Volunteering: What’s in it for you? – Dec 14, 2009

City Club –
December 14, 11:45 – 1:30
First Presbyterian Church, 8th and Monroe

Corvallis is known for having "high social capital" — many citizens involved in unpaid/volunteer work.  But what kind of difference does it really make? Are there differences in how older, boomer, and younger generations see volunteerism, and what might that mean for our future? And is there any truth to the old saying that it is better to give than receive?  These questions, and other aspects of volunteerism, will be the focus of a panel and audience discussion at Corvallis City Club's Monday, December 14, meeting. The panelists will be Beth Fox, Director of Linn-Benton Volunteers; Debra Curtis, Youth Volunteer Corps Program Director/Recreation Coordinator; and Suzette Boydston, Director of Auxiliary and Volunteer Service at Samaritan Albany General Hospital and Samaritan Senior Companion Program. Beth Fox is the director of the Linn-Benton Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) and the LBvision Volunteer Center. Her program works with over 200 nonprofit organizations, 800 volunteers, and 5 internal projects, including AARP Tax-Aide and Medicare assistance program. Beth received her MBA from the University of Oregon in 1999 and has worked with RSVP for 10 years. She previously owned her own business for 13 years. A lifelong volunteer, Beth loves the networking aspect of her job, and encourages the sharing of community resources. For the past eight years, Debra Curtis has administered a school year and summer Youth Volunteer Corps program that places more than 800 youth in volunteer positions in the community.  Before that she taught middle and high school at a private and charter school in Corvallis.  Debra practices what she preaches, currently volunteering at the First Alternative Natural Food Co-op. Suzette Boydston wears two hats for Samaritan Health Services. She is Director of Auxiliary and Volunteer Services for Samaritan Albany General Hospital and Director of the Senior Companion Program serving low-income seniors, frail elderly and disabled adults in rural Oregon.  Previously, Suzette served Oregon's Governor Barbara Roberts, staffing Oregon's Workforce Policy Council and served Governor John Kitzhaber as Education and Workforce Liaison to manage federal grants and coordinate Oregon's fifteen regional workforce boards.  She is also a lifelong volunteer. This meeting of Corvallis City Club will be held in the First Presbyterian Church, 114 SW 8th Street. Start time is 11:45 am, with lunch and speakers, followed by discussion at the tables and questions presented to the speakers. The meeting ends at 1:30 pm. Corvallis City Club is a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding community dialogue and is sponsored by the Corvallis-Benton Chamber Coalition. The talk and discussion is open to members of the public. First time attendees and City Club members are free; non-members attend for $5. Registration is recommended (www.cityclubofcorvallis.org), walk-ins are welcome for the talk and the discussion.  An optional buffet lunch is available for $10, with pre-registration.
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