Volunteerism is considered “alive and well” in the Greater Grand Forks community – Grand Forks Herald

GRAND FORKS – Tony Scheett spends much of his free time at St. Joseph’s Social Care. On a recent day, he could be seen unloading shopping carts full of non-perishable products collected by UND’s Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity.

Scheett, 87, has been volunteering at the food bank for 26 years since his retirement.

“There is something to do,” he said. “It gets me out of the house.”

Mickey Munson, executive director of St. Joseph’s Social Care, said Scheett donated more than 1,500 hours to the organization in 2023.

Earlier this fall, the Herald asked readers to nominate Greater Grand Forks residents who embody the spirit of community volunteerism. There were more than two dozen responses, prompting the Herald to continue a series starting today on volunteering during the holiday season. Given his commitment to helping others, Scheett will be among those whose stories will be highlighted.

Scheett retired from a public service position at Grand Forks Air Force Base in 1997 and soon began volunteering at St. Joseph’s. Along with John Koppy and Leon Comeau, he built the former Charlie’s Bakery building, 620 Eighth Ave. S., by installing studs, insulation and sheetrock and building shelves.

These days, Scheett works about five hours a day in the pantry, stocking shelves and organizing everything. His wife Joan also volunteers at the facility.

If he wasn’t volunteering here, Scheett said, he would sit at home and “vegetate.”

In recent years, Scheett said, the demand for food for those in need has “definitely” increased, a trend he attributes to “the economy and homelessness.”

Kayla Connolly, an administrative assistant who manages the pantry, said Sheett’s work “is great – because otherwise these shelves wouldn’t be as neat and tidy; it would look more chaotic.”

She said to Scheett with a smile: “Your military background serves you well here.”

Studies show that Scheett is one of a growing number of people who volunteer their time and talents to support organizations whose missions they believe in.

New data from a nationwide survey of volunteerism and civic engagement released Tuesday, November 19, by the U.S. Census Bureau and AmeriCorps shows that formal volunteerism by Americans in many communities across the U.S. is recovering from historic lows during the COVID-19 crisis recovered. 19 Pandemic. (“Formal volunteerism” is defined as helping others through organizations such as food banks and other nonprofit organizations.)

The research found that between September 2022 and September 2023, more than 75.7 million, or 28.3%, of Americans ages 16 and older officially volunteered with an organization. This number suggests a return to pre-pandemic levels of volunteerism, the researchers noted.

The 28.3% figure is up from 23.2% in 2021. The 5.1% increase over two years represents the largest expansion in formal volunteerism since the Census Bureau and AmeriCorps began tracking it.

Since 2017, the Census Bureau has partnered with AmeriCorps to conduct a comprehensive biennial survey of civic engagement—volunteering and civic life in America—across the country and over time.

The collaboration has produced the nation’s most robust data on civic engagement and the variety of activities volunteers engage in to make a difference in their communities. In September 2023, approximately 47,000 Americans ages 16 and older answered survey questions.

AmeriCorps’ analysis of the latest survey data shows that between September 2022 and September 2023, formal volunteers contributed an estimated 4.99 billion hours and contributed more than $167.2 billion in economic value.

Although the research found that more Americans were formally volunteering, the number of hours worked per person continued to decline. Nationally, average hours worked per volunteer fell last year from 96.5 hours at the start of the survey in 2017 to 70 hours in 2023. Likewise, half of formal volunteers contributed 40 hours in 2017, compared to 24 hours in the most recent data.

Across the country, demand for nonprofit services continues to rise, paid staff shortages persist, and donor support is declining—all while inflation erodes revenue, according to the National Council of Nonprofits. To ease the pressure, many nonprofit organizations rely heavily on volunteers, who can be crucial in carrying out their missions.

For these organizations, the ongoing challenge of recruiting volunteers has been significantly exacerbated by the pandemic.

“Volunteering had been declining for years before COVID-19, and the pandemic has destabilized many charities’ volunteer programs,” Editor-in-Chief Ben Gose wrote in The Chronicle of Philanthropy in September. Formal volunteering fell by more than 23% at the height of the pandemic, from 30% of the public in 2019 to 23.2% in 2021.

