By Carrie Brodi
How do you attract, engage, deploy and retain volunteers during a two-year global pandemic while continuing to stay active in the communities that you serve?
This was the question we asked various non-profits and charities across Canada. Their responses were as diverse as the country itself but two findings were similar across the board.
First, those that were willing and able to embrace technology fared better than those that could not or would not. Second, all agreed that there would be no going back to business as usual as pandemic restrictions lift. The new hybrid model of virtual and in-person volunteerism is here to stay. And that is largely a good thing.
Ahead of the curve in Calgary
In 2017, long before the pandemic brought about a need for a digital pivot, the Volunteer Centre of Calgary started to see a shift in their clientele from a predominantly middle aged, white cohort to one that skewed younger and more diverse.
Traditionally a bricks and mortar office, they saw a need to re-think how they were delivering services to the community, says Katie Dodd, Volunteer and Community Engagement Manager for the Volunteer Centre of Calgary (known online as volunteerconnector.org).
For one thing, the time it was taking to connect volunteers to organizations ranged from between 3 and 6 months. They wanted an online system that was faster and easier to use for both volunteers and organizations.
They approached a software development company in Calgary to design a user friendly application that would put the volunteer front and centre.
At an investment of $1 million, the resulting Volunteer Connector software application made the process more streamlined for everyone. Volunteers could create one profile to apply for multiple positions. They had the ability to refine their search criteria, get notified of new postings, and track their volunteer hours among other time saving benefits.
For overstretched volunteer managers, the software allowed them to quickly post positions while managing all of their data in one place.
The entire process of getting volunteers into positions now took a matter or weeks rather than months, a significant improvement in a heavily volunteer-reliant sector.
“When you consider that 57 percent of organizations in Canada are either fully volunteer run or run by a few staff members, it is obvious that without volunteers, we would be toast,” says Dodd.
Statistics Canada reports that 24.5 million volunteers contribute 5 billion volunteer hours in Canada each year (2021). This contribution is estimated at a value of $56 billion or 2.5 percent of Canada’s GDP (Conference Board of Canada). Toast, indeed.
The Volunteer Connector application has been so successful it has been shared beyond the city of Calgary to 36 partners in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Ontario.
Not only does the tool connect people to organizations, it also provides valuable data on what today’s volunteer wants.
“When the pandemic hit, most in-person positions were halted and moved online but we were already seeing more demand for remote positions. The pandemic just served as a catalyst,” says Dodd.
Pivoting to virtual early kept programs running
When the Alzheimer Society of Waterloo Wellington realized that the pandemic was not a fleeting situation, they created 21 new virtual programs. When before they could offer in person tea times, games and exercise classes to clients journeying with dementia, they suddenly needed to re-imagine their program delivery model, reports Lorri Watamaniuk, Director of Fund Development.
For those that could not access, or were not comfortable using a computer, they created activity packages that volunteers delivered to peoples’ homes. They found ways to engage more volunteers by creating a telephone support program.
The feedback was largely positive with 65 percent of clients and families saying the virtual / telephone experience was less stressful than travelling to a location.
“We are excited about what the pandemic has done for us,” says Watamaniuk. “While it was stressful at the beginning, technology allowed us to expand on the types of programming that we were offering and the way that we do them to be able to offer them to a larger number. Ultimately it has increased accessibility for clients and volunteers.”
The pros and cons of going virtual
Before the pandemic, The Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada held support groups for Canadians affected by all types of brain tumours, in person. The pandemic meant that all activities had to shift online and it wasn’t always a smooth transition, says Todd Goold, the Foundation’s Information and Support Services Manager. Some ran with the virtual alternative whereas others were simply not interested — with or without the bandwidth at home.
“I learned that what works well in London, Ontario doesn’t necessarily work well in Calgary or Halifax. You have to tailor your programs to your volunteers,” Goold says.
To support volunteers better in this new online reality, he created tools to address such occurrences as lag time during emotional moments of a support group video call, and what to do if someone experiences a health emergency while online.
Over time more volunteers got on board with technology and something positive started to occur. The internet allowed for expanded reach and more specialization.
