Letter to the Future Volunteer Director

June 29, 2017

Dear Future Volunteer Director,

You are a rare person. You understand that at the heart of PTM’s mission is the requirement that our students will be surrounded by adults who shower them with encouragement, support, and opportunities. You are motivated not by a paycheck or public recognition, but by genuine compassion and a desire to serve God. You recognize in yourself spiritual gifts that will be a perfect match for building the team at PTM. You are mature enough to recognize that having a large number of volunteers is not all that matters and determined and ambitious enough to know that there is no number of volunteers that will ever really be enough. You are aware that this “job” is more of a “calling” and you will celebrate along with me the incredible joy of doing what you love and what you are good at while meeting a significant need. Thanks for bringing this balance to PTM. Here are some of the gifts and skills for which I am especially grateful.

You are culturally sensitive. You recognize the strengths that children and families growing up in and around the Preston Taylor community have to offer. You cherish what you will learn from them. You go out of your way to involve parents of PTM students as volunteers and advisors within PTM programming. You are just as comfortable interacting with low-income families in an urban setting as you are affluent families from wealthy areas of Nashville. You celebrate the valuable gifts that each will bring to you and to PTM.

You are creative. You have tons of ideas about how to recruit volunteers. You recruit through bathroom advertising, through social media, through Hands on Nashville, through colleges, through supporting churches, through community groups, through Junior League of Nashville, and through many other sources. Your volunteer training sessions are inspiring and really establish our volunteers as stakeholders. Your ideas overflow into PTM programming and your presence in staff meeting spurs many more great ideas.

You are a great communicator. You can make presentations about getting involved with PTM more stimulating than a best-selling novel. You publish effective and inspiring volunteer newsletters every other week. You return calls and emails well within four hours. You speak PTM’s language better than anyone else on our staff or our board.

You are a great relationship-builder. You comfortably sit across from any volunteer or potential volunteer and are able to match them with the programs and students to ensure great fits. You work well in a coffee shop. You know when you are asking too much and when you are asking too little. You host with ease special events designed to strengthen volunteers’ experience at PTM—trainings, forums, and fellowships. You know the names of over 400 PTM volunteers. Individuals have a rally hard time saying “no” to you—not because you are a pushy salesperson, but because you build trust and connections. Every volunteer knows of PTM’s gratitude and feels valuable and invested.

You have the perfect balance of being task-oriented and people-oriented. You care deeply that volunteers, staff, and students all have great experiences through PTM. You also accept with eagerness the task of growing PTM’s volunteer base by 10% every year. You are persistent in recruitment, but unwilling to sacrifice healthy relationships. You know how to get what you don’t have. When PTM needs you to do something outside of your skill set, you go find that volunteer who wants to help. You also know how to develop others. Those who work under you—whether staff or interns—feel inspired and challenged. You invest in the growth of others.

As demanding as this job will be and as high as the expectations are for an incredible team that keeps growing, there will be some benefits that are a perfect match for where you are. There is a lot of flexibility in your job. While there will be some evening and weekend requirements, much of your work can take place at hours you set. Much of your job can be done from a home office—or from PTM—or from a coffee shop. The salary will be set at $37,750. There is an option to enroll into PTM’s healthcare plan. Additionally, there will be three weeks of paid leave built into the rhythm of the year. Like for me, the biggest benefits will come in the satisfaction of serving God and others doing something that is fun, makes a difference and provides many opportunities for relationships with outstanding people.

If interested in this position, please read the full job description here. Then email a cover letter and resume by July 31, 2017 to Collin Spindle. His email address is collin@prestontaylorministries.org. I am very excited about meeting you and serving with you. You will make the team better.