Many people say that volunteering has made a difference in their lives. They get involved, they add, because they want to help others.
According to some local volunteer coordinators, last year’s election has not only galvanized volunteerism, but has also added new reasons for people to get involved. Many new recruits say they want to show support for specific organizations, such as Planned Parenthood and Meals on Wheels, whose funding has been threatened by the current administration. Others, recently caught up in conversations, headlines, and politics, are discovering activism for the first time.
Tracy Nielson, executive director of Hands On Twin Cities, said, “I think people feel like they want to do something positive, make an impact. We’ve gotten more inquiries, especially after what happened with the immigration ban. People want to know how to help. They are feeling that it’s a time where we don’t have a lot of control. They want to take small steps.” Hands On Twin Cities, formerly known as the Volunteer Resource Center, is a volunteer resource center that recruits volunteers for more than 300 agencies. Its website is www.handsontwincities.org, its phone number is 612-379-4900.
Political activism:
American Civil Liberties Union
Jana Kooren, American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota’s Public Education and Communications Director, said, “We are seeing an increase in people wanting to volunteer. It started after the election and has continued to grow. The ACLU is very excited to start relationships with all of these new people who want to get involved. We are stronger together in the fight to protect our rights.
“If people would like to get involved with the ACLU, we would just ask that they complete a short survey to find the right opportunity,” she added.
The ACLU is located at 2300 Myrtle Avenue, Suite 180, St. Paul. The survey can be found at https://action.aclu.org/secure/volunteer-aclu-minnesota. ACLU’s website is www.aclu-mn.org, the phone number is 651-529-1693.
League of Women Voters
Bettie Ruether serves on the state Board of Directors for the League of Women Voters (LWV) and is also president of the New Brighton chapter. She said, “Many local leagues have seen increases in membership since November. State-wide, we are seeing a 14 percent increase. We also have a new League formed in February in Dakota County. They started out with 47 members and are now up to almost 60.
“Women are looking for ways to become involved in organizations to make a larger difference than [they can] individually,” Ruether added. “LWV is a non-partisan organization that does not support or oppose candidates or political parties. We do, however, advocate on issues, particularly those that pertain to protecting voting rights for all.”
She said that the League holds candidate forums in the fall of election years and public educational forums on topics of voter engagement issues during November, January, February, March and April. The Minneapolis LWV chapter’s number is 612-333-6319, the website is www.lwvmpls.org. The New Brighton chapter’s email is nb.lwv.mn@gmail.com.
Beleaguered organizations:
Eastside Meals on Wheels
Eileen Hafften, Executive Director of Eastside Meals on Wheels, said that many people have called her to see what is going on. “We haven’t had an uptick in getting more drivers; it seems like the people who can volunteer already do. But a lot of people are very concerned about losing the program. Families of clients and volunteers have been calling.
“We’re government supported; 10 to 15 percent of our funding comes from federal funding. We get it per meal.” Hafften said the program serves 150 to 160 people a year and delivers 28,000 meals annually. “We have more than 275 volunteers, which includes people from 10 churches, the Lions Club, Kiwanis, and Eastside Exchange Club. Eastside Meals on Wheels serves clients in Northeast and Southeast Minneapolis and St. Anthony Village.
“Ten years ago, our funding was severely cut, it was a 30 percent budget cut. We’ve been running like crazy just to make up for that loss. Some programs have closed since then. We merged with Southeast and took their territory.”
Hafften had some advice for Northeast people wishing to make donations. “It is so important to donate locally,” she said. “If you send the money to the national Meals on Wheels program, it won’t help us.” Eastside Meals on Wheels is located at 1310 33rd Ave. NE, Minneapolis. Its website is www.eastsidemeals.org, its phone number is 612-277-2529.
Planned Parenthood
Jen Aulwes, community director for Planned Parenthood, said, “We are absolutely seeing a surge in activism and volunteers. Normally we receive 10 volunteer applications a week. The week after the election we received 500 applications. Since then, we’re into the thousands. It’s been amazing. With the increased attention and the new surge of interest, there is a surge in our ability to keep up with it all. We have to be creative. For volunteers, the jobs they do depends on their interests. We need to keep the momentum up and keep people engaged.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” Aulwes added. “People want to make sure that Planned Parenthood services are protected. We’ve seen a surge in gifting that has been heartening. There are a lot of ways that state and federal lawmakers will come after Planned Parenthood’s ability to serve our patients. It’s not a gap that people can make up on their own, but it’s heartening.”