“Before we were broken up by cities. Now we are developing customized support groups around such subjects as the loss of a spouse or malignant brain tumours. It now focuses on the skill of the volunteer,” he says.
One such volunteer on the front lines of the Foundation’s shift to the new hybrid model is Yasmina Mashmoushi. She has been facilitating the Mississauga support group for the past three years.
We asked her what drives her volunteerism and she said, “Community service instills in me a sense of meaning, agency and impact that I cannot find elsewhere. As a volunteer I wake up each day believing that what I do makes a palpable difference. I find comfort in knowing I am the reason someone is smiling or feeling resilient in the face of their struggles.”
With the return to in-person expected in the new year, Goold says the hybrid model is here to stay.
When virtual is not an option
What about when your service offering relies on protecting and enhancing the quality of life or domestic, farm and wild animals in British Columbia. This is the mission of the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. They annually rely on 3,700 volunteers giving 185,000 hours of their time to help in tactile ways including: assisting in animal shelters, rescuing and rehabilitating wild animals, and helping in emergencies such as fires, floods by fostering animals — none of which can be transitioned online.
“Most of our in-person volunteer opportunities at our animal shelters were paused for the duration of the pandemic, “ says Lindsay Baker, Senior Manager, Volunteer Resources with the BC SPCA. “This meant we did not have volunteer roles for the majority of our volunteer base, despite engaging as many as possible in virtual alternatives. This often led to frustration for volunteers who had lots of time to give back and a strong desire to help the animals in our care.”
Alternatively, they saw exponential growth of their volunteer foster program, something that could be done safely at home. “This was a positive result for the animals who often flourished in a home environment,” she says.
Running with technology
For the Terry Fox Foundation, the early adoption of technology during the pandemic made all of the difference in their being able to return to normal revenue streams by 2021, reports Michael Mazza, the Foundation’s Executive Director.
The TFF is a national organization that raises funds to support cancer research and annually holds 800 fundraising runs across the country along with school organized runs.
“As we moved into the pandemic, the impact was that we weren’t able to do in person runs. Because of that we didn’t have roles for our volunteers and as such, we saw a loss of revenue,” he says.
Soon into the pandemic, the Foundation transitioned to digital strategies like Zoom and volunteers were quick to follow. “What was interesting is that it began to connect us as staff and volunteers. You got a sense of how many people were working on this across the country.”
Other technological changes included a website update, the use of texting and codes and paperless giving. “We dramatically changed the way we do business and it was all technology-driven. Those are the things that we continue to use and enhance as we move out of the pandemic,” Mazza says
One COVID program they created to raise revenue levels during lockdowns was a socially distanced, virtual program where a single person could create their own walk or run event, execute it and raise funds while in isolation. The program will remain.
All runs are back on track this year and Mazza expects to see pre-pandemic engagement with a return of 10,000 volunteers.
What would Terry say about the resilience of this army of volunteers? “He would be incredible proud,” says Mazza. “Terry said, if I can’t finish, people have to carry on without me and, man, have they ever done that.”
COVID Can’t Stop Camp
Maintaining a sense of connectedness throughout the pandemic is a common theme of these conversations particularly for Campfire Circle a nonprofit oncology camp that supports kids and families affected by childhood cancer across Ontario.
In a normal year they welcome 1000 volunteer camp counsellors. They experienced challenges when lockdowns started and all programs had to move online, things like virtual camp, camp fires and magic shows to name a few.
“Our attitude was that COVID couldn’t stop camp,” says Becky Conlon, Volunteer Program Manager, who facilitated the return of 250 virtual volunteers to maintain connectedness. “The feedback from our campers was that they felt an ongoing sense of community online at a time when so many were facing isolated moments, especially those in hospital. Being able to offer a sense of normalcy, laughter and joy made a big difference.”
The virtual programs will remain a permanent year-round offering. With camp set to return this summer to in-person at two overnight camps and various day camps in Ontario, Campfire Circle is excited to welcome back some 400 volunteers.
One of those volunteers is Bev Rosser who Conlon describes as “an incredible mentor who understands the power of camp”. What drives Rosser to volunteer at camp every summer for the past 32 years?
