Top tips from NAYS’ Volunteer Parent of the Year
One bonus of working for a national youth-sports organization is the opportunity to interact with several volunteers and youth-sports professionals doing great work around the country. My favorite annual task is notifying and interviewing our national volunteer parent and coach of the year.
What all the winners have in common is humility. One of the most essential values of a great volunteer is that he or she works without expecting extra recognition. In fact, many award winners express a sense of guilt upon learning of their achievements. Their response is almost always along the lines of “I am not doing anything special.”
Also, almost across the board, award winners give credit to the professional staff members who oversee their organizations, investing considerable time and effort into recognizing volunteers and helping make their jobs easier.
I try to put the winners at ease by telling them (in a joking way) that there is no way they are the absolute best volunteers in the country. That’s right—I tell them they probably aren’t the best. I do this not only to take off the pressure, but also to recognize there are many worthy people out there. Those individuals are performing the same duties to make the youth-sports experience run efficiently, every day, across the country. And NAYS works with thousands of organizations that make up a small percentage of the youth-sports organizations in America, almost all of which are led by volunteers.
We receive hundreds of nominations each year, and they are all great in their own ways, but we can only choose one national winner. Of course, that doesn’t mean the other “best” volunteers shouldn’t be honored as well. They should, and here’s hoping all program directors do a great job of recognizing the hardworking volunteers in their programs.
Winning Advice
One of this year’s winners follows in the humble footsteps of past awardees. The youth-sports providers at Ocean Youth Sports in Virginia are lucky to have a parent like Jennifer Gibson. Her nomination was so impressive that she was a near-unanimous choice for NAYS Volunteer Parent of the Year. During our interview, she explained tips as if she were facilitating a youth-sports seminar on running a successful program. I particularly liked her philosophy that “many hands make light work,” which describes her ability to get others organized and involved.
Below are some of Gibson’s tips to help youth-sports administrators recruit and involve parents to help ensure successful programs:
Match With A Mentor: “I think what’s really important for any parent who’s apprehensive about volunteering is to see that it’s doable,” Gibson says. “A lot of that can be done just through mentoring and connecting that new volunteer with somebody who does a great job volunteering in your program, to shadow them through a season. You introduce them and let the ball start rolling from there.”
Cue Up The Compliments: While finding great volunteers is challenging, keeping them involved for multiple seasons can be even trickier. Gibson points out that being acknowledged and hearing genuine compliments can make a difference in retaining volunteers each season. “Letting your volunteers know that you are making a difference is incredible,” she says. “Everyone likes to be complimented. Every child seeks that, and it never grows out of us. So, as an adult, when there is that genuine support for the supporters, that really does mean a lot, and it goes a long way.”
Communicate Your Program Needs: No matter how big or small the program’s volunteer needs are, the better communication there is with participants’ parents, the more likely leaders will be able to fill in gaps. “That was what drew me into a lot of the big volunteering in general was just hearing that there was a need that I wouldn’t have known about otherwise,” Gibson says. “The level of communication from the director all the way down to each of the individual parents was incredible.”
Recognition Reverberates: Even the smallest genuine gestures can produce big results. And when volunteers are recognized or receive awards for their efforts, that has a far-reaching impact throughout the community. “It’s a great way to show that you, as a leader and director, are invested within your community,” Gibson says. “And the community is more than just those kids out on the soccer field; it’s also those parents who are there to support it and who are there to assist in any manner that they can. And when the word spreads that your program is built around successful people, it produces a continual cycle because why would someone not want to be a part of that?”