Program And Recreational Manager
Sunrise Youth Group
Whitby, On
Sunrise Youth Group is a charitable not-for-profit organization, serving the Durham Region, providing recreational and life skills programming for adults and youth with developmental disabilities.My involvement in the organization began in 2001, when I started as a volunteer while still in high school. As a University student, I worked for two summers as a summer student, providing support to various summer camping programs, day trips and life skills programming. I continued to volunteer with the organization during the school year and beyond graduation. When the Program and Recreational Manager position became vacant in 2008, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to return to the organization that was so near and dear to my heart. I believe one of my greatest achievements in this role was the development of a fundraising campaign called The Volunteer Sponsorship Program. This fundraising campaign addressed the rising costs of bringing volunteers to an annual camping trip in Northern Ontario by inviting local businesses, family members, and volunteers themselves to cover the cost of the trip for a single volunteer. The program was very successful, exceeding our fundraising goal of $5000 in the first year and allowing us to send 25 volunteers to camp. It was also in this role that I discovered my passion for working closely with people and managing human resources. This experience greatly influenced the trajectory of my future career. I was responsible for hiring all staff, including creating job postings, screening resumes, interviewing, and extending job offers. I also managed all employee on-boarding and training for both staff and volunteers and supervised 3-5 full-time staff and two part-time staff, as well as 75-100 volunteers.Key skills: fundraising, not-for-profit, staffing, volunteer coordination, communication skills, interpersonal skills, supervision, recruitment, human resources management, training, employee on-boarding, employee engagement