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Volunteer Hours Count For Community

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By LAURA CONE

The Sun

Published: March 18, 2009

Members of a Volunteer Count Task Force estimate it would take 178 full-time employees to do as much work as the volunteer service provided by members of the Sun City Center Community Association in 2008.
Ann Marie Leblanc, a member of the Sun City Center Community Association board of directors, and head of the special taskforce, said she was thrilled SCC CA members turned in 370,342 hours of community service.

"I wanted to show that Sun City Center is a unique place to live," Leblanc said. She is helping organize a recognition day April 22 at 10 a.m. at Community Hall, featuring speakers and refreshments.

Also, March 25 at 3 p.m., more than 500 volunteers will gather at the softball field behind Community Hall for a people photograph spelling out Sun City Center 2008 Volunteers. The photo will be taken by photographer Jim Johnson with Photography by James Corwin Johnson. "We also are going to try for national coverage in national magazines," Leblanc said. "I was amazed by the total. I think people in Sun City Center look for ways they can help others. It's just amazing."

She said they will not tally volunteer hours in 2009 because they need time to examine the results, but plan to do another count in 2010.

After certifying the volunteer hours, the members of the taskforce submitted the information to the governor's Points of Lights award program and the presidents' Volunteer Service Award in hopes of earning state and national recognition.

"This was just a kickoff, I'm sure in 2010 they will have a bang-up count," she said. "We hope this is going to show a positive reason to the rest of the country as to why they should come and look at SCC as a retirement place," she said.

Of the 11,000 SCC CA members, 3,689 turned in their hours for the project.

Phyllis Hodge of Sun City Center, a member of the taskforce, said the effort to count volunteer hours started in September 2008.

"We know people who said they never got around to turning in their hours," Hodge said. "We really did not have any idea how much people volunteered. We were surprised by the enormity of it."

She said the volunteer hours would have been even higher if it had included Kings Point volunteers who are making their own separate tally. For more info about being in the photo, call (813) 642-2047.

Reach Laura Cone at lcone@mediageneral.com.

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