Did You Know It's National Volunteer Week?

National Volunteer Week runs from April 10 and ends tomorrow, April 16. This year's theme is Celebrating People in Action. 

The idea of a week recognizing the efforts of volunteers and focusing on the service many were giving to the community began back in 1974.

According to the Independent Sector, an association of charity groups, the estimated hourly rate of a volunteer's time can be valued at $20.85 per hour. Volunteers donate an average of 8 billion hours yearly—this is equivalent to over $169 billion in contributed service, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

The Volunteer Center of Bergen County can help match individuals with opportunities to volunteer. Here are some of the resources potential volunteers in Bergen can use to find the right opportunity for them:

• The BergenVolunTEENS page on the center’s website gives ideas about volunteer projects, national days of service and specific volunteer jobs available in and around Bergen County. The site also links to many other youth volunteer-related websites. 
• The Center also works with companies that want to become engaged in the community through its Northern New Jersey Business Volunteer Council.
• Bergen LEADS is a year-long learning and leadership program for adults who live or work in Bergen County.  Participants learn about Bergen County’s unique challenges and assets, discover their own leadership strengths and potential and use this information to give back to the community. 
• People age 55 and older can respond to needs in the community and  share their skills through RSVP.  Some volunteers are retired, some not, but all are very actively engaged in projects dealing with literacy,poverty and senior issues.

For further information, call the Volunteer Center of Bergen County at 201-489-9454, or visit their website at www.bergenvolunteers.org and search the online database for the most current information and volunteer positions.