Planned Parenthood has clinics throughout the Twin Cities. Its website is www.plannedparenhood.org, the phone is 1-800-230-plan.
Mentoring programs:
Big Brothers, Big Sisters
Gail Vold Greco, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Minnesota, said, “We are seeing an increase in volunteers. We saw the first spike in the days following election. When we saw the numbers go up, we asked, ‘Why now?’ and several mentioned a specific article that ran in Slate magazine, called ‘10 things voters can do to take action after the election.’ People saw that, and decided ‘This is the time I will do something personal.’ We don’t ask people their political leanings, but I can tell you that November tends to be quiet. Typically we’d get about 40 inquiries a week. That week we heard from at least 100 people.”
“Mentoring a child is one of the most significant things you can do to have an impact on a child and on the community,” Vold Greco said.
To learn more about Big Brothers Big Sisters, go to the website, www.bigstwincities.org, and register for information sessions. Its email address is thinkbig@bigstwincities.org, the phone number is 651-789-2400.
Wilshire Park Elementary School
Jolene Hodson, Wilshire Park’s volunteer coordinator, said that she has seen an increase in the number of people signing up to volunteer, but the increase mainly came from one local club. “We have 200 volunteers on file. The numbers of parent volunteers remains pretty much the same, but where we did see an increase this year was volunteers from the St. Anthony Kiwanis, which is revamping how they volunteer in the community.
She said that they have more adult readers who don’t have a connection to the school, but do have a strong sense of helping. One thing Wilshire offers that attracts some parent volunteers is free sibling care on Friday mornings.
Kiwanis member and St. Anthony resident Dale Gunderson, who volunteers to listen to Wilshire Park third graders read, said that he enjoys the job. The Kiwanis, he added, “is trying to get more of their members involved in doing community service kinds of things.”
Wilshire Park’s website, www.schools.isd282.org/wp, has a “Volunteers” section. Hodson said, “I’ll never turn down help, even if they only can give an hour.” Her phone number is 612-706-1200.
Varying needs:
Representatives from some groups that the Northeaster contacted said that their volunteer workforce is stable, and they haven’t seen an increase. One environmental group said they have gotten more volunteers recently, but couldn’t use any more. A state political group, the Republican Party, explained that their volunteer needs run according to election cycles.
Animal Humane Society
Humane Society spokesperson Zach Nugent said that they haven’t seen any noticeable increase in volunteers. However, he added, “We are funded by private donations, [and receive] no government, local, or federal funds at all. We’re pretty established within the community; we have 2,500 volunteers at five sites (Buffalo, Coon Rapids, Golden Valley, St. Paul, and Woodbury), and that has been pretty steady.” Nugent added that the website lists volunteer opportunities. The phone number is 952-435-7738 or 763-489-2201.
Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness
Cori Mattke, Membership and Operations Director for the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, wrote in an e-mail, “We have seen an increase in people wanting to get involved! And actually, we’re full-up on volunteers at the moment. I don’t have any open projects at this point, which is great.” The group is located at 401 N. 3rd St. in Minneapolis. Its website is www.friends-bwca.org, email is info@friends-bwca.org, phone 612-332-9630.
East Side Neighborhood Services
East Side Neighborhood Services has current needs for volunteers in youth mentoring, food shelf help, employer contacts, and lunch helpers for Senior Dining. Mary Ostapenko Anstett is Director of Volunteers and Events, 612-787-4033 or manstett@esns.org. ESNS is at 1700 Second Street NE.
Republican Party of Minnesota
Committee chair Keith Downey said that the party’s activities are driven largely by the election cycle. “It tends to pick up starting with precinct caucuses in an election year.” He said in the past year, 115,000 people showed up at their caucuses and 13,000 to 15,000 people continued on into the State Convention.
“That’s the huge pull of volunteer engagement,” Downey said. “Then they continue on, up to November election. We have thousands who continue to participate; there are 45,000 people on our e-mail list. For instance, we recently engaged volunteers to get people to sign a petition on behalf of [Supreme Court Justice] Neil Gorsuch.
“While the vast majority of volunteer participation comes in an election year, some committees are perpetual. There is lots of work to be done on voter identification, health care, and judicial reform. The fact that we are a caucus state as opposed to a primary state [for some offices] stimulates grass roots opportunities for volunteers,” Downey said.
The party’s main number is 651-222-0022, its website is mngop.com.
The Minnesota DFL Party did not return a Northeaster request for comment. Their number is 651-293-1200, and the website www.dfl.org includes detailed descriptions of their volunteer needs and an online signup form.