Category Archives: Organization Highlights
Thank you HRMD volunteers!
There is no typical volunteer, there is no one volunteer like another, but they do have one thing in common – an interest in their community and desire to make a difference. The Highlands Ranch Metro District is lucky to have had 1,413 volunteers in 2018. These individuals have contributed time in a variety of areas including coaching youth sports, greeting guests at the Highlands Ranch Mansion, planting a tree, serving ice cream at a community event and more.
Families, students, retirees – these are some of the faces of Highlands Ranch volunteers. Thank you for giving your time and energy and we look forward to working with you in 2019.
To learn more about volunteering with the Highlands Ranch Metro District, click here.
Welcome Renew Respite!
Renew Respite recently joined Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities. Renew Respite is a free, monthly, respite program for families with children with cognitive, communication, emotional, and physical challenges and their siblings.
One Friday night a month, trained volunteers provide an evening of care and fun through pre-planned activities for children with special needs and their siblings, ages 1 month to 12 years. During each Renew evening, each child, including siblings, has his or her own “Buddy.” This one-on-one attention ensures safety and personal attention for the entire evening. Trained volunteers are supported by
a nursing staff to ensure the safety and comfort of the children.
This program is only limited by the number of volunteers. Over 80 children are registered with several families waiting to join. The
program can usually manage about 30 kids each month. Please consider becoming a volunteer so more children can participate.
Learn more about Renew Respite and their volunteer opportunities here.
HRCA Volunteer of the Month
Debbie is the December Volunteer of the Month at Highlands Ranch Community Association. Debbie has been volunteering with the Therapeutic Recreation Dept. for almost a year and her caring and sensitivity have made her a favorite of the athletes. She helps with soccer, basketball, swim team, and sports camps. An Iowa native, Debbie is a graduate of CU Denver and has lived in Highlands Ranch for 20 years. Debbie says getting to know the kids and seeing their sportsmanship develop has been the highlight of her volunteer experience. Thank you Debbie for all you do!
Art Stop on the Go
Every month the Philip S. Miller Library hosts “Art Stop on the Go” where kids ages 6-12 do literature-based art projects with presenters from the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. This active and exciting event relies on volunteer help. Recently, volunteers Emri, Rosco and Caylee helped with a Disney’s Frozen themed Art Stop session. After listening to a book and seeing videos of real northern lights for inspiration, kids created amazing “Northern Lights” art projects.
Kids were captivated by the beauty of this stunning natural phenomenon and fascinated by the smudging process used to create the art. Intricate backdrops were used by some, while others embraced an open sky theme for their projects. Either way, vibrant color was the focus of the day (along with messy fingers!). Volunteers helped by welcoming participants, distributing supplies and providing encouraging interaction with kids as they created their art. The museum and library staff members are grateful for the essential help volunteers provide to keep the program running
smoothly every month.
Welcome American Diabetes Association!
American Diabetes Association is a new member of Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities. 1 in 11 Americans has diabetes today. Together, let’s help every 1.
Their mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Do you know someone with diabetes? Are you at risk? You can help by volunteering at the Tour de Cure on Saturday, September 8, 2018. Several volunteers are needed for event set up, registration, route marshals, tear down and more! Click here and register for a shift that works with your schedule.
To learn more about volunteer opportunities at American Diabetes Association in Douglas County, Colorado, please email Lindsay Phelan at LPhelan@diabetes.org.
Welcome NMSS!
National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) is a new member of Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities.
NMSS exists because there are people with MS. Their vision is a world free of MS. Everything they do is focused so that people affected by MS can live their best lives as they stop MS in its tracks, restore what has been lost and end MS forever.
NMSS is more than an organization. They are a movement. United in their collective power to do something about MS now and end this disease forever. The gathering place for people with MS, their family and loved ones, healthcare providers, volunteers, donors, fundraisers, advocates, community leaders and all those that seek a world free of MS. A place to connect and take action. In order to
change the world, they mobilize all possible human and financial resources to achieve results.
To learn more about NMSS and their volunteer opportunities in Douglas County, Colorado, click here.
Welcome Project ReCycle!
Project ReCycle is a new member of Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities. Project ReCycle is a Colorado, Douglas county based 501(c)3 Non-Profit.
Project ReCycle was founded in 2010 to provide smiles to children all over Colorado via a bicycle. That has not changed today. Their first run at this venture led them to create a program that would not only guarantee smiles but would also influence children’s academic behavior in a positive manner. As part of the Dream Bike Program, children are encouraged to earn a bike by improving in 3 areas: Respect, Attendance and Academic Growth.
Project ReCycle works with multiple agencies to provide stability for children. The gifted bicycle becomes a constant in a life of change. Project ReCycle collects bicycles from participating locations on a weekly basis. Bikes are brought back to the repair shop and inspected. If a bike cannot be fixed for reuse, it is dismantled. Each reusable part is salvage for future use. All remaining bike parts are then recycled.
Do you enjoy helping kids? Do you have bike mechanic experience? Perhaps you would enjoy driving to pick up and deliver bikes? Match your passion with one of the many volunteer opportunities at Project ReCycle and make a difference in your community.
To learn more about Project ReCycle and their volunteer opportunities click here.
Welcome Sidekicks for Sight Puppy Club!
Sidekicks for Sight Puppy Club is a new member of Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities.
Sidekicks for Sight is a puppy raising club for Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB). They raise puppies for about a year before they go in for formal guide work training.
Interested in becoming a puppy raiser? Puppies are placed in raiser homes when they are about 8 weeks old, and they return to a GDB campus for formal training when they are between 13 and 15 months old. Puppy raisers are responsible for teaching their puppies good manners and basic obedience. The club meets twice a month to work on specific skills and support raisers through the process. They also meet once a month for a socialization outing. No special training is needed; all training and support is provided.
If you aren’t able to commit to raising a puppy full time, or if a year is too much, there are still other ways to get involved. You could “start” a puppy from about 8 weeks until about 5 months, finish a “transfer” puppy, co-raise a puppy with another raiser, or be a puppy sitter. There are many ways you can get involved!
To learn more about volunteer opportunities at Sidekicks for Sight, click here.
Welcome Colorado HorsePower!
Colorado HorsePower is now a member of Volunteer Connect Douglas County and is actively posting volunteer opportunities.
Colorado HorsePower, Inc. is a nonprofit therapeutic riding center which began in 1984 with a vision of supporting elementary children in the Castle Rock schools. Since then HorsePower has grown to work with children and adults with disabilities, and offers therapeutic riding. They are committed to meeting the needs of mentally, emotionally, and physically challenged children and adults by bringing the therapeutic power of horses and horsemanship to their students. Their mission is to provide a place for students where they gain a sense of freedom and independence, experience accomplishments, interact socially and learn new skills in a pleasurable environment. This is empowering not only the life of the rider, but the entire family.
Without volunteers, they could not operate their program. Colorado HorsePower offers many volunteer opportunities and horse experience is not needed. To learn more about Colorado HorsePower and their volunteer opportunities click here.
HRCA Volunteers of the Month
July volunteers of the month for the Therapeutic Recreation (TR) program at Highlands Ranch Community Association are the Basketball Coaches that helped in May and June. This program has grown thanks to the selfless efforts of a number of dedicated individuals. Many have been with TR basketball for over four years. They represent a wide age-range including students, working professionals, and retirees. When asked what keeps them coming back, they cite love of the athletes and love of the game. This program would not be possible without their help. Many thanks to these volunteers who bring so much joy to the participants!
