Denver, CO (PRWEB) August 20, 2014
NARSVPD and Green Piranhas have partnered to launch SaveRSVP.org to educate the public about the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) and the peril it faces as ongoing federal budget pressures threaten to slash funding for local volunteer services that Americans depend on every day.
RSVP deploys over 275,000 members in 700 community programs across the country that provide nearly 40 million hours of local volunteer services each year. They supply disaster relief services, mentor children, assist veterans and their families, renovate homes, provide meals and independent living assistance to seniors and disabled adults, and organize neighborhood watch programs.
When asked about volunteer based programs such as RSVP and Meals on Wheels, and how they help keep seniors healthy and safe in their homes, Diane Heilman, Director of Nutrition Services and Pastoral Care at Susan B Allen Memorial Hospital said, “These volunteers deliver more than a meal, they may also be the only human contact the client sees each day a meal is delivered. They provide a safety check, socialization and a smile with each meal.”
Lyle Butler, President and CEO of the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce in Kansas, feels that volunteer organizations like RSVP greatly enhance the quality of life in communities and said, “Without RSVP and the outlet it offers to hundreds of local volunteers, we would not be able to sustain the same quality of life in our community that we enjoy today.”
This organization and the volunteer services it provides are threatened by proposed budget cuts that would slash RSVP’s federal funding by 67%. This would reduce their annual funding by almost $35 million and prevent them from providing volunteer services with an estimated labor value of nearly $900 million to communities in need across America.
The website, http://www.saversvp.org, and a companion video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJNBd1S8Yjg, have been developed by NARSVPD and Green Piranhas to bring the work done by RSVP and its volunteers to the public’s attention. “Through their participation in a wide variety of services to the community, RSVP volunteers help their neighbors and shatter stereotypes every day. Our volunteers are of the community and serve the community”, said Betty Ruth, President of NARSVPD, regarding the committed participants that comprise RSVP.
As the most experienced leadership organization of RSVP directors, NARSVPD (http://www.narsvpd.org) is in a unique position to know the value of these volunteer services and help lead this educational effort. NARSVPD was created to provide visibility and advocacy for RSVP, facilitate communications among RSVP Directors and projects, and to represent RSVP and older Americans to the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and before Congress. Green Piranhas has partnered with NARSVPD in this campaign, because it shares RSVP’s interest in helping local communities and, through its website, http://www.greenpiranhas.com, provides consumers with key research and shopping information to help them find quality service providers at fair prices.
Together, NARSVPD and Green Piranhas, have launched SaveRSVP.org to educate the public on the plight faced by RSVP, and garner support for the maintenance of current federal funding levels, so that this organization can continue to provide volunteer services to communities in need.
For additional information about RSVP or NARSVPD, contact:
Betty M. Ruth
President, NARSVPD
bruth(at)al-rsvp(dot)com
For additional information about the SaveRSVP.org website, or Green Piranhas contact:
Samuel Jonas
President, Green Piranhas
sjonas(at)greenpiranhas(dot)com