National Volunteer Week: CEAP’s Valuable Helpers
Volunteer Appreciation Week kicks off on April 7th. It’s a time many organizations recognize how valuable their volunteers are, including CEAP.
The nonprofit’s food shelf has a supermarket feel, and staff say that wouldn’t be possible without the hard work of volunteers.
Volunteer Hours Make Big Difference
“Last year at CEAP we worked with over 3,500 wonderful volunteers,” says Jane Shade the volunteer engagement manager at CEAP. “Together they contributed over 27,000 hours of work. We have about 15 full-time employees here at CEAP. So if we equate the volunteer hours to full-time employees, they add an extra 13 full-time employees to our staff.”
From everyday help to special events, CEAP uses volunteers for a majority of the activities and events it holds. Without them, it’s mission would be next to impossible. The volunteers are vital to stocking shelves and moving the food from pallets to the market itself. Volunteers like Mike Witzany are the reason CEAP is able to serve around 100 families a day.
“This is a fun place to be at,” says Wizany, who has been volunteering with CEAP for a year. “It’s doing good things for the community. We’ve had the same group for the whole year that I have been here. We just have a lot of fun joking around and getting something accomplished at the same time.”
Mike says his faith is what prompted him to volunteer. He says seeing the difference he makes keeps him coming back.
“There is just a huge return,” said Witzany. “At first it was feeling good about myself but knowing that I’m doing what I should be doing is so worth every minute that I put in.”
CEAP is always in need of volunteers. They currently need people who would be willing to drive for their Meals on Wheels program. If you’d like to volunteer with CEAP you can find out more information by clicking here.
