Time + Talent Podcast Tobi Johnson & Jennifer Bennett: Volunteer management experts

Show Notes:
During the height of COVID, CASA of San Joaquin County faced the fact that over 1500 children from the County were living in foster care. These abused and neglected children had been removed from their families and placed in foster homes, group homes (now called STRTPs), or even at our county's homeless shelter. To address this challenge, CASA connects children and youth living in foster care with a community volunteer who makes an 18-24 month commitment to advocate and mentor them.
When Dani started with CASA in October of 2021, she was given a bold goal to recruit 42 community members from diverse walks of life. To follow through on this commitment, she was able to not only reach her goal but surpass it. Through the smart use of social media and focused outreach, she was able to attract a diverse and multi-generational group of volunteers dedicated to helping youth navigate the court system.
In this episode, Dani shares her recipe for effective social media and how she overcame her anxiety around making cold calls (don’t we all have that?!). In the end, it’s all about staying true to your mission and communicating your passion for those you serve in a compassionate and accessible way. Dani shows us how it’s done with grace and focus!
Learn more about the work of CASA and how you can help at:

www.nochildabuse.org/casa https://www.linkedin.com/company/casa-of-san-joaquin-county/ https://www.facebook.com/CASAsanjoaquincounty https://www.instagram.com/casaofsjcounty/ For More:
For more on how another organization approached diversifying their volunteer team, check out Time + Talent Podcast Episode 108: The Rewards & Challenges of Nonprofit Board Diversity - Part 1 and Episode 109: The Rewards & Challenges of Nonprofit Board Diversity - Part 2
Guest Bio:
Dani Daly is the Recruiter/Trainer for CASA of San Joaquin County. As an educator and a mother, Dani noticed the needs of children living in the foster care system. Dani noticed that the students she worked closely with, as well as the friends of her two school-aged children, who resided in foster care, often felt alone having few adults who were in their lives who weren't being paid to be there. 
After years of working in education, Dani joined CASA of San Joaquin County to make a difference in the lives of children in foster care. Dani works diligently to recruit San Joaquin County citizens to join the CASA organization and is passionate about diversifying the pool of volunteers to more closely represent our county's youth in foster care.
You can reach Dani on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-daly-55292198/
And via email at ddaly@nochildabuse.org

Courtney Tull joins us to talk about her work with volunteers and  her journey - so far!
Starting with her work as an AmeriCorps member she found a connection with the work of leading and engaging volunteers in the community.
Since that first experience, Courtney has achieved her CVA (Certified in Volunteer Administration), her Masters in Administration of Human Services, and completed her Doctorate in Social Sciences.
While working for Habitat for Humanity Sussex County in Delaware, Courtney began the research for her Doctorate - exploring her suspected connections between volunteering, well-being, and quality of life.
She was right, and she confirmed that volunteers who understand and follow their motivations reap greater rewards from their service.
Courtney shares how this data can provide the grounds to tailor recruitment and marketing strategies to match the work to the motivations of volunteers. 
View the infographic of Courtney’s research here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lwafytpve_CezWhgcMmcDfH9QJK46U7f/
You can read Courtney manuscript on her findings here: https://www.proquest.com/openview/a6dda1793a0abc57ba181d8494355324/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
For More:
For more research on volunteer engagement check out Season 2, Episode 202 The Hard Truth: Diversity & Equity in Volunteer Engagement.
Guest Bio:
Courtney Tull, CVA, DSocSci is an experienced leader in nonprofit and human service administration specializing in volunteer management, community engagement, and social science.
Courtney earned the Delaware Service Impact Award from the Governor's Commission on Community and Volunteer Service in 2018 as a result of her AmeriCorps service.
As a practitioner, Courtney has recruited thousands of volunteers and AmeriCorps members to aid Sussex County Habitat in its mission to build affordable housing and strengthen communities in Delaware.  
Since 2020, she has designed and presented her doctoral-level research about the relationship between volunteering and well-being to professional audiences locally and nationally, also being recognized as Wilmington University's College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Academic Award Recipient in 2022.
Courtney recently relocated to Orlando, Florida where she enjoys getting to know her new community, sitting on her balcony to read and look for new healthy recipes, and caring for her guinea pigs.
You can reach Courtney at ctull04098@gmail.com or on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/courtney-tull

MobileServe helps groups like schools - from elementary to college - and companies connect with nonprofits to access service learning opportunities.
They also allow those groups to gather information and feedback from the students and employees participating. Kevin Bauman joins us to talk about what they’ve learned by reviewing the information they’ve collected around impact.
For volunteers - whether they’re students or adults - volunteering can offer the opportunity to make an impact, but that message doesn’t always get clearly delivered.
MobileServe has found that asking volunteers to reflect on their experience in some way before they return back to their classrooms or offices can make a big impact on the connection a volunteer feels to the work they did. 
Questions like “How did your service make you feel?” are a good start, but asking additional questions like “What challenged you?” or “What did you learn about the organization?” can invite volunteers to think a little more about their experience.
You can read more about this on Mobile Serve’s blog on the insights: https://blog.mobileserve.com/the-science-of-top-reflection-questions
While these are best practices for creating a connection with service learning volunteers, Kevin also shares how this type of reflection can be incorporated into working with adult volunteers, as well as a strategy to create a connection and form a stronger relationship with newer volunteers or volunteers that join your organization for single-day events.
Even just a few minutes at the end of a shift or event where volunteers can gather to talk about their experiences and the work they’ve done can go a long way toward creating a stronger connection to your organization and its mission.
You can learn more about the Service Learning Reflection Toolkit mentioned here: https://www.gtc.edu/sites/default/files/files/documents/Service_Learning_Reflection_Toolkit.pdf 
To learn more about MobileServe visit https://mobileserve.com/
And you can find MobileServe on social media @MobileServeApp
For More:
For more on service learning and creating connections with student volunteers check out Season 1, Episode 103 Key Lessons from Seven Years on Intern Iterations
Guest Bio:
Kevin Bauman is the Director of Community Development at MobileServe, a firm that helps connect volunteers to service opportunities and report the impact service organizations have in our communities.
He brings a passion for community building and 20 years of experience in not-for-profit technology solutions. He holds a conviction that technology can provide the necessary advantages for nonprofits and service organizations to meet aggressive goals with often limited resources.
Kevin earned a BS from the University of Texas at Austin and an Executive MBA from the University of Kentucky.
You can reach Kevin at kevin@mobileserve.org or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbauman/

