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Making Dreams Come True without Money, Might or Miracles caps Ivan Scheier's long career as philosopher, provocateur, and conscience of the volunteer field.   He urges us all to nurture dreams--our own and those of others.  But this is also a practical, you-can-do-it guidebook for activist volunteers and their mentors, showing what dreamers and "Dream-Catchers" must do to bring dreams to life; how to look beyond money as a need, obstacle or trap; ways to get past barriers, bigots, and anchors; how to create a dream-friendly environment; and what makes dreams die...and what makes them live.   

Each section of Leading the Way focuses on a key aspect of involving volunteers in which it is crucial for executives to take a lead role, such as fund development, planning and policy development, and evaluation. Checklists, worksheets, idea stimulators, real-life examples, self-inquiry assessments, and other practical tools can be used immediately to guide planning and decision-making. 

Provides an innovative framework for successfully leading an  all-volunteer effort, whether it's a service club, community group, PTA, or religious congregation. Scheier challenges conventional wisdom  about boards, fundraising, and membership development when applied to  grassroots volunteer efforts. A highlight of the book is a collection  of easy-to-conduct group interaction exercises.

By the People remains the only book available presenting the full scope and depth of volunteer activity throughout three centuries of American history. Originally published in 1978, Susan Ellis and Katie Campbell reissued this revised New Century Edition in 2005. The book challenges misunderstandings about the role of volunteers and illuminates the impact of volunteers throughout history.

Essays written by leading authors in the volunteer world in 2002 about "what was on their mind."   Authors included are: Cara Blank, Susan J. Ellis, Melissa Eystad, Andy Fryar, Linda L. Graff, Stephen McCurley, Ivan H. Scheier, Betty Stallings, Sue Vineyard and Bill Wittich. 

An interactive group activity for religious leaders for analyzing how their congregations work, conducting an organizational analysis of their organization, and identifying areas that deserve further attention. Though The Church Puzzle Game uses the word ‘‘church” in its title and instructions, the content of the Game was written with the intention to help any faith community, religious body, or house of worship.

Packed with the advice, wisdom, and experience of over 85 real-life, on-the-job supervisors of volunteers, this guide offers a crystal clear analysis of what works and what doesn't in supervision. It also includes comments from volunteers about what they need from those who supervise them, as well as excerpts from classic articles and books by experts in the field and a self-assessment survey covering the attitudes and actions necessary to be an effective supervisor. 

Contains 117 formatted, ready-to-print and copy pages, each about a specific volunteering subject such as working with volunteers, the history of volunteering, and trends in volunteerism. The KOPY KIT also includes a section of ready-to-use graphics including "thank you" and "we miss you" letters, certificates and awards, recruitment flyers and even greeting cards.

A step-by-step guide to the basic elements of a volunteer recordkeeping system. Includes the why and how of application forms, volunteer data files, assignment records, time and activity reports - for individual volunteers, groups, and off-site service, too. Lots of sample forms, ideas for documenting hard-to-track activities, and ways to demonstrate the work you do in managing volunteer involvement.

Marlene Wilson moves from the hows to the whys of leading volunteer programs. She urges all who lead volunteers to move beyond thinking of themselves as managers to thinking of themselves as leaders—those who develop vision for volunteer programs and impart that vision throughout an organization. Includes16 of her most popular presentations from 1974 to 1999.

The book first shows how to design the best assignments for volunteers as the initial step to recruit the most qualified people. What follows is a wealth of information on topics ranging from how your organization's image affects your success in recruitment to where to look for new volunteers, including your own backyard. The Volunteer Recruitment (and Membership Development) Book also offers a whole chapter on membership development for all-volunteer organizations, including how to get current members "off the rolls and on their feet." The Appendix,"Outreach in Cyberspace," explains the Internet as a powerful recruitment tool. 

This collection of seven original skits is complete with instructions, scripts and ideas for adaptation. Each skit incorporates songs using well-known popular music with lyrics written for the volunteer recognition occasion. Song sheets can be used separately.

This book was removed from the archive since it is still available for sale.   You can purchase at:  http://lindagraff.ca/books.html#BeyondPolice

The Volunteer Management Audit is a unique tool for analyzing the effectiveness of an organization's approach to and procedures for involving volunteers. It's designed to be administered by a team of staff and volunteers. The Audit provides a step-by-step guide to planning, conducting, and following-up the assessment process, with complete Scoresheets and instructions. 

This book is an update of the classic Beyond Banquets, Plaques & Pins. Vineyard describes how to tailor recognition ideas to fit the "achievers," "affiliatiors," and "empowerers" in an organization. Outlines 10 keys to recognizing volunteers, including being timely, creating an appreciative organizational climate, and embracing diversity. Ends with a list of actions to say thank you.

A resource for training volunteers to develop analytical and problem-solving skills, this book is a compilation of realistic situations that volunteers may face while volunteering. Leaders of volunteer involvement can use the case studies to prepare volunteers via group discussions or role playing.

Nearly 70 tools to help evaluate volunteer involvement in an organization including the plans, volunteers, the organization, the people involved, and the manager of volunteers.  Other key subjects include diagnosing organization norms, the potential for successful change and for fundraising success, hidden problems, meetings, climate health, responsibilities and job stress.

Over the course of training more than 20,000 leaders of volunteers, volunteer engagement experts Steve McCurley and Sue Vineyard gathered this collection of odd ideas and useful thoughts about running a volunteer engagement program, including subjects such as recruiting, screening, interviewing, and supervising volunteers. In their words, the book “is, quite simply, a place to start from, a place to browse in, and a place, finally, to steal [ideas] from.”

Hundreds of ideas for recognizing the work of volunteers and thanking them for their contributions. Plus a discussion of what effective recognition really entails.   

A collection of volunteer engagement ideas including techniques for working with volunteers, leading engagement programs, and understanding the context of volunteerism in the U.S. and Canada during the 1990s.

A continuation of the previously published 101 Ideas for Volunteer Programs. Steve McCurley and Sue Vineyard collect even more practical ideas for engaging volunteers and, this time, include thoughts on improving the role of director of volunteer involvement: problem-solving skills, time management ideas, training techniques, and ways to manage organizational change.

A toolkit from which to draw strategies for dealing with the many types of difficult behavior that can be exhibited by volunteers.

Steve McCurley and Sue Vineyard take a lighthearted look at some of the most common volunteer performance problems and deliver some serious solutions. The book assess es the extent and root causes of problems. Examples range from the "Somewhat Annoying Volunteer" with poor interpersonal skills to the "Dangerously Dysfunctional Volunteer," posing risk concerns. Sample volunteer policies directly related to handling problematic volunteer situations are include

12 ready‑to‑deliver training sessions to teach paid staff the fundamentals of working with volunteers. Each training module is designed for delivery in 55 minutes of staff time. Each electronic module comes with: a complete PowerPoint® presentation; a timed script for the trainer highlighting “4 Key Concepts” on each topic; suggestions for expandable group activities; handout masters ready to duplicate, including a workshop evaluation form; and more.  The 12 topics range from Designing Positions to Volunteer Recognition.

Exploring Volunteer Space: The Recruiting of a Nation is Ivan Scheier’s exploration of the universe of volunteering. Ivan ponders much of what volunteering can be and a great deal of what would happen in volunteering in the future. While Exploring Volunteer Space is a highly conceptual work, it has great and continuing relevance to practitioners who think about the development of volunteer engagement.