Issue #15 - January/February 2009

Mission: The Volunteer Centers of Michigan strengthens, develops and connects volunteer centers throughout the state.

Vision: The Volunteer Centers of Michigan ensures all volunteer centers have the capacity to positively impact every Michigan community and their citizens through volunteerism.

National Mentoring Month highlights mentoring and the positive impact it can have on young lives. This month-long outreach campaign focuses national attention on the need for mentors, as well as how each of us—individuals, businesses, government agencies, schools, faith communities and nonprofits—can work together to increase the number of mentors and assure brighter futures for our young people. Mentoring Month is designed to generate a concentrated burst of national, statewide, and local media activity.  Combine this with community-based activities and you have the recipe to successfully recruit new mentors.

The 2009 Michigan Mentoring theme is "Pass It On."  We are celebrating the everyday, ordinary people who are making a difference for kids in Michigan.  Mentors don't need special skills--all they need to do is care about kids and be willing to volunteer about an hour a week. 

There is a Mentor Michigan Communications Tool Kit available online that contains resources and ideas to help local mentoring programs promote their activities, thank their mentors, and recruit new mentors. The following link will take you directly to the State of Michigan website where all the resources can be found - http://www.michigan.gov/mentormichigan/0,1607,7-193--129726--,00.html

Just around the corner, January 19, 2009, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. In 1994 Congress passed the King Holiday and Service Act, designating the King Holiday as a national day of volunteer service. Instead of a day off from work or school, Congress asked Americans of all backgrounds and ages to celebrate Dr. King's legacy by turning community concerns into citizen action. The King Day of Service brings together people who might not ordinarily meet, breaks down barriers that have divided us in the past, leads to better understanding and ongoing relationships, and is an opportunity to recruit new volunteers for your ongoing work.

Americans are encouraged to join in “40 Days of Nonviolence: Building the Beloved Community,” a national effort to follow King’s teachings of nonviolence and serve in the 40 days following the holiday.You can sign the Pledge of Nonviolence, find ways to reduce violence and achieve justice in your community, and participate in an entire Semester of Service!

If you are looking for opportunities to serve on MLK Day, click here to visit the National MLK Day of Service web site. This site provides information about all of the registered projects in the nation. Also, if you are in need of volunteers for your project, this is a great place to register your service project, recruit and manage volunteers.

In addition to the numerous MLK service projects across the country, President-elect Barack Obama is pushing to expand Martin Luther King Day from a national day of community service into an ongoing commitment to help the needy.

While presidents past have used January 19 to show by example how helping the poor is good for the country, Obama is using the eve of his inauguration to rally millions of Americans to community service as an antidote to the recession.

In the coming days, Obama's inaugural committee will launch a Web site to link volunteers with service projects in their neighborhoods. The new Web site will incorporate similar work already begun by the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency overseeing 7,000 service programs - including AmeriCorps, given the directive by Congress in 1994 to turn Martin Luther King Day into a national day of service. Click here to read more...

Volunteer Center Midwest Retreat: February 24-26
Please join us for a Midwest Networking Retreat this February in Battle Creek, Michigan. Invited guests include representatives from Volunteer Centers in the Midwestern states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The two day program will feature panels and speakers that address best practices of Volunteer Center management as well as professional development, and strategic planning for the Midwest region. You should have received an email invitation to register or registration is available on the VCM website at www.mivolunteers.org.

The National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions is gearing up for a defining moment in American History: the first 100 days of the new administration. On February 5th, 2009, The National Teach-In will again engage millions of Americans at thousands of campuses and other institutions in a dialogue about the clean energy transformation that can stop global warming and renew both the American economy and spirit. Young people will engage national political leaders and other key decision-makers in critical face-to-face discussion about their future. The National Teach-In is encouraging community leaders, student organizations, and/or other groups to sign to host an event.  For more information visit http://www.nationalteachin.org/index.php or contact the Great Lakes coordinator: Madeline Kovacs.

