My Reflection Of Working With For Profit And Nonprofit Organizations

Throughout this course my paradigms of what a nonprofit organization have been challenged as we have considered the major aspects and leadership challenges of these organizations. Having worked with for profit and nonprofit organizations in the past I was quite confident that I had a clear understanding of the distinctions between the two. I had worked in organizations that regularly used volunteers to accomplish their mission and felt that the management of these processes were simplistic. Despite these misconceptions, I found that I was able to learn a tremendous amount through our reading, peer interactions, group projects and equally important, my volunteer service as part of this course. There were three significant activities from my hours of volunteering that have dramatically influenced my perception of service. These include scheduling my hours of service, my orientation to the project, and my interaction with other volunteers. Not all of these experiences were positive.

I researched a number of nonprofit charities in my area and found one with which I felt connected to the vision and mission of the organization. Although it was more than an hour away, I settled on a food bank that had a wide range of initiatives which were making a significant impact on the local community. Having selected my nonprofit, I was ready to get started. After going to the organizations website, I found that I had to schedule my time online. Unfortunately, all of the time slots for the days of the week that I could volunteer were all taken. I had invested my time in finding the right nonprofit for whom I would like to provide service hours and yet the opportunities to serve were few and far between. After a bit more research, I was able to volunteer for the Home and School Association for Most Blessed Sacrament Catholic School, as well as donated time with The Lutheran Church – Missouri