Day of Caring, the largest one day mobilization of volunteers in King County, is on Friday, September 21st. Join United Way of King County in making this day a success! Last year over 11,000 volunteers spent the day helping over 300 organizations with a variety of projects from painting, to job coaching, to landscaping and invasive plant removal. Your organization can be part of this great event by registering a project (or projects) between May 14th and July 20th 2012. Volunteers from companies throughout King County will start registering for projects in early August. If you do not already have an account set up with United Way of King County, you will need to create one in order to submit a Day of Caring project. To create an account, go to: https://volunteer.truist.com/uwkc/agency/signup.aspx?return_url=
Developing group volunteer projects
Registering Day of Caring projects online
Making changes and managing your Day of Caring project online
Day of Caring Information Sessions
Managing and working with Volunteers
Developing group volunteer projects
Our organization doesn't usually work with volunteer groups. How do I go about creating a project?
Think outside the box. If your organization is set up to work with individual volunteers, you may need to spend some time brainstorming and developing projects that would be appropriate for a group. Is there a project around your office that you've been putting off because no one on staff has time to do it? Do you have an upcoming event that volunteers could help you prep materials for? Could you use some help brightening up the walls of your building? Ask other staff or your current volunteers for suggestions. There is always work to be done, and hosting a volunteer group is a great way to get a lot done in a short period of time. Still stumped? Contact us at dayofcaring@uwkc.org.
Our project isn't the most glamorous. How can I make it stand out to volunteers?
It's true, it can be tricky to make a day of invasive species removal sound like an exciting volunteer opportunity. Take some time to write an attention grabbing title and description for your project. When volunteers are scrolling through hundreds or projects, they're going to click on the one with the interesting tag line. After all, doesn't "Give a Foster Child the Backyard of their Dreams!" grab your attention more than "Weeding and pressure washing needed"? Thought so. For some tips on writing project descriptions, check out these examples of descriptions that sell, and some that don't.
How many volunteers can we request?
You can request as many or as few volunteers as you'd like. Volunteer group sizes vary greatly, so no matter how big or how small your project, there is probably a group for you. We do ask that projects can accommodate a minimum of three volunteers. If you have an especially large project (more than fifty volunteers) we may need to break it up into smaller groups (e.g. a project with 150 volunteer spots may be broken down into two groups of 50 and two groups of 25). This helps us ensure that we fill the maximum number of projects.
Registering Day of Caring projects online
What are the criteria for Day of Caring projects?
We have the following requirements for participation in Day of Caring:
- Agencies must be registered 501c3 non-profits or public organizations (e.g. schools, cities, etc.) with a King County address.
- Projects must be held in King County.
- Agencies must have liability insurance for volunteers (except for Seattle Public Schools)
- Agencies must be able to provide all necessary materials for the project. Projects that require volunteers to donate materials or money will not be included in Day of Caring.
If I submit a project, am I guaranteed a volunteer group?
We do everything in our power to fill all of the Day of Caring projects, but every year there are one or two projects that go unfilled. If your project has not been filled two weeks prior to the event, you have the option of removing your project from the event, opening the project up to the general public (non United Way affiliated groups), or making your project available for last minute or drop-in volunteers.
How many projects can I submit?
As many as you want! As long as you have enough work to keep your volunteers busy, and have adequate staff support to manage the projects, there is no limit to how many projects you can host.
How will I know if my project has been approved by United Way of King County staff?
Once UWKC staff have reviewed and approved your project, you will receive an email confirmation. All projects that meet the Day of Caring project criteria and are submitted by July 20th, 2012 will be approved, however, we may ask you to add some additional information to your project (e.g. a more specific project description) before we approve it and post it to the registration site.
Making changes and managing your Day of Caring project online
What if I need to cancel my project?
Projects can be cancelled and removed from the site up until August 7th, 2012. Cancelling your project after August 7th may make your organization ineligible to participate in future United Way volunteer events. If you absolutely must cancel you project, please notify Erica Ellis (dayofcaring@uwkc.org) and please do not erase your project from the website.
How do I increase or decrease the number of volunteer spots for my project?
If you need to increase or decrease the number of volunteers spots for your project, contact us at dayofcaring@uwkc.org or at 206-461-3644 and we will make the change for you. Please do not add or remove volunteer spots on your own (it confuses the registration system).
I submitted a Day of Caring project, but now I can't find it. What do I do?
Login to your agency account at https://volunteer.truist.com/uwkc/agency/
Click the 'Events' tab at the top of your homepage
On the resulting page you will see your project listed.
To view your project description, click the 'Details' link next to your project.
Where can I find the name and contact info of the Project Leader?
Login to your agency account at https://volunteer.truist.com/uwkc/agency/
Click the 'Events' tab at the top of your homepage
On the resulting page you will see your project listed
Click the 'Registrations' link next to your project
On the resulting page, you will see the name and contact info of your project leader.
How can I see how many people have signed up for my project?
Login to your agency account at https://volunteer.truist.com/uwkc/agency/
Click the 'Events' tab at the top of your homepage
On the resulting page you will see your project listed
Click the 'Participants' link next to your project
On the resulting page, you will see a list of all the volunteers who have signed up for your project.
