The nonprofit has an opportunity to tell the story of how the organization adapted to tremendous external changes in the last year.
As a public service organization, the Volunteer Center is continually assessing our work, our impact, and adapting to serve our community's immediate needs. When COVID hit, we were the first organized effort to distribute masks, and later, organizing mass vaccination efforts. When devastating fires hit, we immediately led the effort to set up evacuation centers for people and pets. And, in January when torrential rains led to massive flooding, our volunteer mobilization teams immediately activated a county-wide disaster response - coordinating with local and state agencies, Americopr volunteers, and our corporate partners, we pivoted from our usual volunteer recruitment to begin a large-scale effort to dig our neighbors out from mud and debris.
In January, 517 volunteers completed over 3000 hours of challenging post-flood clean-up work in January. They literally dug in - mucking mud and debris from over 100 homes across the county.
Unfortunately, this effort was not a one-off. Our region was blasted by record-breaking rain, resulting in continual floods and evacuations for many residents - and for nearly three months, our team operated in disaster mode. We continued to recruit volunteer clean-up crews, and mobilized over 1000 volunteers to pick up shovels and clear neighbors' homes. We placed volunteers in emergency evacuation shelters, donation centers, and resource delivery efforts. Our story has reached the national news for the efforts underway in Pajaro, CA, and Felton Grove, CA.
At the Volunteer Center, our work is built on the premise that when people are connected to causes they care about and given the right tools and support, everything changes for good. In the face of disaster, neighbors helped neighbors, and the relief of those impacted by the floods was tangible. We couldn't have done it without the donors, the volunteers, the partners, and the agencies who pulled together to help neighbors in need.