Volunteer Awareness Week is an important event, and it highlights how we need to show volunteers each day throughout the year just how important and appreciated they are says the Right Rev Dr Graham Redding, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand.
“Our Church, our communities and our nation would not be what they are without the dedicated help of volunteers. We benefit enormously from their passion, their skills and talents. They need to feel appreciated and valued for what they give every day”, says Graham.
Most of the Presbyterian Church’s 30,000 regular church-goers either volunteer at their church or within their community or both.
A recent NZ study estimated that more than 70 percent of volunteers in religious activities also donated to other sectors of the community.*
A US study found that religious people donate more, and volunteer more, than non-church goers, giving nearly four times more dollars per year, and volunteering more than twice as often.**
Graham says that Presbyterian churches would not be able to run the many community programmes that they do without the support of volunteers.
“As a charitable organisation the Presbyterian Church relies heavily on volunteers to help run its churches and the community programmes that take place in them. We are sincerely gratefully for our volunteers.”
Graham says that four centrally located Presbyterian churches in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Dunedin will be taking that “thank you” to the streets lunchtime Tuesday 16 and Wednesday 17 June, by giving away “thank you” muffins to people passing-by the churches.
“It’s our way of publicly drawing attention to the great work that all volunteers do. It gives us a chance to say a face-to-face “thank you” to people for any volunteering they have ever done, and get people thinking about how they can volunteer.”
/ENDS