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Posted on July 06, 2011 13:58
BY PAM KETTERING
Yankton Area United Way
Published: Wednesday, June 22, 2011 10:48 PM CDT
The Non-Profit Center has had this week circled in red for many days. This is the week of THE MOVE! The United Way & Volunteer Services Board of Directors considered office site options in March when considering the five year lease ending June 30. That was the seed of the process. The germination set in when looking at options for not just one office site, but eleven!
The search was on! We looked and looked and found it! Marne Creek Professional Offices was the answer we were seeking. The available office space had offices on the perimeter and open spaces in the middle. Measuring the open area, sketching in hallways and additional office space and then measuring and sketching some more, the “foot print” was ready for boards and nails.
Back at the home front, each agency went to the basement to down size. The new site had lots of advantages; however, comparable storage space was not one of them. Rummage sales, garbage cans, trading special stuff all took place in the adventure of finding new homes for the excess.
After a two-day move of desks, bookcases, filing cabinets and more boxes than can be counted, the new offices are brimming with chaos. Volunteers and agency directors are fatigued. Internet and phone lines are tested for connections. Everyone is hoping that this does not occur again for a very, very long time! By Monday, June 27th, we will be greeting you at the west door in our new digs at 610 W. 23rd St. In the near future – after the boxes are unpacked and pictures are hung, we will be hosting an open house. The contact information remains the same – PO Box 387, phone at 665-6766 and email is unitedway@iw.net.
Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is one of the twenty-one affiliated United Way & Volunteer Services’ agencies. Please continue reading about the great works accomplished by this program.
Flood disaster relief, helping a child read, mentoring a child or an adult with disabilities, providing computer skills to a local non-profit agency, delivering a meal to an elderly shut-in. These are just a few services that RSVP volunteers provide. There are 223 RSVP volunteers in the Yankton area providing these types of services and many more to answer the call of their neighbors in need.
RSVP engages adults age 55 and over in volunteer opportunities that match their personal interests and makes use of their skills and life-long experiences. Last year, RSVP volunteers provided nearly 34,000 hours of community service to meet local needs by assisting students with reading, mentoring, assisting at the Children’s Summer Lunch Program, providing reading outreach, and staffing the local Clothing Closet just to name a few. Through such efforts, RSVP is meeting needs that strained local budgets are facing. The volunteer services through RSVP in 2010 had an approximate value of $408,000.00 saving these agencies valuable resources. Funding cuts are affecting all agencies, including RSVP, which has increased demand for volunteers and the services they provide.
All volunteers are placed in volunteer work stations under the direction of local public and private non-profit agencies. RSVP volunteers are contributing their time at 58 work stations in the Yankton community such as; The Center, Meals on Wheels, Dakota Territorial Museum, Yankton Police Department, Big Friend Little Friend, Yankton Literacy Council, Webster, Stewart, Lincoln and Beadle elementary schools, Yankton Transit, Yankton Community Library, The Sack Pack Program and many more volunteer work stations.
To learn more about the Retired & Senior Volunteer Program, contact Deb at 605-260-3100 or stop by the office at 231 Broadway until June 20 and 610 West 23rd Marne Creek Building after that date in the United Way Non-profit Center.
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