Volunteers play a crucial role at ISSofBC, so this Volunteer Day, we wanted to highlight their stories and contributions to our work.
In 2024-25 alone, over 400 volunteers provided roughly 18,000 hours of support to our staff and programs across various departments, including office administration, translation support, mentoring, and leading our popular Conversation Circles.
We are truly grateful for all their work supporting newcomers across BC, which is why we organize special Volunteer Appreciation events to thank our volunteers in person and celebrate their shared successes.
Sarah Sun, a volunteer who attended one of these events recently in Vancouver, had this to say: “The warmth, collaboration, and spirit of the event really touched my heart. Especially those volunteers who have dedicated more than ten years to ISSofBC – they are true role models for me.”
Inspiring the next generation of volunteers
This event also included special recognition for Omar Ilsley, who has volunteered with ISSofBC for 16 years and has become a valuable mentor and a tremendous inspiration to other volunteers. Currently, Omar is closely involved in training volunteer mentors and matching them with suitable newcomer mentees.
For Lidiya, a Digital Mentor and tech support volunteer, the Appreciation event was an excellent celebration for the volunteers: “We had an amazing time and truly enjoyed the delicious food, the music, the games, and the warm atmosphere.”
Lidiya’s own volunteer experience is an excellent example of the positive contributions our volunteers have made in the lives of newcomers. Lidiya is one of the volunteers who runs weekly in-person computer sessions with newcomers with low digital literacy, teaching them how to use computers and online services.
It’s easy to forget, but many of our newcomer clients are not used to accessing so many online services, having come from countries where many services are provided offline. This means the digital literacy training sessions our volunteers support are crucial for newcomers so they can search for jobs and start building their lives in British Columbia.
Interested in volunteering? Sign up today!
Volunteering allows you to directly support newcomers and contribute your unique skills and experience to help others. Discover the current volunteer opportunities here.