Theresa Goebel-Menting founded and directs the We EmpowHer Women’s Empowerment Series, aimed at helping marginalized women and their families overcome challenges that may be holding them back from their true potential. This program provides mentorship, support, and education for women in the Fond du Lac community. Since its inception, Theresa has provided direct supervision to members of the committee, as well as direct mentorship to participants involved. 
In this interview, we chat with Theresa about how she made the decision to move a struggling program out of county government and into a private nonprofit. She shares the brave decisions she needed to make and how she has continued to evolve and grow the now 12-week Women’s Empowerment Series each year.
Theresa’s enthusiasm and determination are unstoppable and she shares her advice on how to remain resilient and strong, even through times of uncertainty.  If you need a dose of inspiration, don’t miss this episode!
To learn more about We EmpowHer and make a donation, visit:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/we-empowher/ https://www.instagram.com/weempowherfdl/ https://www.facebook.com/weempowher Watch “Unlock Your Shackles,” Theresa Menting’s TEDx Talk here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR8jczqsbkQ
For More:
For more on how one organization transformed its strategy and made bold moves to evolve, check out the Time + Talent Podcast Episode 208: Transforming Your Volunteer Strategy from the Ground Up
Guest Bio: 
Theresa Goebel-Menting is a lifelong Fond du Lac resident, business owner, executive leader, mentor, educator, life coach, and professional performer. Most of all, throughout her work in Fond du Lac, Theresa has always been an advocate for marginalized populations, and is intentional in leveraging relationships within the community to help others.
Theresa founded and directed the Women’s Empowerment Series, a program that started through the Fond du Lac Department of Social Services. This program provides mentorship, support and education for women in the Fond du Lac community. Since its inception, Theresa has provided direct supervision to members of the committee, as well as direct mentorship to participants involved. Since that time, the organization has evolved into WeEmpowHer, offering year-round programming, resources, and opportunities for connection and fellowship.
Theresa is also founder and CEO of Sweet ‘N Easy Events, an organization that provides event planning and coordination services throughout the Fox Cities. Her company, Sweet ‘N Easy Events, was also named the 2018 Best Full-Service Wedding Planning & Decorating Company by Global Wedding Awards. In addition to Theresa’s numerous volunteer positions, she was nominated as a Young Professional Future 5 Award Winner, and was named one of Fond du Lac’s 2018 People of the Year. Theresa was also nominated as 2022 Woman of Achievement by Insight Magazine. Theresa is involved with many community organizations, such as serving on the Board of Directors with ASTOP and Life Enforcement. In 2019, Theresa was an esteemed TEDx speaker. Since then, she has joined the TEDx Fond du Lac Team.
Theresa’s passion for supporting, mentoring, educating, and advocating for others has been a cornerstone to her success in Fond du Lac and the greater state of Wisconsin.
You can reach Theresa on the following social media:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/theresa-menting/
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/theresa_menting/

MuslimDepiction is a nonprofit that brings awareness and teaches about the diversity and culture of the Middle East. Through the help of volunteers and their newsletter, they spread the word about the nonprofit throughout America. They are also currently raising funds to build a school in Bali for over 60 students in preschool-kindergarten.
In this episode, Zainab shares how she has engaged volunteers to spread the word on their campuses, pass out flyers, print posters, advocate within their social and family circles, and get involved in their GoFundMe project.  She discusses how volunteering and charity are vital parts of the Muslim community’s focus on doing good deeds.
As a nonprofit founder and leader of volunteers, Zainab has faced many of the same challenges as her older counterparts. In our conversation, she shares how she has engaged a multi-generational group of volunteers - aged 15 to 40 - and how she approaches volunteers who aren’t performing to expectations.  If you have doubted the commitment and potential of youth and young adults, think again. Zainab’s story will make you rethink your point of view!
For More:
For more on how organizations are engaging volunteers to combat bias and racism, check out Time + Talent Podcast Episode 306: Quilting for Justice
Guest Bio: 
Welcome to MuslimDepiction, a nonprofit organization that strives to inform, support, and help Muslims around the world. Anyone is welcome to join and support us regardless of their religion or belief. We teach and inform about Islam and help break stereotypes regarding Muslims. We also bring awareness to multiple issues regarding Islamic nations through our social media and our articles page. 
Muslims are very underrepresented in many communities, which is why we provide a place for Muslims to help each other, support each other, and communicate. We teach and inform through our Instagram and articles page. We help donate and create projects also through our Instagram and website. As for communication, we provide a social network, discord, where people globally can get together to communicate. 
You can help support us through many means such as following us on our social platforms or donating towards one of our current ongoing projects. Thank you so much for all of your support and your time. We hope you enjoy your time here as we guide you through our mission! 
To get in touch, email muslimdepiction@gmail.com 
To learn more and make a donation, check out:
muslimdepiction.carrd.co/  https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-us-build-a-school-in-bali?qid=b85e34824c8010da72c9ed57ced8d123  You can also find MulsimDEpiction on social media at:
Instagram - muslimdepiction