Good afternoon. Thank you all for joining me in our monthly meeting. As you all know, we have been striving to meet the expectations set by our grant here at WRAAP. We have succeeded in meeting the quota of students enrolled for this quarter. I am proud of the work you have done to enhance the learning in our students. I am proud of the effort each of you put in on a daily basis. I am proud of the excitement you add to the program. (anaphora) However, while we are constantly accepting new applications for student enrollment, it is getting more difficult to meet the needs of each individual student.

Over the last few months, our volunteer participation has dropped significantly, making it difficult to operate with just you, our paid staff. In order to meet the needs of our students, and to lighten your workload, it is imperative that we recruit more volunteers. Since there are seven of you, I want you each to recruit at least ten volunteers within the next few months. At the end of each month, we will award the person who gets the most volunteers with a gift certificate for a dinner for two. Remember, every volunteer helps. One tiny pebble thrown into a pond will leave big ripples in the water. (antithesis) The same goes for each volunteer. They all have the potential to contribute a lot to our organization. All hands are needed here at WRAAP. (synecdoche)

Many of you may be wondering how to recruit volunteers. Word of mouth is the best way. Many of you are in school, so spread the word in all your classes. Talk to your professors because they may want to incorporate service learning into a class project. If you aren’t in school, talk to your friends from your other jobs, from church, or from any other extracurricular activities you do. We are always looking for influential people to visit with the students. If you think your doctor, for instance, is influential, bring them in.

You are not alone in this process of recruiting volunteers. If you have been speaking with someone about volunteering and would like me to give them more information, feel free to have them call me or email me. I would be more than willing to help guide you through this process.

While recruiting volunteers, think of the children. We are trying to mold them into becoming educated, productive members of society. Always keep in mind that one person does not make a community, but that the community makes the person. (chiasmus) In the meantime, please recruit as many volunteers as you can and remember that I am here to help if you need it.