HandsOn Network is pleased to announce funding available to State Entities and Volunteer Connector Organizations to increase the nation’s volunteer infrastructure. These funds for Volunteer Impact, Retention, and Expansion (VIRE) are made possible through a Cooperative Agreement with the Corporation for National and Community Service. HandsOn Network will fund up to 25 grant awards of up to $1.5 million.  For the full Notice of Funding Availability and Volunteer Impact Retention and Expansion Grant Application, go to: Handsonnetwork.org.  The Request for Proposals for the next round of funding is anticipated to be released in January, so begin preparing now.

Call for Proposals- 2009 DC Conference on Service and Leadership
Each year Serve DC-The Mayor’s Office on Volunteerism brings together community and faith-based organizations in a conference focused on enhancing their organizational capacity to meet growing community needs. The Call for Workshop Proposals for the 2009 DC Conference on Service and Leadership is now open.  The Conference, “From Nice to Necessary”, will be May 13-15, 2009 in Washington DC.  It is based on three programmatic themes: Leadership, Collaboration, and Sustainability.  Speakers should be prepared to submit workshop proposals that fit into at least one of these three themes. To obtain an application, email Natasha at natasha.ballentine@dc.gov. The completed application and narratives must be received at the Serve DC office on or before Monday, February 16, 2009, via email or disk by mail.

2009 Solutions Summit: Engaging Marginalized Youth
The 2009 Solutions Summit is February 11, 2009 in Grand Rapids, MI. The summit will bring together educators and practitioners who work with marginalized youth to learn about service-learning and volunteerism as strategies for youth engagement. This intense full-day experience will explore ways to increase student success among marginalized youth, including those from low income and disenfranchised communities, youth in foster care, and youth with disabilities. Participants will gain an understanding of how service can transform youth, community, and society, and will leave with tools to implement service-learning in their own youth programming. To learn more and/or to register for the event go to http://www.micampuscompact.org/solutions.asp.

The 13th Annual Institute: Service Learning and Civic Engagement
Join faculty, staff, and administrators from higher education and K-12 institutions across Michigan for a practical, interactive, and stimulating Institute on Service-Learning and Civic Engagement. The 2009 Institute will be February 12-13, 2009 in Grand Rapids, MI. The Institute provides opportunities to examine service-learning models of success, network with service-learning professionals and explore campus-community partnerships. To learn more and/or to register for the event go to http://www.micampuscompact.org/institute.asp.

Understanding Cookies and Their Effect on Your Privacy
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Free Weekly Technology Webinars
The Maintain IT Project hosts free webinars each week focused on technology and libraries. Open to nonprofits and libraries alike, webinars are focused on technology planning, Web 2.0, and so much more. Check out the events page and be sure to visit the webinar archives page, where you never have to worry about missing a webinar, because the archives are almost like being there the first time.

Please welcome the following new VISTAs to our Volunteer Centers of Michigan team!

Brad Hunter staff@unitedwayeup.org is a recent graduate of Grand Valley State University with B.A. in International Relations. He grew up in Pickford, MI of the Upper Peninsula and is serving his year in the United Way Volunteer Center of the Eastern Upper Peninsula.

Cheryl Beauchamp, CBeauchamp@ubat.com is a 2007 Adrian College Social Work Graduate. She is serving at the Lenawee Community Foundation. She is "excited to be giving back to the community that nurtured and helped her grow through her four years of college and into the caring individual she has become.”

Sue Toner, suet@hdc-caro.org is serving at the Thumb Volunteer Alliance. She was born and raised in the local community of Caro, Michigan in the Thumb area. She is thrilled to be assigned at the Human Development Commission in Caro and to be utilizing my degree in Business Administration to develop the Volunteer Center at this host site.

The next issue of the Blue Print will feature Linda Gouda who is serving with Volunteer Muskegon and Mary Patterson at the United Way of St. Clair County.