Engaging Newcomer and
Immigrant Populations in
Volunteerism and Community
Strengthening
Miriam Vargas
Volunteer
Cory Armstrong-Hoss
Associate Executive and Director of Evaluation
YMCA of SNOHOMISH COUNTY
Andrea Lee, Project Manager, Social Responsibility Initiatives
YMCA of the USA
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Why the Y?
• We believe that communities are strongest when everyone has
an opportunity to work together on a shared community vision
through volunteerism.
• We believe that social cohesion and a collective sense of
responsibility develops from inviting people from different
walks of life to volunteer together.
• The Y engages 9 million youth and 13 million adults each year in
10,000 communities around the U.S.
• Our history: the nation’s first-known ESL class was held for
German immigrants in 1856 at a YMCA in Cincinnati.
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Who is in our community?
Mapping Immigrant America
Search: ‘immigrant dot map’
http://personal.tcu.edu/kylewalker/immigrant-america/
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The Community Surrounding the Mukilteo
Family YMCA: Median Income
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The Community Surrounding the Mukilteo
Family YMCA: Hispanic Population
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Getting to know newcomer communities in your area:
Conduct a Community Inventory
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This is about them, not you
• Listen to and learn what your target community needs.
• Offer to work with them toward something they need.
• Your leader needs to interact with the community
frequently – not just in meetings.
• Over time, their leaders will emerge and be apparent.
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Miriam’s GED class
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Minerva
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Leadership: invest and stick around
• Invest in the community – and demonstrate this.
• Know names and their children’s names. Share your
life.
• Trust and credibility take time to build. Your org’s
leaders must stick around for awhile. Developing these
productive relationships can’t happen in 6-12 months.
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Embajadores (Advisors)
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DOING WITH, not to
• After identifying needs and a few leaders, find out how to
regularly engage.
• Learn more: what is your group excited about? How would they
like to serve their community? Where do those desires overlap
with your mission and programs?
• Discuss: What could we do together? Who do we need to be
successful?
• Decide as a group the best way to communicate and share
responsibility.
• After programs or events, talk with your volunteers about how
it went.
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Spanish language swim lessons
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Volunteer Leadership Structure and Identity:
Take it Slow
• Don’t force your organization’s traditional roles and
meeting structures on volunteers.
• Use care when asking someone to serve in a formal or
‘gate-keeping’ role.
• Allow the volunteer group to discover its own identity.
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Kermes 2016
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Kermes 2017
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Volunteers of the Year
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Thank You!
MIRIAM VARGAS, YMCA OF SNOHOMISH COUNTY
CORY ARMSTRONG-HOSS, YMCA of SNOHOMISH COUNTY
ANDREA LEE, YMCA OF THE USA
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