Timeraiser 2009: A Time To Every Purpose
I love art, great ideas, and community building. Not surprisingly, I love the idea of Timeraiser: a night out that brings together art, volunteers, and agencies looking for volunteers. I was there to check out Ottawa’s version, on Saturday, November 14th, 2009.
In a wine and cheese atmosphere, volunteers chatted with agency representatives, matching volunteer skills with agency needs. Volunteers then bid on works of art, using commitments of time rather than money. The winners of the silent auction who complete their pledged volunteer hours will receive the piece of art next year.
Plus, it was a good excuse to dress up, sip wine, nibble, and mingle with other go-getters who believe in the importance of volunteering.
The biggest surprise of the evening for me was the quality of the art available. There were some very fine pieces to be won (E.g. Claudia Urbach, Bus stop, Downtown Ottawa). Moreover, the artists were paid for the art, thanks to corporate donors. A nice touch there.
I talked with a few agency representatives and they said it was a great opportunity for their organizations. They suggested the overall calibre of the volunteers in attendance was quite high.
Maria Redpath, of the Canadian Cancer Society, was back for a second year. She said her agency had recruited a number of quality volunteers the previous year. First-timers, Laura Haylock, of Salvaide, and Laura Telford, of Canadian Organic Growers, expressed a lot of optimism about the potential volunteers they had met.
By all appearances, the event seemed like a win-win-win opportunity. The organizers should be commended! I suspect I will be back next year and ready to bid!
What do you think? Does it sound like something you would enjoy? Has anyone participated in a Timeraiser event or something like it?
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On the one hand I would looooove to do that. On the other hand there are so many non-profits that just don’t have the means to produce such an event.
Those volunteers are now essentially being paid for their time. Yes, they are being paid in art instead of money but the value of the art sounds quite high.
So, first of all I think that volunteering should be about giving your time without an expectation of monetary reward. And secondly, I would worry that big charitable organizations could end up wooing volunteer bases away from smaller orgs that don’t have the capacity to essentially pay their volunteers.
Hold up. I just went and checked out their website and apparently they accept organizations of different sizes, though I couldn’t find any information on which charities participated in past years. So I’m back to just being leery based on the concept of paying volunteers.
Lady Rose
November 16, 2009
LR, you concerns are well worth flagging!
Timesraisers, as far as I can tell, is an umbrella organization that organizes the event and the art on behalf of the agencies. From my program, I count 29 difference agencies in attendance — some are massive and some look pretty small.
I think the idea is that the evening and the art auction is a carrot to get people out and talking to the agencies. For example, one agency rep told me a number of people volunteered anyway, even though they hadn’t made a successful bid. So I don’t think it is as mercenary as it might seem. I would characterize the art more as token of appreciation for the volunteer hours — in the same way agencies throw parties for volunteers or provide plaques. Sure, the art is more fancy and high-end but maybe that’s what it takes to get highly-skilled professionals hooked on the idea of volunteering, even if they don’t win any art in the end.
sterlinglynch
November 16, 2009
Great post. I really liked the spirit of this event and there were quite a variety of groups/causes represented. It’s a great way to entice people out to volunteer from a demographic that historically isn’t as well represented on this front. Timeraisers has been described as speed dating for volunteering and it is a great way for busy professionals to ask questions, make connections, and match themselves up with an agency that is a good personel fit. The art auction is a way to make it fun. Ultimately, it is about encouraging people to get involved.
Wayne C.
November 16, 2009
Thanks for your comments, Wayne.
sterlinglynch
November 17, 2009
Hi Sterling,
Thanks for the post. The Ottawa Timeraiser was a huge success. We raised 6,450 hours – each piece went to the max bid! Amazing.
Sterling, your comment about the art being a carrot is exactly right. In many cases the event is a way to introduce volunteering to those who might not have been involved before. Many volunteer even if they don’t have the winning bid.
We have a range of agency size, from small volunteer run organizations, to national organizations in Canada. Also, participants can volunteer or participate with any agency, not just the ones at the Timeraiser. We have agencies at the Timeraiser as a way to get the conversation started, and a showcase of skilled volunteer opportunities. It’s a way to connect people to causes and causes to people.
Thanks to everyone who came out, it was a great evening. We can’t wait to see you next year!
As a note, Framework Foundation has two core programs – Timeraiser and Civic Footprint. You can check out a lot more information about agencies, artists and posts about different Timeraiser cities on our Civic Footprint blog – civicfootprint.net. Cheers!
Amanda Grainger
November 17, 2009