But at St. Joseph’s Social Care, “we’re kind of bucking the trend,” said CEO Munson. “We’ve been fortunate to have a pretty stable group of volunteers.”

“We get quite a bit of help from (members of) St. Mike’s, St. Mary’s and Holy Family Catholic churches, as well as the Newman Center at UND,” he said. Like Tony Scheett, a member of St. Mary’s Church, many of the volunteers who help at St. Joseph’s are retired.

St. Joseph’s also benefits from “a significant number of UND students who come and help,” he said. Additionally, employees of local businesses such as Steffes Group and Gate City Bank invest time and effort into St. Joseph’s mission of meeting the basic needs of people in this community, Munson said. “People from the Listen Center come and pack boxes and do community service.”

The food bank, which serves more than 200 families each month, receives food from Hugo’s Family Marketplace, Natural Grocers and the Great Plains Food Bank, as well as individual donations of cash gifts and non-perishable products. Connolly said. Altru Family YMCA and local Catholic churches hold food drives to support St. Joseph’s.

“For our summer lunch program,” Munson said, “we have companies — like American Crystal and other companies — and some of the banks and Northwestern Mutual come and help serve meals.”

From June through mid-August, St. Joseph volunteers serve more than 19,000 free lunches to local children and at various locations around Grand Forks and East Grand Forks. Your work helps ensure that no child goes hungry.

A new report from the University of Maryland’s DoGood Institute shows that nearly half of nonprofit CEOs surveyed in mid-2022 said recruiting enough volunteers was still “a major problem,” but that may not be true locally.

Tricia Lee, CEO of Development Homes, Inc., said volunteerism is still going strong in Grand Forks.

“We definitely have people who are ready and always come. We have very consistent and steadfast volunteers,” Lee said. “I see (volunteering) as alive and well.

“Often there are different age groups and backgrounds, so it’s not always the best practice (volunteering). We have people who always show up, but it’s always a wide range of people and ages, which is really cool.

“For us, it’s a lot of outreach activities where people step in and help, and that’s very important to us because we want to contribute to the community.”

Regional companies and other organizations also play an important role in the community’s volunteer work.

Heather Fuglem, executive director of the local United Way, said nearly a dozen entities have agreed to provide volunteers, including First National Bank & Trust, Choice Bank, First State Bank, Alerus Financial, UND, United Valley Bank, Frandsen Bank and Rydell Autos, Sharon Lutheran Church and Midcontinent Communications.

During the summer months, however, United Way often has difficulty finding volunteers, Fuglem said. “Our backpack program and Kidz Closet are run 95% by volunteers. So if we don’t have volunteers, the work of these programs will be delegated to our staff.”

The local United Way only employs eight full-time equivalent (FTE) people, she said. “So, unfortunately, when staff are removed to assist with these programs, it creates a backlog shortage across all areas of United Way.”

Some organizations make volunteerism a corporate priority.

At Gate City Bank, Becky Mindeman, senior vice president of Northeast North Dakota, said volunteerism is “a big part of our culture” and is reflected in the bank’s mission statement.

“(With) what we do through our volunteer work and our charitable donations, we make a difference in our communities,” Mindeman said.

Across the banking system, “our team members have contributed $4.9 million in philanthropic donations and more than 310,000 hours of service to more than 1,000 charities since 2003,” she said.

“Last year alone, our charitable contribution was $4.3 million, and that included more than 25,000 volunteer hours from our team members.”

Gate City Bank encourages its employees to donate their time to the company, Mindeman said. “For every hour they volunteer beyond 10 hours, we donate about $30 to this charity and also match contributions. We match team members’ volunteer time and donations up to $2,000 per year.

“We really encourage our team members to find an organization they are passionate about.”

For example, Gate City has had a weekly Meals on Wheels route for years, among many other volunteer efforts, she said.

It appears that volunteering not only benefits the nonprofit organization, but also the employee’s personal well-being.

“People feel good when they can give back to their communities,” Mindeman said. “They talk about the different things they can do when they volunteer, and that sparks interest. They have fun with it.

“We have definitely seen an increase in volunteer work from our team members.”