Cape Abilities Receives Recognition for Volunteer Engagement

Pictured, from left to right, Emily Haber, CEO, Mass. Service Alliance, Lisl Hacker, Director of Training and Technical Assistance, Mass. Service Alliance, Jonathan Sproul, President/CEO, Cape Abilities, Moira Swiatkowski, Volunteer Coordinator, Cape Abilities, and Natalye Paquin, President & CEO, Points of Light

HYANNIS – Cape Abilities recently received the Service Enterprise Initiative Transformation Award for implementing a volunteer model.

Massachusetts Service Alliance presented the award to the organization, which helps individuals with disabilities throughout Cape Cod, at the 2019 Massachusetts Conference on Volunteerism.

The SEI program helps organizations enhance nonprofit capacity through the use of volunteers and their skills to address community needs.

Cape Abilities completed the SEI program and became a certified Service Enterprise in 2018 by Points of Light, an organization dedicated to volunteer service.

“When an organization embraces Service Enterprise on all levels, great things happen,” said Emily Haber, the CEO of the Massachusetts Service Alliance.

“We are proud to honor Cape Abilities, who joined our Cape Cod cohort in 2017. They are an outstanding example of the power of Service Enterprise as they have fully, and with great impact, integrated this model into their organization.”

Cape Abilities has significantly grown and improved its volunteer program since becoming a Service Enterprise.

The organization hired a part-time volunteer coordinator, which has led to improved processing and onboarding of volunteers.

Overall individual volunteers and hours served has increased by 63 percent and the number of volunteer applications has doubled.

“Volunteers create consistency,” said James Barnes, the director of Social Enterprises at Cape Abilities. “Having a dedicated volunteer that is a familiar name and face that engages with our participants is invaluable.”

In Massachusetts, 38 nonprofit organizations and agencies have received their Service Enterprise Initiative certification.