She says during National Volunteer Week she will host a small morning tea to thank those volunteers who they've been told went well beyond their call of duty during the Covid-19 response.
"Volunteers are such a valuable part of our community, and what better way to celebrate them than during Volunteer Week."
A Volunteering Bay of Plenty spokesperson says volunteers make an incredible contribution to the community every day, and many community support agencies would struggle to deliver their services without them.
"Whether it's formal or informal, short or long-term, every volunteer has an impact on making someone's life better."
At the same time volunteers benefit by gaining skills or keeping skills current, as well as enjoying the social benefits of being involved with something that improves their community, they say.
"Volunteering is very much about the benefit of working together."
Volunteering BOP encourages people to celebrate volunteers over the coming week because they are often the unsung heroes of the community.
"Many do not wish to be singled out, so National Volunteer Week is an opportunity to highlight, acknowledge and appreciate all volunteering.
"Aside from helping support agencies who were in high demand over the Covid-19 pandemic, volunteers also stepped up to help their neighbours, grandparents and
to respond to emergency needs for the most vulnerable.
"Volunteers took the phrase 'we're all in this together' quite literally.
"They will also be vital in the next few months as we begin to see the economic impact the pandemic has had on our society."
Volunteering BOP will acknowledge and celebrate the contribution volunteers make in the community during the week by sharing stories of volunteers who go above and beyond to support the organisation they volunteer for.
Look out for its daily Facebook posts on the Volunteering Bay of Plenty page or go to www.volbop.org.nz for more information and links to volunteer.
St Chads Charitable Trust volunteer co-ordinator Jebraun Clifford says they try to acknowledge their volunteers during this week with a small gift and a special morning tea to show them how much they appreciate them.
She says as a charitable organisation, it relies on volunteers to add that extra one-on-one support for its clients, to help them achieve their individual goals.
She say volunteers help out in many ways, like supporting clients in an art session or out in the community so they can learn to take the bus independently, assisting with fundraising endeavours, and providing crucial services like building maintenance and gardening.
St Chads also has volunteers who work as shop assistants in its art gallery downtown.
"We currently have about 12 active volunteers. We are always looking for new people to join us, especially since many of our volunteers are international students at Toi Ohomai and are only with us for a year or so.
"It seems as if Covid has increased the interest in volunteering as some people are looking for work, want to help people, and are interested in expanding their experiences."
Sue Gunn, Rotorua Community Hospice volunteer services manager, says volunteers are essential.
"By gifting their time, they help ensure over 120 people living with a life-limiting illness are cared for each month in the Rotorua community.
"We have a dedicated team of volunteers working in the Hospice Shop and warehouse turning donated goods into Hospice care.
"The proceeds from the shop help fund our services, which are free of charge for patients and their whānau."
She says there are also volunteers who work directly with patients.
"They enhance the services of our clinical team, including life biographers, companions in homes, reflexologists, and overseeing our day stay programme.
"In any given week we would have between 75 and 100 volunteers working for Hospice, either in the shop, with patients and families or at fundraising events and appeals."
She says Covid-19 meant they suspended all volunteer programmes until they reached alert level 1.
"By then the volunteers were bursting to get back to work to support patients and families, and to generate income in the Hospice Shop."
Sue says to celebrate volunteer week, they have partnered with Capers to give its volunteers a small thank you gift voucher.
"It's a small way to say thanks for the huge amount of work they do. We are so grateful for our volunteers – they are integral to our team.
"We'll also be profiling a few volunteers on our Facebook page so people can see the variety of roles we offer."
Volunteering statistics
• About 21.5 per cent of New Zealanders undertake volunteer work
• The value of formal volunteering is estimated at $4 billion per annum
• New Zealanders contribute a total of about 159 million hours of formal volunteer labour each year
• 11.8 per cent of people undertake informal volunteering work, contributing a total of 7.8 million hours of volunteer labour per year to these figures
Source: Statistics New Zealand, on www.volunteeringnz.org.nz
