California Secretary of Service and Volunteering
I missed this one a couple months back... this is a great step forward for building resilient communities, where volunteerism is weaved into the fabric of our towns, counties and state. It has tremendous potential to impact the preparedness of individual citizens and communities, making it more likely a region will respond and recover more quickly and effectively.
The Governor also announced the appointment of CaliforniaVolunteers Executive Director Karen Baker as the secretary of service and volunteering. She has a long history working in the volunteer and non-profit sector, including Share Our Strength in Washington, D.C., the Corporation for National Service and AmeriCorps VISTA. She's also a UCLA Bruin, which scores points in my book.
The Governor also announced the appointment of CaliforniaVolunteers Executive Director Karen Baker as the secretary of service and volunteering. She has a long history working in the volunteer and non-profit sector, including Share Our Strength in Washington, D.C., the Corporation for National Service and AmeriCorps VISTA. She's also a UCLA Bruin, which scores points in my book.
The executive order, signed today by the Governor, will raise the profile of service in the Golden State to a national level; improve coordination of vital volunteer activities statewide and support local service efforts; encourage more Californians to become involved with service and volunteerism; help California respond to natural disasters and emergencies; and give California’s volunteers a voice at the highest levels of state government. This is all without adding any new net costs to the state budget.
California’s volunteers have a positive multi-billion dollar impact on the state’s economy every year. In 2006, volunteers contributed approximately 858 million hours of service to the California economy—a value of more than $17.4 billion. A one percent increase in the number of Californians who volunteer would equal approximately 365,000 new volunteers contributing 48 million hours—equal to nearly $1 billion in service to the state.
The Governor’s action gives volunteerism a stronger voice and greater visibility and will encourage millions of Californians to make their valuable skills available. As demonstrated by the thousands of concerned Californians who stepped forward to volunteer during last year’s wildfires and the San Francisco Bay oil spill, a stronger, more coordinated volunteer force will make California even better equipped to respond to resident’s everyday needs, as well as wildfires, floods, heat waves, winter freezes, mudslides, earthquakes, disasters and emergencies.
