Quotes for Volunteerism That’ll Motivate and Inspire Action
When you need a dose of inspiration for affirmation that your work matters, reading quotes for volunteerism is a good place to start.
In addition, words have power to motivate people to act and to grow, so by sharing words of wisdom with your volunteers you can encourage them to engage more in your mission.
There are countless people you can draw inspiration from: Martin Luther King Jr., Helen Keller, Gandhi, Anne Frank, and too many more great leaders to mention!
We have rounded up some of our favorite quotes for volunteerism with the hope that reading them brightens your day and invites more engagement from your volunteers.
Volunteer Recruitment Quotes
Crafting copy for your organization’s volunteering webpage or social media recruitment posts?
Consider adding some of these quotes to inspire action!
“Doing nothing for others is the undoing of ourselves.” – Benjamin Franklin
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
– Anne Frank
“Help one another, there’s no time like the present and no present like the time.” – James Durst
“You make a living by what you get; you make a life by what you give.” – Winston Churchill.
“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day.” – Sally Koch
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
“If you want to touch the present, touch a flower. If you want to touch the future, touch a life.”
– Unknown
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” – Dr. Seuss
“The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” – William Shakespeare
“I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back.” – Maya Angelou
Volunteer Appreciation Quotes
Wondering how you can show appreciation to your volunteers from afar?
Consider taking a few moments and write one of these quotes in a notecard to mail to them.
“Every action of our lives touches on some chord that will vibrate in eternity.” – Edwin Hubbell Chapin
“Giving to others selflessly and anonymously, radiating light throughout the world and illuminating your own darkness, your virtue becomes a sanctuary for yourself and all beings.” – Laozi
“To give without any reward, or any notice, has a special quality of its own.” – Anne Morrow Lindbergh
“I’ve seen and met angels wearing the disguise of ordinary people leading ordinary lives” – Tracy Chapman
“If you become a helper of hearts, springs of wisdom will flow from your heart.” – Rumi
“Volunteers are the only human beings on the face of the earth who reflect this nation’s compassion, unselfish caring, patience, and just plain loving one another.” – Erma Bombeck
“Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the HEART” – Elizabeth Andrew.
“The measure of a life is not its duration, but its donation.” – Peter Marshall
“Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.” – Sherry Anderson
“Volunteers are not servants. Volunteers are partners working together for improving America’s future.” – Mayor Richard Daly
Volunteer Training Quotes
Our 2021 Volunteer Management Progress Report found that supervision is the number one challenge facing volunteer managers today.
This could be due to the divide volunteers and volunteer managers are feeling due to COVID restrictions on in-person volunteering.
If you are facing challenging times with your volunteer team, we hope you again some inspiration from the quotes below.
“My philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.” – Oprah Winfrey
“Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know.” – Daniel J. Boorstin
“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn” – Benjamin Franklin
“I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
“I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.” – Edward Everett
“…the world is a giant community now. This excuse of distance, time, doesn’t work…We’re all so connected. We can’t spend every second of our lives worrying about another family miles away but we somehow have to factor it in where we can.”– Ralph Fiennes
“When you’re in the day-to-day grind, it just seems like it’s another step along the way. But I find joy in the actual process, the journey, the work. It’s not the end. It’s not the end event.” – Cal Ripken, Jr.
“We learned about honesty and integrity – that the truth matters… that you don’t take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules… and success doesn’t count unless you earn it fair and square.” – Michelle Obama
“Man is always inclined to be intolerant towards the thing, or person, he hasn’t taken the time adequately to understand.” – Robert R. Brown
“We cannot always build a future for our youth, but we can always build our youth for the future.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
Volunteer Impact Quotes
Does your organization create a volunteer impact portfolio, or do you want to start?
Impact portfolios are critical to demonstrate to your colleagues, clients, board, volunteers, and the community in general, that your volunteers are valuable.
Create an eye-catching and inspiring report by including some of the quotes about volunteerism impact.
“Joy can only be real if people look upon their life as a service and have a definite object in life outside themselves and their personal happiness.”- Leo Tolstoy
“Great things are brought about and burdens are lightened through the efforts of many hands “anxiously engaged in a good cause.” – M. Russell Ballard
“If every American donated five hours a week, it would equal the labor of 20 million full-time volunteers.” – Whoopi Goldberg
“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.” – Unknown
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Rachel Mueller-Lust
“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”
– Warren Buffett
“If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain; If I can ease one life the aching, or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin unto his nest again, I shall not live in vain.” – Emily Dickinson
“Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.” – John Wesley
“Not being able to do everything is no excuse for not doing everything you can.” – Ashleigh Brilliant
“When the story of these times gets written, we want it to say that we did all we could, and it was more than anyone could have imagined.” – Edward De Bono
Bonus Quotes for Volunteer Coordinators!
As an extra bonus, below are a few quotes just for you, the leader of volunteers, from VolunteerPro founder Tobi Johnson. Tape one up in your office to inspire your day!
“In order for volunteers to invest their time, the experience must be worth their time” – Tobi Johnson
“Rather than solely the act of ‘lending a hand,’ volunteerism is a kind of self-actualization. It represents a profound and personal search for meaning.” – Tobi Johnson
“Volunteer coordinators are merchants of hope & inspiration; they must focus on the possibilities not the problems.” – Tobi Johnson
“Which would you rather be – a struggling one-man band or a finely-tuned symphony orchestra? Invite volunteers to be equal partners with a shared stake in your future.” – Tobi Johnson
“Successful volunteer recruitment helps busy people partner with your organization to do what’s important to BOTH them AND you.” – Tobi Johnson
“Honestly …I mean honestly! …ask yourself, ‘What tasks or projects on my To Do list can volunteer teams help with, given the right direction and support?’ Your answer may surprise you.” – Tobi Johnson
“Supporters want to be part of something bigger than themselves. Offer roles that fulfill their greater purpose.” – Tobi Johnson
“Working against human nature is like trying to stop a waterfall.” – Tobi Johnson
“People often don’t arrive at decisions based on a logical analysis of costs and benefits. They choose based on what they feel.” – Tobi Johnson
“Commitment is a process, not a destination.” – Tobi Johnson
“Avoid desperate pleas for help; they only cast doubts on whether your program is worthy of support.” – Tobi Johnson
“Find volunteers where they live, not where you are comfortable — Why fish for tuna in a trout pond?” – Tobi Johnson
“Successful volunteer recruitment inspires others and convinces beyond a doubt by providing relevant information right up front and answering the questions volunteers often keep hidden.” – Tobi Johnson
“Volunteer talent management is all about supporting volunteers so that they can take personal risks and emerge victorious.” – Tobi Johnson
What are Your Thoughts on Reading Quotes for Volunteerism?
Does reading inspirational quotes for volunteerism make you feel energized?
Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.
