UNews - UVolunteer

Celebrating ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge student volunteers

caroline.zentner — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 15:30:27 +0000

National Volunteer Week from April 16 to 22 celebrates the contributions of some 24 million volunteers across the country, including nearly 200 of them from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

The theme of this year’s volunteer week is Volunteering Weaves Us Together. Whether that’s sharing time or talent, volunteering strengthens the fabric of the community and helps weave supportive interconnections between people.

Alieza Cyr

“I’m extremely proud of all the ULethbridge students who have supported non-profit agencies in our community through volunteering,” says Alieza Cyr, UVolunteer coordinator and Dhillon School of Business student. “In 2022, ULethbridge students logged 834 volunteer hours and they’ve already logged more than 360 hours so far this year.”

One student who has embraced volunteering is Talayna Ekelund. Last year, she volunteered close to 600 hours at a variety of local organizations, including the Interfaith Food Bank, Lethbridge Family Services, Lethbridge Senior Citizens Organization, Inclusion Lethbridge, Stitch It Forward Society, Lethbridge Therapeutic Riding Association, United Way, Lethbridge Dragon Boat Festival, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, the YMCA, Opokaa’sin Early Intervention Society and more.

Talayna Ekelund

“There are so many great reasons to volunteer,” says Ekelund. “I choose to do so because I grew up learning the benefits of helping others and it is something I have always enjoyed doing.”

Ekelund says volunteering has given her the opportunity to gain diverse experience while helping organizations and people. She has served as a role model for junior high school students through arts and crafts, sharing stories and playing games. She has helped serve dinners, sorted food donations, handed out food, made sandwiches for the food bank, sold 50/50 tickets, crocheted items for several organizations, collected toy donations, wrapped gifts and prepped meals for displaced youth.

“There are so many cool opportunities waiting for more volunteers to get involved; there is always something for everyone,” says Ekelund. “As a student, I appreciate groups like UVolunteer and Volunteer Lethbridge that partner up to provide university students a place to track hours of volunteer commitment. At the end of the year, it is really mind blowing to see just how much you were able to benefit the community you live in.”

Congratulations to our Leaders of Tomorrow award winners

caroline.zentner — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 17:32:53 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge congratulates all Leaders of Tomorrow award winners; they are shining examples of engaged citizenship. As part of National Volunteer Week, Volunteer Lethbridge announced the winners at a gala Thursday evening.

Among the winners are several U of L students and their volunteer work highlights their desire to give back to the community. They truly are the leaders of tomorrow.

In the 19-to-24 age group, U of L students Marissa Hsu, Jesse Wamsteeker, Chelsea Kleckner, Antoine Gendron and Justin Miller each received an Excellence Award.

Hsu has served on a medical-volunteering trip to the Dominican Republic. Her involvements include the Student Refugee Program, the Canadian Armed Forces and the Delta Eta Iota Sorority.

Wamsteeker is a respected volunteer leader known for his dedication, motivation, compassion and exceptional planning and organizational skills. He volunteers at Chinook Regional hospital and with Canadian Blood Services and is dedicated to helping those around him.

Kleckner embodies leadership and selfless service in her volunteer work. She’s involved with the U of L Rotaract Club, Volunteer Lethbridge, Eagles Nest Ranch, Hillcrest Evangelical Church, Lethbridge Food Bank and Whispering Pines Camp.

Gendron, a dedicated activist, has worked hard to create change. He started and planned the U of L’s first Earth Day celebration in 2018, including raising funds and recruiting volunteers and speakers. He organized this year’s Earth Day celebration as well. In addition, Gendron is involved with the Oldman Watershed Council and serves on their board of directors.

Miller is known for his ability to create an environment of trust, hospitality and rapport. He showed exceptional leadership in revamping the Emergency Room volunteer program at Chinook Regional Hospital. Miller gives his time to many other organizations, including the U of L Pre-Med Club, Taber Minor Hockey and Cranbrook Minor Hockey.

In addition, Recognition Awards were given to the following U of L students: Trinity Alles, Hana Bissett, Elani Bykowski, Abby Davis, Janey Deacon-Rosamond, Keely Goulding, Suraj Navani, Suzanne Stables, Sunil Stephenson, Olivia Tondevold and Tiffany Trinh.

Through a partnership with Volunteer Lethbridge, the UVolunteer program, administered through the School of Liberal Education, encourages volunteerism among students. One of the pillars of liberal education is citizenship, both local and global. The U of L is extremely proud of these bright lights in our midst who exemplify this ideal of citizenship. We applaud their many achievements through volunteerism.

U of L recognizes volunteer contributions for National Volunteer Week

caroline.zentner — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 22:35:46 +0000

Raising the National Volunteer Week flag gives the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge the opportunity to thank the students, staff and alumni who volunteer their time not only to ensure the success of many U of L events and programs, but also to help organizations in the broader community.

Since 2013, the U of L has partnered with Volunteer Lethbridge to encourage volunteerism on campus. UVolunteer, which is administered by the School of Liberal Education, employs a cooperative education student each year to inform students and engage them with volunteer opportunities in the community.

“One of the four pillars of liberal education is community and civic engagement. We encourage students to be involved in their communities as volunteers, participants and changemakers,” says Dr. Shelly Wismath, dean of the School of Liberal Education.

Students are picking up on that message. From the start of the semester last September until the end of February, UVolunteer had more than 300 new student registrations and those students contributed nearly 2,200 hours of their time. Their contributions were worth more than $50,000 to the local economy. They were matched with diverse organizations ranging from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lethbridge to the United Way.

This year’s UVolunteer program coordinator is Paige Hutchinson, a fourth-year anthropology student.

Paige Hutchinson, photo by Clasual.

“Every year our numbers for the UVolunteer program are growing; more students are signing up and they’re recording more hours,” says Hutchinson. “In my opinion, students are volunteering so much more than what’s being recorded. Often, students don’t know what they’re doing is volunteering. They’re just doing it because they enjoy it or want to help out.”

The benefits of volunteering extend to both the organization and the volunteer, Hutchinson says. Local non-profit organizations are behind a host of services that benefit the citizens of Lethbridge and they couldn’t do their work without volunteers. Volunteers get the chance to make a difference, gain experience, build connections and maybe even find full-time work opportunities. Typically, they volunteer because they want to, not because they want acknowledgement.

“A lot of volunteers go unrecognized. Their efforts aren’t always noticed by the general public,” says Hutchinson. “I think it’s awesome there is National Volunteer Week and that so many people participate.”

Alumni also play an active role in volunteering; in 2018, 650 alumni gave their time to the U of L through special events and programs, creating connections with the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and the larger community. Their involvement highlights the U of L’s Be a Bright Light campaign, which is part of the larger Shine campaign to increase engagement opportunities for alumni and community members and raise $100 million to propel the entire region forward.

As part of National Volunteer Week, Volunteer Lethbridge will unveil the winners of the Volunteer Excellence and Volunteer Recognition awards on Wednesday, April 10 at the Leaders of Tomorrow Award Gala.

UNews - UVolunteer

Celebrating ��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge student volunteers

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Congratulations to our Leaders of Tomorrow award winners

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Celebrating ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge student volunteers