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VOLUNTEER RECOGNITIONS

All registered Katy ISD volunteers are invited to attend the annual VIPS Celebration Breakfast in the spring where campus Volunteers of the Year are recognized, and in addition, campuses hold individual volunteer recognition events.

What is a Sussie? A sussie is a small, inexpensive favor given in return for volunteer service performed.

VIPS Coordinators; please let us know how you recognize the volunteers on your campus, and read about some other ways you can thank your volunteers. 

Do you love your volunteers a "Hundred Grand" but don't have "Mounds" of money to spend? Learn how to stretch your volunteer recognition budget with inexpensive thank you gifts from the heart. Download our Volunteer Care Kit  or Sussie Booklet for some more ideas like these.

                           
Thanks for putting the "tea" in PTA.                 Wishing you and warm and wonderful holiday.

Recognitions and Sussie Index:

• Binder Clip Place Card Holders
• Thanksgiving Harvest Treat
• End Of Year Appreciation Gift for your Parent Organization Board (student photograph)
• Volunteer Survival Kit
• Volunteer Luncheon
• Holiday Sussie Ideas
• Notepads
• Flower pens
• President's Volunteer Service Award
• Lifesaver matchbooks
• Marble magnets
• Volunteer Care Kit and Sussie Booklet (contains Teacher Recognition ideas)
• Decorative legal pad
• VIPS confetti pins
• Volunteer pins
• Shrinky Dinks!
• Volunteer gathering
• Valentine's Day ideas (may be adapted for any other occasion). Updated 1/18/2008.
• Crimped containers
• Decorate a brown paper bag
• Playing card treat holders

This page last updated March 29, 2008

Binder Clip Place Card Holders

You will need:

• Medium binder clips
• Pieces of paper, 3x5cm for each clip. You may use colored paper, old maps or patterned paper to match the theme of your event, and write or print a message if desired
• Double sided tape
• Roll narrow ribbon, allow 2” per clip
• Glue dots (roll of clear, adhesive dots on backing paper)
• Place cards as required by event

1. Using double sided tape, stick 3x5cm piece of paper on base of binder clip, folding it over to cover the entire base, leaving the ends open.
2. Tie small bow at end of the roll of ribbon, and cut the ribbon.
3. Stick bow onto one of the glue dots on the roll, peel it off the backing paper and stick it on the corner of the binder clip.
4. Place holder on the table, with the arms uppermost. Insert place card between arms.

click here for printer friendly instructions

Thanksgiving Harvest Treat:

Make a Thanksgiving harvest 'trail mix' using nuts, fall colored M&M's, gum drops and candy corn. Fill individual bags, and attach a label with the following greeting: "THANKS for GIVING to our volunteer program. We would go NUTS without you!" Click here for instructions.

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End of Year Appreciation Gift for your Parent Organization Board:

This gift is sure to bring a tear to the eyes of the recipient. Request that your teachers have the child of every board member write a letter to their parent, thanking them for all they do for the school. Laminate the letter. Take a picture of each child holding a sign that says "Thanks Mom", and frame the picture. Present the picture and laminated letter at the end of the school year. Click here for a printer friendly set of instructions.

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Volunteer Survival Kit: 

Choose items from the Volunteer Survival Kit list. Place each item in a cute bag, and type the saying for each of the chosen items on a piece of paper, and attach it to the bag. There are many more ideas that can be used for a Volunteer Survival Kit in the Volunteer Care Kit and the Sussie Booklet.

  Volunteer Survival Kit

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Volunteer luncheon: “You deliver, so we can!”

Creech Elementary hosted a luncheon in the school library for their volunteers. It was centered on their campus mail (FRED) theme, and titled: “You deliver, so we can!”
Decorations: The library entrance was decorated red, white and blue with a mailman theme, and the tables were decorated with mailboxes.
Food: Empanadas were ordered from the Empanada house, and teachers made salads and desserts.
Sussies: Volunteers received a hard covered notebook and pen decorated with the theme.
Entertainment: Each grade level had a few students that entertained the volunteers. “The 4 Tenors”, our male teachers, sang Elvis Presley’s ‘Return to Sender’ with the lyrics changed by the principal to fit our wonderful volunteers. Our coach (Sunshine Chairman) wrote a two page poem that had the volunteers roaring. Student Council had a presentation, and we had 2 students deliver mail to the volunteers shortly after they sat down. They were postcards from our students. The parents loved that! About 57 volunteers attended, and fun was had by all!

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Holiday Sussie Ideas

Snowman Soup
Place the following items in a bag:
1. 1 package instant cocoa mix
2. 1 candy cane
3. mini-marshmallows
4. small candy items
Use ribbon to close the top of the bag. Decorate and attach the following verse to the bag or ribbon.
                                                                  
Snowman Soup:
Was told you’ve been really good this year
Always glad to hear it.
With freezing weather drawing near
You’ll need to warm the spirit.
So here’s a little Snowman Soup
Complete with stirring stick.
Add hot water, sip it slow
It’s sure to do the trick.

