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RCRG hosted one final donor appreciation event at O’Hare’s GastroPub to cap of the Richmond Christmas Fund’s 91st season

Photo courtesy Richmond Cares, Richmond Gives

The deadline to apply for a Richmond Community Foundation Scholarship is Friday, March 15.

Photo courtesy Richmond Cares, Richmond Gives

RCRG’s next volunteer management training series will be held online over three Mondays, from June 3 to 17.

Photo courtesy Richmond Cares, Richmond Gives

RCRG donors, volunteers, and scholarships

By Richmond Sentinel

Published 2:54 PDT, Mon March 11, 2024

Last Updated: 3:03 PDT, Mon March 11, 2024

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One last Christmas Fund celebration

Before officially declaring an end of the Richmond Christmas Fund's 91st season, Richmond Cares, Richmond Gives hosted an annual donor appreciation event. Rather than holding a breakfast, like previous years, the organization decided to give everyone a chance to sleep in, by moving the event to the late afternoon.

The event was hosted at O'Hare's GastroPub, whose owners—Grant and Erinn Bryan—are among the Christmas Fund’s biggest supporters, donating upwards of $10,000 each year through Steveston Beer Fest.

The event, which took place Feb. 29, was an informal affair, featuring appetizers, drinks, and wonderful company.

Among the attendees were the Christmas Fund's 2023 Star and Angel Donors, whose contributions ranged from $10,000 to well over $30,000.

Also attending the event were key organizers and sponsors of the 9th Annual Richmond RCMP Toy Drive, which, back in November, set a new record, collecting 4,670 lbs of toys.

There were many supporters as well, who had each given in different ways, but whose generosity, was deserving of special recognition.

This past holiday season, the Christmas Fund helped nearly 4,000 of our neighbours in need. At O’Hare’s, RCRG was able to thank some of the donors who made that possible, but not all of them.

Those in attendance were representative of Richmond’s giving spirit—a kindness and generosity that stretches far and runs deep throughout the community.

Begin a career in volunteer management

At the board level, down through administration, operations, and service delivery, every non-profit organization relies on volunteers. And while volunteers are skilled, talented, enthusiastic, and all-around awesome, they still require guidance and support to maximize their support. That’s where Volunteer Managers come in.

Sometimes, volunteer management is part of somebody’s job—a skillset they utilize while working, for example, as a Program Coordinator. On other occasions, volunteer management is the job, where a person’s responsibilities are focused entirely on recruiting, screening, training, and supervising volunteers.

The point is this: in the non-profit world, volunteer management is, at the very least, an extremely useful skill. At best, it can be the basis for a rewarding, long-term career.

To get started, we recommend—with no bias whatsoever—our Volunteer Management Training Series. The course, which we're always working to update and improve, covers all aspects of the volunteer management cycle, from recruitment and screening, to training and supervision, to evaluation and retention.

You'll come away with the tools and knowledge to build a volunteer program for any purpose, be it a one-time community event or a new, ongoing community service.

You'll also receive a certificate, which you can add to your resume, which will show that you now possess one of the non-profit sector's most in-demand skills.

The next edition of our Volunteer Management Training Series will be held online over three Mondays, from June 3 to June 17. Yes, it's still months away, but spaces are filling up fast. Hence, we recommend—again, with no bias at all—that you register as soon as possible.

Richmond Community Foundation Scholarship

Richmond Care, Richmond Gives reminds all high school students that the deadline to apply for a Richmond Community Foundation Scholarship is Friday, March 15. Applying for the scholarship is easy as applicants can simply complete the Foundation's online form, upload two reference letters, and click Submit. The scholarship application is short and straightforward. The goal isn’t to cause you frustration, but to capture clear and concise information about your academic achievements, extracurricular activities, community involvement, and future plans.

You can apply for multiple scholarships—potentially worth thousands of dollars—all with a single form.

Right now, you may be ready to go on vacation, but soon, you’ll be ready to take the next steps on your educational journey. You can start preparing today by applying for a Community Foundation scholarship.