Celebrating International Volunteer Day
I caught up with one of my nonprofit colleagues while I was in Singapore. I met Jason Wee at the International Association of Voluntary Effort conference in Panama this past April. Jason works on nonprofit engagement at the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre so you can imagine why we hit it off.
Centre (NVPC) is the national body that promotes and develops
volunteerism and philanthropy across all sectors, functioning as a
first-stop centre, catalyst and networking agency to foster the giving
spirit in Singapore, whether of time, money or in kind.
We
work in partnership with non-profit organisations, companies and public
sector bodies to facilitate and strengthen Community Giving efforts
through our promotional and networking platforms, public education
programmes, training in volunteer management (including employee
volunteering) and fundraising, as well as grants, research and
publications. (NVPC's website)"
Coincidentally, I went to the NVPC offices on International Volunteer Day. International Volunteer Day (IVD) was established by the United Nations
General Assembly in 1985. IVD is now celebrated world wide with
thousands of volunteers involved in a range of IVD initiatives
including clean-up campaigns, conferences, exhibitions, and many other activities all aimed to highlight the role of volunteers
in their communities. Though I was not able to perform direct service that day, I was visiting the agency that helps coordinate and promote it in Singapore.
An Early High School Reunion
One of my friends from high school, Jeremy Findley, is living in Singapore with his family. Jeremy was our high school valedictorian and attended University of Michigan. I hadn't seen him since our high school graduation but through the magic of Facebook, we were reconnected. I met up with him and his wife, Olivia, at two different occasions for dinner during my time in Singapore. Jeremy was the fourth high school friend that I have caught up with during the trip. Next year is my 20th high school reunion and meeting up with these friends during my travels have reminded me how much I enjoyed my time at high school.
A Michigan Nonprofit Small World Experience
The day I arrived in Singapore, I opened up my e-mail account and found a message from one of my former employees from the Michigan Nonprofit Association. Gylin and her husband, Boon, were in Singapore for a family reunion before heading for the holidays to Malaysia and saw on the website that I would be in Singapore at the same time. We were able to get together for breakfast on the day they were leaving Singapore.