How will I know when a group registers for my project?
When your project has been claimed by a volunteer group, you will receive an email notification with the name and contact info of the Project Leader. Once you receive this notification, we encourage you to make contact with the Project Leader and introduce yourself and continue to communicate with them frequently leading up to the project.
Will I be able to communicate with the volunteer group prior to the project?
Yes. Lack of clear communications between the Agency and the volunteers is a common pitfall for projects. Make sure you initiate communications with the group team leader ASAP. Connect via the phone and e-mail and follow-up with a confirmation packet. If possible, arrange a site tour for the Project Leader prior to the event so that you can familiarize them with the site and the project.
Where can I find the name and contact info of the Project Leader?
Login to your agency account at https://volunteer.truist.com/uwkc/agency/
Click the 'Events' tab at the top of your homepage
On the resulting page you will see your project listed
Click the 'Registrations' link next to your project
On the resulting page, you will see the name and contact info of your project leader.
I haven't heard from my Project Leader. What do I do?
If you have tried to contact your Project Leader and have not received a response, please let us know (dayofcaring@uwkc.org) and we can check in with the volunteer and gently remind them to make contact with your organization.
Day of Caring Information Sessions
I've participated in Day of Caring before. Do I still have to attend an information session?
We prefer that everyone attend an info session, even if they have participated in the past. The info sessions are a great opportunity to refresh yourself on the agency expectations for Day of Caring, learn of any changes or updates, meet United Way staff responsible for managing Day of Caring, and to share your Day of Caring expertise and best practices with other project hosts. If you are unable to attend any of the info sessions we provide, we will also make the session materials available online.
What if things don't go as planned on the day of the event?
Make sure to have a back-up Plan. Ask yourself the following questions:
– Do you have a back-up plan if the volunteers complete the project quickly?
– What are your contingency plans if too many or too few volunteers show?
– What if you have equipment failures or supply shortfalls?
– If your project is outdoors, what will you do in the case of bad weather?
We have our own volunteer sign-in sheets. Do we still have to ask volunteers to sign in on the sheet provided by United Way?
Yes. We require volunteers to sign the United Way of King County sign-in sheet for our own records. The agency is responsible for facilitating volunteer sign-in on the United Way of King County volunteer sign-in sheet and agrees to retain a copy of the form.
Managing and working with Volunteers
Will volunteers provide the supplies needed for my project?
The agency accepts full responsibility for providing all supplies and equipment needed for the project and managing the logistics of the project. You can ask volunteers to bring supplies of their own (gloves, shovels, etc.) but should not rely on volunteers to provide supplies required for your project. Volunteers should not be asked to purchase supplies or donate money towards purchasing supplies.
Will there be children participating in the group projects?
Some volunteers may want to bring along their children to the project. If your organization does not accept volunteers under a certain age, make sure to specify that in your project description. Also, when communicating with your Project Leader, you may want to reiterate what your organization's policy is on youth volunteers.
A volunteer group has already expressed interest in my project. How do I go about reserving it for them?
If you have already identified and confirmed a volunteer group that will claim your project, make sure to include the name and contact info of whoever will be acting as the Project Leader when you submit your project description. If you don't tell us to reserve your project, it will be available for any Day of Caring group to claim. If your project is reserved for a specific group, it will not appear on the registration page, so the Project Leader will need to contact us in order to sign up (dayofcaring@uwkc.org)
Are we required to provide lunch to volunteers?
No. While some organizations are able to provide lunch to volunteers, it is by no means a requirement. If you are unable to provide lunch, let the Project Leader know that volunteers will need to bring their own food and maybe give a few suggestions of places to eat near your project. If you will be providing lunch, we do ask that you indicate as such in your project description.
How should I thank my volunteer group?
At the end of the project, set aside some time to congratulate the group on a job well done, to talk about the impact of the project, and to say "thanks" and celebrate accomplishments. Some other ways to recognize your volunteers could be sending a follow up thank you, sharing pictures from the project, or asking for volunteer feedback via a survey.
Where do volunteer groups come from? How do they hear about Day of Caring?
The Day of Caring event serves as the kick-off to United Way of King County's fundraising campaign season. Most volunteer groups that participate in United Way of King County's Day of Caring are corporate partners and are invited by our fundraising team to participate in this community wide event.
What is this After Party you speak of?
Great question! The Day of Caring After Party is a huge party held at CenturyLink Field at the end of the day (3-6 pm) on Day of Caring. Agencies and volunteers are invited to come eat, drink and celebrate a day of Service. We hope you can join us!
Our organization can't host a group on Friday the 21st. Are there other dates available?
We often have a few volunteer groups who want to do a project on the Saturday after Day of Caring, so if your organization cannot host a group on the 21st, you are welcome to submit a project for the 22nd. Just make sure to put a note in your project description that says "Saturday Project". If you would like to host a project on a date other than the 21st or 22nd, please contact us at dayofcaring@uwkc.org to discuss some options.
Contact United Way of King County
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