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Area non-profit organizations need volunteers, and local young professionals are willing to help – if asked. Knowing this, three businesses have joined forces to bring these two groups together.
On Feb. 18, Greater Good Productions, Self-Help and Bon’s Eye Marketing will present “HAVE A HEART: What are YOU doing for the Greater Good?” The event, slated from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in the Self-Help Center (272 N. Front St.), will feature interactive booths showcasing the work and needs of more than 20 nonprofits. There also will be cocktails, food and live music.
The plan is to attract a new crop of volunteers for these organizations – people with creativity, energy and passion to help them grow.
“As in many cities, nonprofits in Wilmington suffer from a lack of participation from young people – the next generation of committee chairs, board members and directors,” said Katie Lucas, owner of Greater Good Productions. “Why is this? Maybe current leaders aren’t connected to younger people. Perhaps they’ve never been asked. Maybe they don’t know how badly their skills and talents are wanted. Sometimes – too often – young people who might otherwise serve simply don’t know what’s out there.”
In fact, more than 600 non-profit organizations call the Cape Fear region home, each with their own individual mission to make southeastern North Carolina a better place to live. They rescue turtles or care for abused children. They feed the hungry, mentor troubled youth, or simply dance. While the whole community benefits from the effort, in many cases, only a handful of volunteers carry most of the workload.
“HAVE A HEART” aims to change this. To bring in potential volunteers, the event organizers have partnered with the Wilmington Young Professionals Network and Port City Young Professionals. Both groups are making “HAVE A HEART” one of their official events for the month of February.
“We try to support local businesses and nonprofits as much as possible,” said Jackie Willse, who started the Wilmington Young Professionals Network. “Since a lot of young professionals are early in their careers or just starting their own businesses, money isn’t always as easy to spare, but we love to give our time.”
Nonprofits scheduled to be in attendance include: American Red Cross, Brigade Boys & Girls Club, Cameron Art Museum, Cape Fear Literacy Council, Cape Fear River Watch, Inc., Cape Fear Volunteer Center/ Big Buddy, Carolina Canines for Service, Communities in Schools, Community Boys & Girls Club of Wilmington, DREAMS Center for Art Education, Girls on the Run of the Coastal Carolinas, Historic Wilmington Foundation, Kids Making It, NC Coastal Land Trust, Rape Crisis Center of Coastal Horizons, Sunburst Foundation, The Dance Cooperative, Inc., WHQR 91.3FM Public Radio, YWCA Lower Cape Fear, Guardian Ad Litem Program and Cape Fear Green Building Alliance.
“It is our hope that, by the end of the evening, young people will find a new and meaningful way to connect to their community, and in doing so, help nonprofits make Wilmington a better place,” Lucas said. “No one is doing it for the money; we’re all doing it for the chance to make a difference.”
Greater Good Productions is a full-service event production company that helps positively impact the community through special events.
Self-Help is a 30-year-old non-profit lender based in Durham, with a mission to make credit available to underserved people – women, minorities, rural residents and nonprofits. Self-Help merged in 2009 with the Cape Fear Credit Union, which has branches in Wilmington and Leland. Self-Help owns 16 commercial office buildings in North Carolina, including 272 N. Front St., where it offers single-office leases up to full suites for affordable prices.
Bon’s Eye Marketing helps clients reach their target audience by making them more credible, professional, likable and trustworthy by creating first-class traditional, online and guerilla marketing strategies and tools.
