Congratulations!
You're Off And Running!
You are now a MAGDRL NJ volunteer and a member of our Yahoo discussion group which is reserved for NJ active volunteers only. In this introduction, we hope to familiarize you with who we are, where we're going and how you can help us get there.
But first, let's do a few mechanics. We want you to have a volunteer handbook which provides a wealth of information on MAGDRL and shows you how to perform some of the tasks awaiting you as a volunteer. It also contains many of the forms you'll be using for phone work and home evaluations.
This will link you to Yahoo and you may be asked to supply your password...it's the same one you used when you set-up with Yahoo to become a part of the discussion group.
Hint: In order to conserve paper, you might want to print only odd numbered pages and then flip them over and print the even numbered pages on the reverse. If this is too cumbersome a process for you, not to worry, leave the back side of the pages blank for note taking.
We'd also like you to be able to represent MAGDRL in a professional way. One way you can do this is to have a business card at the ready when you go to a home evaluation or when you're at a Meet & Greet or simply out in public and want to spread the word about MAGDRL. If you're handy on the computer, you can print out your own. Here's a copy of mine to give you and idea of what I use. This is not to say this is the only design that can be used, anything tasteful is appropriate. You do not need to include your personal phone number if you would prefer not to, but please be sure to include MaryFran Cini's number as NJ State Coordinator.
use in creating your own cards. Right mouse click and "save picture as" in your files.
Many of us have ordered cards from VistaPrint. You can obtain 250 cards free and just pay for shipping and handling or increase the number of cards for a very deep discount. If you'd like, you can check out VistaPrint here. As an alternative, we offer group purchases of business cards from time to time (the vendor requires six people to constitute a minimum purchase) If you would like to participate in this group purchase, you can wait until you see that posted or contact your volunteer coordinator. We can provide you with a small supply of generic business cards to tide you over.
Another way to represent MAGDRL is by wearing a Shirt which identifies you as a volunteer. You can wear them at home evaluations, Meet & Greets and any time you are representing us to the public. We have a number of shirts available to grace your wardrobe, you can look here to see if anything tickles your fancy. And don't forget, these shirts are tax deductible if they contain our logo; but more on tax deductions for volunteer expenses later.
Almost done with the mechanics, but before we move on, I want to make you aware that being a volunteer with MAGDRL does not make you a member with voting rights and other member perks, including the bi-monthly newsletter and a MAGDRL window sticker and membership card. We ask that all our volunteers become members of MAGDRL as well and did include this on your volunteer application. If you did not send in your membership fee with the application and you'd like to take care of that now, you can do so here:
Just a few points about membership. When you adopt through MAGDRL, you automatically become a member for the balance of the calendar year. An exception to this is if you adopt in November or December. Then your membership will automatically be extended to the next calendar year. If you are applying for membership as a volunteer, your membership payment follows the same guidelines. A renewal reminder will be provided in your January newsletter. The newsletter is issued bi-monthly (every other month). If you are not receiving your newsletter within three months of sending your membership, please notify your volunteer coordinator.
Now we've taken care of the "nuts and bolts," so to speak. It's time to move on to tell you more about MAGDRL. Take some time to digest all this if you wish and bookmark this page to come back later and pick-up here. If you're ready to move on, then let's go.
