INDUSTRY (#ICC24 1.2) becomes a must for every creative mind. Do well to join us in the March edition of the Inspiration And Creativity Conference'24.

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You know what day it is: #MeetYourMatch Monday! For those of you planning to attend as a FREE guest/ potential volunteer, please remember that we run from noon to 4 pm. When we say 4PM, be aware that we start packing up then. We have exactly an hour to clear up before the gym is turned over to the Youth Programs. If you show up at 3:55 and expect to take your time, you may be disappointed. Also, be aware that we can't control parking. The YMCA is still operational during our volunteer fair, so they will have their usual traffic, plus us. Are you taking the bus? You're good. If you are attending as a participant in the fair, please note that we have access to the gym starting at 11. You have an hour to set up, and an hour to pack up and cede the gym to its regularly scheduled activities, so please plan your display accordingly. Being considerate guests means being thorough and time-aware. It's a volunteer fair, not Laser Floyd. Any difficulties, please seek out one of the friendly Volunteer Peterborough members, who will happy to help you out. We are really, really looking forward to this. We want everyone to have a great experience, and sometimes that means planning ahead. Event details here, if you haven't already committed them to memory: https://buff.ly/3UmCoH5 See you there! YMCA Balsillie Branch, Noon to 4pm THIS WEDNESDAY! (May 8th) #volunteerfair #volunteerrecruitment #communitybuilding #meetyourmatch #planahead #volunteersrock

I came across the news today that NSW Government is launching a parliamentary inquiry into the impacts of loneliness (Ref: https://lnkd.in/eErqnbDq), it struck a deeply personal chord with me. This isn’t just a policy issue—it’s something I’ve lived through in the most challenging way During the pandemic, I made a personal decision not to get vaccinated. It was a choice that led to many people (including life long friends and family) turning their backs on me, and I found myself more alone than I’d ever been in my life. The loneliness was overwhelming. My hair even started falling out from the stress and isolation. It was a time when I felt completely ostracised, like I didn’t belong anywhere. That experience taught me just how much we all need one another. We’re wired to be connected, to be part of a tribe. When that’s taken away—when we’re isolated or cast out—it can feel like a piece of us is missing. But it also showed me the power of community, even when it feels out of reach. OneAnother was created at the beginning of the pandemic, as I wanted to build a space where people could reconnect, no matter what their circumstances. We started hosting community connection events, and promoting frequent acts of kindness to bring people from all walks of life together. It wasn't just about socialising, or volunteering — our community is about finding a sense of purpose, rediscovering our values, and practicing self-compassion. They’re about making sure no one ever has to feel as alone as I did. I believe that by investing in our own purpose and values, and by being kind to ourselves and others, we can start to rebuild that sense of community. It’s not just about having people around—it’s about truly connecting with them on a deeper level. When we do that, we can become a collective again, a society where everyone feels they belong. The government’s inquiry is a hopeful sign that we’re starting to take loneliness seriously. But real change starts with each of us, by reaching out, showing up, and being there for one another. Because at the end of the day, we all need someone to lean on.

This week is World Kindness Week, a time to reflect on how small gestures can create meaningful change. Whether at work or in our communities, showing kindness can strengthen relationships and lift others up. Take a moment to read this article for simple ways you can spread kindness today. #WorldKindnessWeek #KindnessMatters https://lnkd.in/g9qrzjJj

Volunteers give their time and efforts to help achieve a shared mission. Honor their impact by reinvigorating your volunteer program with more meaningful, engaging opportunities. We put together some of our best practices for developing high-performing volunteer engagements for small staff associations in this short video: https://hubs.la/Q02tHV2L0

"Help! My volunteer is challenging my decision. What should I do?" If a volunteer you're managing challenges a decision you or your team has made, here's the first thing you should do: celebrate! Yes, really. Celebrate. When a volunteer pushes back on a decision, it shows they're invested in the work you and the organisation are doing. It demonstrates their sense of ownership. Think about it, they care deeply about the cause, the project, the organisation's goals — so much that they're willing to risk social discomfort to share how they feel. Sure, sometimes it might not be communicated in the most constructive way. Other times, they may not have appreciated all the complexities that constrained the decision-making process. But you can follow up on those things in your regular one-to-one meetings. However, in the moment, celebrate and use it as an opportunity to recognise their contributions: "Thanks for sharing your concerns—that can't have been easy. I can see you really care about this. Here's what I'm going to do…" So, the next time a volunteer challenges a decision, take a moment to celebrate their engagement. They're challenging because they’re invested. They're challenging because they care. #VolunteerManagement #Volunteers