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w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, A pr il 15 ,2 02 1 | 12 House of Friendship Thank You Volunteers! You are making a difference in the lives of individuals and families in Waterloo Region Thank you to all our amazing volunteers! We truly appreciate all you do for Hospice Thankyou volunteers! Your generous contributions to the community makes a huge impact. volunteerWR.ca 519-742-8610 Thank you volunteers! Value of one. Power of Many. NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK On behalf of all of us at Strong Start, we would like to thank our Volunteer Coaches for generously donating their time in schools to help children learn to read. This is a lasting gift! Last year, with the support of hundreds of caring individuals working one-on-one with children, over 3,900 children were set on a path for success in school and in life in the communities we serve. Thank you as well to our Site Co-ordinators, School Administrators, Teachers, School Secretaries and Staff who help make our Letters, Sounds and Words™ program happen. Also, thank you to our volunteers who are waiting to return to schools when it is safe to do so. Your time to help children learn to read will be needed more than ever. www.strongstart.ca Strong Start® Charitable Organization is a Registered Canadian Children's Charity #825948060RR0001 We truly are better together! Strong Start is proudly celebrating 20 years of making a difference in the life of a child. Continued from page 11 2. Story for Gazmend Preteni By Heidi Elliott Gazmend enthusiastically joined Community Support Connections last June during the beginning of the pandemic to volunteer with our Meals on Wheels program. New to Canada with his family (wife and 3 daughters) he was determined to help any way he could during this critical time for the most vulnerable in our community. Gazmend previously worked for the UN Doctors without Borders in community policing and is vocal to everyone he meets about his volunteering role. He exemplifies how one person can make an impact on so many. Power - His role with Community Support Connections didn't stop there. Gazmend very strongly believes that businesses should support local organizations, so he has been very vocal in getting businesses to support us. Gazmend has been successful in getting door prizes from Waterloo Brewing to support our Volunteer appreciation events. Recently, Ms. Michalofsky, a teacher from Williamsburg Public School had her 'Mindful Me' class write/draw inspirational cards that went out to our Meals on Wheels clients! We are so grateful for all Gazmend's efforts! 3. Story for Kathy By Kevin Noseworthy Kathy created a Facebook filter that people can impose in the background of their selfie photos to bring awareness to volunteerism and thank our volunteers for their efforts during National Volunteer Week. Power - By sharing these instructions and setting up the Facebook filter with our volunteers, participants, clients and patients we can create a huge buzz during National Volunteer Week. The hope is to have everyone update their Facebook profile photo with this National Volunteer Week background filter where they can choose what Langs site they want in the background along with the pink and blue colour schemes that represent National Volunteer Week). FOR ALL YOU DO IN OUR COMMUNITIES