“My experience with coordinating volunteer has been challenging but rewarding,” shared Josephine Hulburd Schultz, a Volunteer Coordinator with the Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits (SVCN).

For the past year and a half, her responsibilities have become critically important as she has been connecting and matching volunteers to non-profits in need of assistance, which in turn, are helping the community in need during the COVID-19 crisis.

#SVStrong and SVCN are hard at work reaching out to hundreds of people who are willing to sign up and be an #EssentialVolunteer. Matching each volunteer to an appropriate nonprofit organization according to volunteer’s availability.

“It's been a challenge to coordinate volunteer's availability since things change daily, but we've done our best to meet the needs of the many nonprofits we work with,” added Schultz.

Since the start of the pandemic, meal services are in more demand than ever. Volunteers are making an impact to the community by giving their time and efforts to support nonprofits. Access to healthy food is at a critical need for many and food necessities would not be possible without the many volunteers who help every week at local food distribution locations.

Unfortunately, the number of volunteers have decreased, however, the demand for food has doubled since Covid-19 hit the surface. Many seniors and at-risk residents who regularly volunteered prior to the pandemic are now unable to make their shifts. In addition, school-age students volunteered their time, but with school back in session and others returning to work, the supply of volunteers has decreased significantly.

“We appreciate everyone picking up shifts to make up for those who can no longer serve in-person,” thanked Schultz, understanding the reasons and grateful for those that have stepped up.

Non-profits continue to have a huge responsibility, that has continued to grow, to provide essential nutrition services for those in need. Compared to pre-Covid numbers, nonprofits have seen a tremendous increase in demand for food and necessities which is what launched the #SVStrong initiative.

SVCN is hard at work organizing the needs, contacting groups, and developing social media content to attract new and necessary volunteers to fulfill the demand of food necessities in Santa Clara County.

Now with a new need for volunteers to assist with vaccinations, even more assistance is needed by our community according to Schultz. The need for community assistance won’t end soon though.

“Looking ahead- food insecurity will not disappear once COVID is under control. I hope that people continue to volunteer after the pandemic ends, and I hope that volunteering opens people's eyes to how much their community needs them,” shares Schultz.

Using a network of nonprofits and government agencies including @SJParksandRec, they use #SVStrong as a vehicle for residents to sign up, and then to connect and match the volunteers to a nonprofit, with Schultz herself connecting them and emailing the volunteer an assignment to an organization.

“Overall, it has been successful, but we are continuing to improve our system which we are building as we go,” shared Schultz.

“I want to thank each volunteer for selflessly dedicating their time and energy to the vulnerable people in our community. I want Silicon Valley to be known as a thriving community that uses its success to help uplift everyone. Many people are struggling right now but are still putting their community first. I think that's beautiful,” Schultz added.

If you would like to become an #ESSENTIALVOLUNTEER, sign up for a volunteer opportunity (below) or submit an application to volunteer at SV Strong: https://siliconvalleystrong.org/volunteer/

Each nonprofit organization will be able to provide information about their COVID-19 compliance policies and procedures. #SiliconValleyStrong