Norfolk Botanical Garden is dedicated to enhancing life through beautiful gardens and educational programs, utilizing volunteer groups for various tasks including horticulture and event preparation. Effective planning and supervision are essential for managing volunteer efforts, with structured processes for recruitment, on-site orientation, and evaluation of group contributions. Resources and contacts for volunteer opportunities are provided to facilitate community engagement and support for the garden's mission.

1. Welcome to Norfolk Botanical Garden

2. 155 acres of beauty The mission of Norfolk Botanical Garden is to enrich life by promoting the enjoyment of plants and the environment through beautiful gardens and educational programs.

3. Working with Volunteer Groups

4. Working with Volunteer Groups Approach Recruit Schedule and Organize on a regular basis

5. Things Really Happen In This Order Organize Approach Recruit Schedule

6. What Groups Do for the Garden At Norfolk Botanical Garden groups work with Horticulture Weeding, mulching, planting, moving Facilities Cleaning and setting up for events Maintenance Painting

7. Group from Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School

8. What Groups Do for the Garden Membership Mailing Putting new member packets together Weddings Putting wedding packets together Volunteer services Putting new volunteer packets together

9. What Groups Do for the Garden Education Sorting, organizing, inventorying supplies

10. Planning is Important Prepare your project. The first two questions I always ask when a volunteer request comes in are: “ Who will supervise them?” and “ Where will they go to the restroom?”

11. Planning is Important If you need a more formal project proposal, ask the person who requested the volunteers to write it up. Work as a team to figure out the site where you will gather them together, the tools needed, etc. Groups require on-site orientation and supervision. This can be done by staff or a regular volunteer who is familiar with your agency and can trouble shoot.

12. Recruitment

13. Where to Find Groups Volunteer Hampton Roads SVAVA ODU Main Street NSU Volunteer Fair High schools – including vocational track students Corporate volunteer fairs Amerigroup Capital Group Companies

14. Military Groups Military groups: Combined Federal Campaign and United Way agencies can get on the Plan of the Day when you are looking for volunteers The Garden is also on the plan of the day thanks to people in offices I don’t know; sometimes they see it in the newspaper Chaplain’s Office on a ship organizes COMRELS (community relations )

15. Administration We use two types of paper work to track volunteers: A short individual informational form emailed to the group contact before the event that each person brings in that day Group forms, especially for regular, large groups. Each person from the group signs in personally when they arrive.

16. Very Important! Always get an off site emergency contact !!!! For a military group, it can be the Chaplain’s office, or Senior Command Officer Make sure it is on your individual short form

17. Supervision

18. Volunteers have to be supervised On site, by staff or an experienced volunteer who knows how to trouble shoot, and this can be augmented by the group itself Military groups who come out regularly often have a person in charge of that group who will instruct others For school groups and young volunteers we require at least 1 adult working alongside every 5 students

19. Can You Get Your Own Work Done? It will seem as though you’re not getting your own work done, but 10 people x 3 hours = 30 hours of accomplishment Help the staff see this by pointing out how long it would take them as one person to do everything Honor staff preferences. Some won’t want groups, others love them. Make them comfortable as well.

20. It’s Not Always Paradise

21. Don’t Be Afraid to Say No Don’t be afraid to limit the size of the group Check your schedule: some groups have certain days they must come out, but if that’s the day of your big event, you might have to send them elsewhere If it is a group that didn’t meet expectations, gave you trouble, and they still want to come back, you can say no.

22. Evaluation Were they good to work with? Did the project get done? Were there problems? Do you want them back? Don’t be afraid to take chances

23. Love Your Groups and They Will Love You Back!

24. Onward!

25. Resources VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads 400 West Olney Road, Suite B Norfolk, VA 23507 Phone: (757) 624-2400 Fax: (757) 624-3618 www.volunteerhr.org Southeastern Virginia Association for Volunteer Administration PO Box 8223 Norfolk VA 23503 Yahoo Group: SVAVA [email_address] President: Shandran Thornburgh, Virginia Living Museum

26. Resources ODU Main Street Tami Park Farinholt Coordinator Center for Service & Civic Engagement Office of Student Activities and Leadership Old Dominion University 1071 Webb Center Norfolk, VA 23529 757.683.3065 (office-direct) / 757.683.6948 (center) 757.683.6088 (fax) [email_address] [email_address]

27. Resources Norfolk State University Volunteer Fair Alinka A. Pollock Norfolk State University Office of Student Activities & Leadership Student Activities Coordinator Office (757) 823-8200 Fax (757) 823-8446 [email_address] The Capital Group Companies Jennifer Morgen, Secretary, HRO Contributions Committee 757-670-4854 [email_address] 5300 Robin Hood Road NE540, Norfolk, VA 23513-2407

28. Come visit the Garden!

29. Presenter Presented at the Hampton Roads Association for Environmental Education Conference September 15, 2011 Debra Burrell, Volunteer Services Manager Certified in Volunteer Administration Norfolk Botanical Garden 6700 Azalea Garden Rd, Norfolk VA 23518 757-441-5830 ext. 327 [email_address] NorfolkBotanicalGarden.org