Reese's Cup Trees
Place 5-7 pony beads onto a green pipe cleaner. Wind the pipe cleaner around a candlestick to form a spiral (this is your tree). Space the beads evenly on the tree, and top with a star bead. Glue to a Reese’s Cup (this is your base).

Rudolph Candy Cane
Attach 2 eyes, red nose and jingle bell to a candy cane. To make the antlers, cut one brown pipe cleaner in half, and wrap around the top of the candy cane. Cut the remaining half in half again, and twist onto the antlers.

Heart Candy Canes
Place 2 candy canes together to form a heart. Glue at top and bottom. Decorate with ribbons and beads.

Candy Train
Wrap a roll of Lifesavers with holiday paper. Attach the following candies to make a train: 4 wrapped peppermints (wheels), 1 wrapped caramel (smoke stack), 1 Hershey’s kiss (smoke on top of smoke stack).

Volunteer Recognition in a Box
Wrap a small box, tie it with ribbon and attach the following message. 
A Christmas Gift of Love:
Within this little box
Lies my Christmas wish for you.
For a peaceful, happy holiday
And joy the whole year through.
Please do not unwrap it
For wishes can't be touched.
Just hold the box close to your heart
And know you mean so much.

Click here for printer friendly version of the Holiday Sussie ideas.

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Notepads

1. Cut 2 shapes out of cardstock or construction paper for front and back covers. Use die cut shape if desired, and decorate appropriately.
2. Cut 20 shapes out of white copy paper for notepad pages.
3. Assemble notepads and staple together to make a notepad, or punch a hole to insert in notebook, or secure with a binder ring.

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Flower Pens

1. Pull (or cut) the plastic flower off the stem. Leaves can be included if desired.
2. Pop the end off the pen
3. Apply hot glue to the end of the pen, and insert the flower into the glue.
4. Allow glue to dry, and wrap floral tape around the pen to secure the flower in place.
5. Continue to wrap floral tape around the pen's barrel to about 1/2 inch above the tip of the pen.
6. Arrange in a flower pot or attach to small notepad.

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President's Volunteer Service Award

The President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation partners with organizations to deliver the President’s Volunteer Service award to volunteers. The President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes individuals, families, and groups that have achieved a certain standard – measured by the number of hours served over a 12-month period or cumulative hours earned over the course of a lifetime. Adult volunteers receive a bronze pin for 100-249 hours, silver pin for 250-499 hours and a gold pin for 500 hours or more. The Lifetime pin is awarded for 4,000 hours or more of volunteer service. The award package costs $1-$2.
Award recipients receive:

1. An official President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) lapel pin
2. A personalized certificate of achievement
3. A congratulatory letter from the President of the United States
4. A letter from the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation

More information can be found in the handout The President's Volunteer Service Award, or by visiting the web site http://www.presidentialserviceawards.gov/ or by calling 1-866-545-5307.

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 Katy ISD VIPS Confetti Pins

VIPS Coordinators may order VIPS confetti pins for their campus volunteers from the PIE office, at the beginning of each school year. Each pin measures 1.25“ x 1“. The cost will be determined by the number of pins ordered. Contact Martha Brown for more information.

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VIPS Confetti Pins: Rylander Elementary School

Each month, all registered volunteers at Rylander Elementary who report volunteer hours are eligible to win a VIPS confetti pin in a drawing. The names of the lucky winners are posted at the welcome desk and in the campus newsletter.  

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Volunteer pins

A perfect 'end of the year' gift for volunteers, parents or teachers these pins can also be adapted for any occasion or holiday. You will need access to computer graphics, card stock, rubber cement, Modge Podge (or similar product, available from craft stores), tacky glue, pin backs and scissors.

1. Print selected computer image onto white paper.
2. Cut out image leaving a 1/4 inch border on all sides.
3. Glue to card stock. Using rubber cement will give you a flat surface as it dries.
4. Smooth out any bubbles that may have been created using your finger.
5. Cut out image using regular or fancy edged scissors.
6. Cover front and back of pin with Modge Podge and allow to dry.
7. Glue pin on pack with tacky glue.

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Shrinky Dinks: Williams Elementary School and Rylander Elementary School

Williams Elementary recognizes their Volunteers of the Month with a “Shrinky Dink” pin. Pins can be designed on the computer, and pins made using supplies from http://www.shrinkydinks.com/. Pin backs can be bought locally from Hobby Lobby and Michael's, and the designs are sealed using nail polish. Distinctive pins can also be designed for volunteers who work in specific areas of the school.

      Rylander Elementary uses Shrinky Dink pins to recognize volunteer milestones.
      Once the basic design was made, it was easy to change the color scheme.
      Red for 25 hours, green for 50 hours, and silver for 75 hours. 
      For an illustrated set of instructions click here.

Volunteer Gathering: West Memorial Junior High School 

Each six weeks, the VIPS Coordinator at West Memorial Junior High serves coffee and donuts at a volunteer gathering, during which volunteer hours recognitions are distributed.

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Valentine's Day
The following Valentine Day ideas can be adapted for any occasion or holiday season. Be creative!

Valentine's Day is a great opportunity to recognize your volunteers, and thank them for their dedication and time.

Heart Card Treat Holder