Volunteer Canada’s theme this year for National Volunteer week is The Value of ONE, The Power of Many. There is no doubt in the right situation one’s actions combined with many others can result in a A GOOD NEWS STORY and A GOOD HAPPENING.

Here is a story that proves this adage:

The BTC (Bruce Trail Conservancy) was started by volunteers in 1967. Their mission is to protect and steward land along the Niagara Escarpment. However, it is best known for its 900 km hiking trail. They have a few paid staff but most of the work is done by their many volunteers.

Recently, The BTC newsletter reported the BTC had just made an acquisition of 275 acres in the Pine River Nature Reserve in the Dufferin Hills area of Southern Ontario. The money to buy the land came from 2150 donors. Each of the individual donors created value by making a donation for this purpose. The power though came when each of the 2150 donations were pooled together providing enough money to buy this property. The end result is some environmentally important land will be kept in its natural state for years to come, bringing with it the benefits of the outdoors to thousands of hikers and others, and preserving a habitat to many species of beautiful birds, deer, and other wildlife.

Because thousands of trees will be preserved, it will also help to counter the impact of greenhouse gases. Scientists tell us each tree will absorb 48 pounds of Co2/yr. Over 40 years this is one ton. A GOOD HAPPENING indeed.

I am sure you can think of some good stories of your own. Or simply by making a small contribution to a situation with money or your actions, and combining it with contributions from others, you can be a part of a Good News and GOOD Happening Story

Chris Snyder is the author of the book "Creating Opportunities - A Volunteer's Memoir," published by Hilborn's Civil Sector Press. Chris is one of the early pioneers in the Canadian financial planning world. Chris understands that while much of life revolves around money; life is about much more than that. He has been a founder and/or board member of many charitable organizations including Project Mainstream in India, Street Kids International and Bakong Technical College in Cambodia, the Canadian Landmine Foundation, Toronto's Youth Employment Services, the Nature Conservancy of Canada(Ont) and Alpine Ontario. A long-time member of the Rotary Club of Toronto, he leads groups of Rotarians to the developing world to build schools and lead other valuable community projects. Most recently he has been working on First Nations initiatives and is the founding chair of HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples). In 2018, Chris was awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers in recognition of his many contributions to volunteering in various communities. He can be reached at snyder@eccgroup.ca

Cover photo by Good Good Good on Unsplash