Volunteers in Service Vis

“Expenses promotion and marketing 1,393 appeals and newsletters 4,761 telephone 2,226 office supplies 300 dues and subscriptions 1,287 online fees 327 database fees 1,080 computer expenses 827 leadership training 2,009 training 1,408 workers compensation insur 610 liability insurance 3,255 miscellaneous 375 total 19,858”

“Accounts payable and accrued expenses 7,556 5,374”

“While humbler service is our call as christians, it is not always easy to know where to begin. Complex social issues, a web of community agencies, and the dynamics of personal relationships can lead some volunteers and churches to feel uncertain or unprepared. Through our connecting program, volunteers in service helps people of faith navigate the issues, connections, and skills that contribute to a thriving relational ministry. We work with deacons, small group leaders, outreach committees, and other church leaders to help them reveal the gifts of discipleship, so they can volunteer more fully and live as stronger disciples elsewhere in life. Friendship volunteers: there were 159 church volunteers who provided 5,621 hours of friendly visitor, mother's helper, transportation, light cleaning and other one-on-one services for those struggling in the community. Friendship volunteers are more relationally connected and offer ongoing support and assistance and are longer term connections. They typically serve about four hours per month visiting with lonely, isolated people, building relationships and friendship and those they serve usually have little to no support in their life and often are not connected to a church. Through their love of christ, volunteers bring hope and joy into the lives of others. Service project volunteers: 2,245 volunteers provided 11,726 hours of service completing service projects. 1,208 of these voluntters, who put in 4,832 hours of service, provided smaller in scope services such as mowing a lawn, helping move furniture to storage, cleaning an apartment, or snow shoveling. Of these service project volunteers, 1,037 volunteers put in 6,894 hours of providing larger group projects involving church groups, youth groups, school and other groups who worked on larger scale projects such as local agency clean-up, more extensive yard work, alley clean up, larger painting projects, and small constructions projects such as building a raised garden and wheelchair ramps. While service projects are typically one or two day projects, the volunteers are encouraged to spend time with and build a relationship with those they are serving. New this year are financial mentors. These are volunteers who have been through eight hours of training in which they learn how to help people improve their financial situation. In 2017, four volunteers donated 56 hours to help four families learn how to better manage their money and improve their financial situation. Mentors spend a lot of time initially with the people they mentor to help them become comfortable with the budgeting process and understand the importance of doing a budget each month and sticking to the budget. This is becoming a highly sought after training, with 27 people being trained in 2017.”