Friday Freebies

Yesterday I attended an AFP session on time management. The primary focus of the presentation was centred around managing email, and the amount of time we all spend on this task on a daily basis.

The inspiration for today's Freebie came from a colleague of mine, Anne Melanson (Bloom Non Profit Consulting Group). At the end of the session, Anne told us all about a free online resource that we could use when trying to schedule meetings that involve several people, such as committees and boards. Doodle (www.doodle.com) is an online poll service provider. It is absolutely free and rquires no registration. You simply set up your poll, email the link to your committee members, and have them weigh in on their availability or vote for their choice...the possibilities are endless.

Check it out, and Happy Friday.

Nominations Open for National Volunteer Award

Speaking of volunteers, I'd like to take a moment to thank the 2009 AFP NS conference organizing committee. Last week's conference was excellent - a result of many hours of volunteer planning and hard work. Job well done!

The government of Canada has announced a call for nominations for the 2009 Thérèse Casgrain Volunteer Award. Details can be found at: http://news.gc.ca/web/article-eng.do?m=/index&nid=444729

The award will be presented to two outstanding volunteers - one for Youth Participation (age 18 to 30), and one for Lifelong Commitment (age 31 and over) - in December, to coincide with International Volunteer Day.