“There is truly nothing like the magic of camp and being part of that is something that never gets old for me,” Rosser says. “Anyone who has been to camp knows that we as counselors are the lucky ones — these kids are such an incredible source of inspiration and joy. I feel fulfilled around our campers, their families and our Campfire community.”
Engaging volunteers during a downturn
“Maintaining a sense of connection to volunteers throughout the pandemic has been crucial for us,” says Kathy Jones, Volunteer Manager, Ontario Programs & Canadian Lakes Loon Survey for the national not-for-profit, Birds Canada.
In a normal year Birds Canada relies upon tens of thousands of volunteers to conduct citizen science to see how birds are faring across the country, from surveying owls to the tracking decline of shore birds.
The impact of the pandemic meant that all of their data collection programs had to shut down in 2020.
“Because people were stuck at home, their interest in birding increased. It was a powerful time during which we could engage and educate people.”
Jones ran with technology creating webinars on such topics as bird identification and ‘birding by ear’. Though time consuming, she didn’t regret doing it because it opened up volunteer engagement across geographical distances that were not possible before.
“If you look at the size of Ontario, giving a program from Essex to Rainy Lake — virtual works better. It is going to be a hybrid model for us in the future.”
A split between virtual and in-person
The hybrid model is here to stay, echoes Kassandra James, the Director of Programs for Volunteer Toronto. In a normal year, Volunteer Toronto connects 1.6 million volunteers to the organizations that need them.
James says that the pandemic brought incredible disruption to Canada’s most densely populated city. “We know that millions of volunteers were dismissed and that programs paused indefinitely or they had to adjust to an online model,” she says.
To add further chaos, she notes that 1 out of 2 volunteer managers across the city were let go from their positions or deployed elsewhere. “Programs were not adapting quickly and many were struggling to meet demand,” she says.
What James started to see happening over the pandemic was a permanent shift to virtual volunteering in 50 percent of roles offered through their site. Things that now operate virtual permanently include administrative work and social media management, of benefit to younger volunteers who are comfortable with technology and those that want to forego a commute.
But remote volunteerism can also be a barrier for those who may not be comfortable with technology, such as seniors who contribute a significant number of volunteer hours in the city.
Fortunately with the lifting of restrictions James is seeing an eagerness of people to get back to in-person events. “One of the big numbers we have seen is an 88 percent increase in the number of roles on the Volunteer Toronto website since April 2021. That for me is the biggest sign that we are getting back to more engagement,” she says.
Pandemic lessons and the new normal
What were some of the lessons learned through the pandemic? Many said the need to adapt, not just to a global health crisis, but to the shifting demographics of volunteerism in Canada
in general.
“The ways that we engage and deploy volunteers is still very colonial,” says Katie Dodd. “For example, asking racialized people to get a police check when we know police have caused so much harm to racialized people. This needs to change.”
Kassandra James concurs. “We need to ask, ‘what are our essential needs when screening and what do we need to know?’, and only screen for those,” she says.
When asked what one word or phrase Dodd would use to describe the state of volunteerism in her part of Canada, she says, “I feel like there has been a shift in our sector. Traditional organizations are slowly recovering but then you also have grassroots groups popping up to make up for what other groups aren’t able to do. There has also been a shift towards social justice, environmental issues and indigenous issues. Organizations that want to engage more volunteers should highlight these areas,” she says.
Kathy Baker of the BC SPCA says they are gearing up to rebuild their volunteer teams across the province. This includes speeding up the application, screening and onboarding process, leverage online training to cut down on travel time and staff output, and increasing their capacity to retain existing volunteers in a competitive market.
“We have to focus our energies on retaining the volunteers we have by investing more in recognition activities. It is significantly less time-intensive to keep a volunteer than to recruit a new one,” Baker says. “Volunteers who feel recognized and appreciated are more likely to sign up for shifts, stay with the organization and become your best recruitment ambassadors.”
Michael Mazza of the Terry Fox Foundation says, “I think that volunteers have a passion and they have insight and those are critical to driving success. So connecting with, listening to, participating with, walking the path together — those are what creates the successes. To me the value of volunteers is infinite, and allowing them to walk that path with you is key.”
Carrie Brodi is a freelance writer based in Toronto, Ontario.
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