Recruit, Retain & Inspire with Great Volunteer Stories

This event took place on Thursday, July 18th, 2024. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Chris Miano was not able to attend, but Carly Euler presented his section. Jennifer Bingham served as the event moderator.

The incredible work provided by volunteers is the heartbeat of many nonprofit organizations. Volunteer testimonials offer a unique boots-on-the-ground perspective that can be captured in real time. When you take the time to highlight the dedication and efforts of your volunteers, the outcome is two-fold: you humanize your cause and inspire others to get involved.

But capturing and sharing great volunteer stories is not always a simple task. Let us help!

MemoryFox and VolunteerMatch invite you to embark on a journey of inspiration with our upcoming webinar that converges the power of volunteer stories, with the art of video storytelling, so you can exceed your volunteer goals. Join us Thursday, July 18th to get YOUR questions answered! 

This session will be broken down into three crucial parts:

Part 1: Chris Miano, Founder/CEO of MemoryFox, will share a simple 3 step process to collect video content, interview questions that spark great conversations, as well as share real-life examples of volunteer stories collected by MemoryFox storytellers.

Part 2: Then, Jennifer Bennett, Director of Education & Training at VolunteerMatch, will explore the best ways to use your collected stories to meet and exceed your volunteer recruitment and retention goals.

Part 3: Finally, Chris and Jennifer would love to answer your questions! We encourage you to come prepared with your specific inquiries about video storytelling, volunteer recruitment and retention strategies, and how to inspire your volunteers to tell their unique stories. 

We can’t wait to delve into the heartwarming narratives of volunteers who have made a difference, and explore the dynamics of video storytelling that captivates some of the most important people to your organization – your volunteers!

About the Speakers:

Jennifer Bennett is the Director of Education & Training at VolunteerMatch. Jennifer leads VolunteerMatch’s Learning Center, and designs tools, trainings, and resources to help VolunteerMatch’s community of nonprofits better recruit and engage volunteers. She shares her knowledge with leaders of volunteers through the trainings in the Learning Center, through the LOVs Newsletter and the VolunteerMatch Blog, and at conferences around the country. She also co-hosts the Time + Talent Podcast with Tobi Johnson from VolunteerPro, which finished its fourth season in December 2022.

She serves as the Director of Knowledge on the Board of the Council for Certification in Volunteer Administration. She is the current Co-Editor and a contributing author for the 4th Edition of Volunteer Administration: Professional Practice, published by LexisNexis Canada in January 2021.

She’s a strong believer in the importance of engaging volunteers in meaningful work and has been Certified in Volunteer Administration since 2010. She volunteers with the Justice & Diversity Center and Project Homeless Connect in San Francisco, with the Social Justice Sewing Academy, and fosters kittens with Home-At-Last Rescue. She holds a B.A. from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, VA.

Chris Miano, the Founder & CEO of MemoryFox, has made it his mission to elevate the stories of real human beings. He believes that through storytelling with grassroots Community-Generated Content (CGC), the world can become a more inclusive and equitable place for everyone.

Chris was born and raised in Buffalo. He spent eight years in the Army traveling around the world and learning about the power of storytelling as a tool to connect with people across many cultures, generations, and socio-economic backgrounds.

When he returned home from Afghanistan, Chris thought about his grandfather who was a WW2 veteran, and how cathartic it would have been to have him around to share stories with. This inspired Chris to create MemoryFox. The organization started as a way to capture the life story of elderly family members, and eventually grew to support mission-driven organizations.