It’s National Volunteer Appreciation Week starting April 14 and a as the Volunteer Centre of the Central Okanagan, KCR Community Resources offers a huge shout-out to the many volunteers that make our community a better place to be. Volunteers make a difference by sharing their time and skills with organizations that match their values and passions.  Year in and year out, they give freely of their resources and in return they receive gifts of social connection, creating impact and building skills.

Next week also marks the third year of us sharing stories and opportunities from the community. We continue to be grateful to the many individuals and organizations who have shared their passion for volunteerism and to the Kelowna Capital News for providing us the space to share these stories.

The theme for National Volunteer Week this year is “Every Moment Matters” and across Canada we are celebrating 24 million volunteers that are the life blood of the not-for-profit organizations that build and enrich our communities. Whether their focus is the arts, environment, sports, social services or wildlife, not-for-profit organizations fill in gaps and answer urgent calls from the community. They address marginalization and vulnerability experienced by community members. They give opportunities for celebration and coming together. They allow people to pursue their passions and to make an impact.

Far from being “non-profits” these organizations are all about social profit! The only way this social profit can be achieved is with volunteers. Volunteers are integral to mission driven organizations and we couldn’t do what we do, without them.

So please consider in your life, where do volunteers make a difference? Where is your life improved because of volunteers? Then take the time to seek them out this week. Take a moment to see them, to thank them and to let them know the impact they are making.

For KCR as an organization, we have over 300 volunteers that help to deliver the services provided to the community. Over the course of only one year, they provide over 12,000 hours of work, answering calls for the Crisis Line, helping Newcomers settle and find meaningful work, supporting families and children, fighting to make the community more welcoming and helping individuals and organizations benefit from the power of the volunteer movement. For their unconditional giving, for their passion and heart they bring to their roles, we want to say THANK YOU to these amazing volunteers. We also want to acknowledge the amazing volunteers that undertake the responsibility, liability and passion of providing governance for not-for-profit organizations: the directors on the organizations’ boards. Without their oversight and guidance, societies, literally could not exist. In the case of KCR, we owe a big debt of gratitude to: President David Brown, Past President/Interim Treasurer and Secretary Laura Thurnheer, Vice-President Bill Thompson and Directors Peter Boyd, Karen Graham, Eric Li, Michelle Rebiere, Brendon Rothwell and Jasmine Somal.

We also extend a huge thank you to the thousands of volunteers, in whatever capacity they serve, that support other organizations throughout the Central Okanagan.