As ITIAH Angels for Learning (IAFL) finishes off another successful year, we decided to honor the group of people who make this success possible- our volunteers.
Volunteers are vital to the success of any non-profit organization as they assist with marketing, fundraising, and program delivery in their free time, with no expectations beyond giving to communities in need. IAFL’s success can be attributed to the hard work of its volunteers in areas of medicine, marketing, fundraising, website development, STEM, etc. In this month’s issue of the newsletter, the IAFL Marketing Manager- Christina Franco- and the IAFL writing team wrote to us about their reasons for contributing to the IAFL educational and health goals in Haiti.
The Marketing Manager and writing team in IAFL work together to deliver newsletters to our donors and followers every month. The process of volunteer recruitment at IAFL has always allowed the student and professional volunteers to select positions that align with their future goals and personal talents. The passion for writing is an important part of this position, as Kat Dinh from the writing team highlights in her statement: “I [thought] the writing team would fit quite nicely with my interests and schedule.” This sentiment is further echoed by Serina Bernardo, the newest addition to the IAFL writing team: “[Joining the Newsletter Team as a volunteer] gives me a sense of fulfillment: [combining] my enjoyment of writing articles and my enjoyment of helping others!”
Both Kat and Serina were referred to IAFL by a mutual friend, another important aspect of volunteering in non-profit organizations. When current volunteers align with the goals of the organization, they are more likely to recommend friends, family, or even colleagues to volunteer alongside them. In this case, both Kat and Serina highly aligned with IAFL’s mission of educating girls in Haiti. Another member of the writing team- Jennifer ShuPing Chen- highlights her passion for education in her statement of volunteering: “…it is my pleasure to help [make] learning more accessible for the impoverished children of Haiti.”
The writing team’s passion for children’s education, gender equality, and writing intersect with Christina Franco’s important job of advising the writing team on ways to make these efforts marketable to the outside world. Her Masters degree in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing enables Christina to advise the writing team volunteers on their monthly newsletter topics and articles. Christina highlights in her statement the importance of making volunteering accessible to everyone who is interested while describing her difficulty in finding ways to give back while residing in Ecuador: “Upon moving [to Ecuador], I had a really tough time finding organizations to work with. Most wanted you to pay to do a program with them.” IAFL’s efficient and flexible volunteer recruitment program has enabled professionals such as Christina to work together with passionate and capable volunteers interested in making a bigger difference in the world while also allowing the volunteers to advance in their respective professional lives outside of IAFL.
Our writing team volunteers and their colleagues in other sectors of IAFL have enabled the organization to enjoy a very successful 2021! The IAFL Board and Committee members would like to thank these amazing volunteers for their contributions to the goal of funding education in Haiti and can’t wait to witness the immense progress these volunteers will make in the year quickly approaching.
Written by Zahra Fallah