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Volunteer expo planning well under way
Published Saturday July 12th, 2008
By John Pollack, Times & transcript Staff

Planning for the Hands Up! Volunteer Expo and Conference to be held Oct. 24 and 25 at the Moncton Coliseum has come a long way since it was announced at the start of May.

The expo has 86 exhibitors registered and only has room for a maximum of 64 more.

The registered exhibits vary from charities, to community service groups to the RCMP. The event is an opportunity for people to learn about organizations they can volunteer for.

Tony Hebert, president of ShareKnowledge Inc., the firm producing the event compared the expo to a mall for those looking to volunteer.

"We need a place where people can browse opportunities," he says. "We've become the marketing arm for non-profits."

Hebert says many people want to volunteer but don't know who they should volunteer for, while others may only have a few free hours every week and don't realize how big of a difference those few hours can make.

The event is open to everyone, and Hebert would like to see people of any age or background show up, but there is one group he is taking extra steps to involve.

"Our youth is our future for our volunteer organizations," he says.

The Friday Morning of the event, student leaders such as student council members, sports team captains and club presidents will have a chance to attend the expo then present what they learned to their fellow students.

The entire event, which also includes educational seminars for non-profits, has a budget of $300,000.

ShareKnowledge Inc. has contributed a $100,000 forgivable loan for the event, and the 23 sponsors signed up have contributed another $150,000 collectively.

Hebert says there has been a positive response from sponsors.

"The corporates are coming forward and saying this is exactly what they want to support . . . because it helps the entire community," he says. "They don't have to be selective about which ones they support."

Codiac Transit will also be providing free shuttle service from Highfield Square to the Coliseum the two days of the event.

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