Community organizations facing hard times due to a lack of volunteers

A critical shortage of volunteers is one of the challenges facing community organizations, according to the president and CEO of Volunteer Canada. 

Megan Conway said more than half of community organizations in Canada report having a shortage of volunteers that leaves them unable to meet community needs. 

Many different things are behind the lack of volunteers, she said, including the rising cost of living and people having less free time. But, she also said that even when people are interested, they often just don't know how to help.

Some of the most important organizations in communities across the province, such as firefighting, rely heavily on volunteers. 

In an interview with CBC, Chief Troy Gautreau of the Grand Bay-Westfield Fire Rescue Department said, "In order to function, we absolutely have to have volunteers." 

The Grand Bay-Westfield department has only three full-time firefighters and 43 volunteers.

In other communities, such as Musquash, the entire fire department, between 55 and 60 people, is volunteer, said Musquash Fire Chief Wayne Pollock.

Pollock said the volunteer fire department is actually one of the main reasons Musquash exists as a united community. The fire department was created in 1985, bringing together seven separate communities. 

The creation "bonded those communities together," Pollock said, "and people that would never have known one another before and have now met and become friends. It sort of became the hub of the whole community."

"We've been very fortunate here in Grand Bay-Westfield not to have that recruitment problem in the same way other areas have but it is a huge problem really across all of North America," Gautreau said. "It's not a small commitment to join a fire department." 

One of the biggest issues, both chiefs said, is finding people who can volunteer during the day, as most people in their communities work day jobs. Because of this, they said the shortage is not necessarily a lack of desire to help, but other commitments standing in the way. 

Conway agrees.

"One of the things we hear is that people actually really strongly do want to participate and contribute but they don't necessarily know how or where they can go to do that," she said.

Conway said volunteers play a "critical role" in supporting many frontline services like food banks and shelters, which are "so, so needed right now." 

Some other organizations which really need volunteers to keep running are child and youth organizations.

"Programs like Scouts or Girl Guides or Big Brothers, Big Sisters or Boys and Girls Clubs where there could be a mentoring or a tutoring component to it or a recreational activity for children and youth."

She said the shortage is widespread, so just paying attention to local community needs is one of the best things people can do. 

Conway has advice for those who are interested.

"I think the easiest thing to do is actually pick up the phone and call them, introduce yourself and see if there's ways you can contribute or help. That makes a huge, a huge difference," she said.

"When you have a personal connection, that makes it a lot easier just to be able to learn more and to find easy ways to contribute. I think sometimes we make it really hard in our head."