Jackson Free Press

The holidays have passed, but the spirit of giving—or more precisely, giving back—remains in Jackson, thanks in part to a new initiative of the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership.

On Feb. 17, the GJCP unveiled Volunteer Greater Jackson Center with an event at Millsaps College. The volunteer center is one of a series of projects in Greater Jackson Vision 2022, a 10-year long-range plan for the Jackson metropolitan area.

"We are not just Jackson. We are Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties," Volunteer Greater Jackson board President Crisler Boone told the audience.

When it opens, chamber officials say the center will provide a space where people looking for opportunities to volunteer can get hooked up with area nonprofits. Boone explained how the center will work:

"Say I'm a volunteer, and I'm looking for, say, something in education or health care, I can go to (the center's) website, log into the database, and I can say, 'I'm available on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday from 2 to 5 and I'm interested in health care and education.' Then the nonprofits in one of those areas will get on there and match me up with a healthcare opportunity."

The chamber received a grant from Volunteer Mississippi totaling $46,700 to seed the project. In addition to establishing the website, some of the funds will go toward setting up an office for in-person volunteer consultations. Kristian Beatty will serve as director of the center, which will be housed in Millsaps' Murrah Hall.

Planners for the center believe Jackson could use an organization to facilitate community participation with existing nonprofit organizations and their projects.

"You don't just go to a community and tell them what they need," said Krista Estes, organizer for Volunteer Mississippi and writer of the grant funding the center. "They have to come to it themselves."

Greater Jackson Chamber President Duane O'Neill said the center is part in line with this spirit of Mississippi.

"Here in Mississippi, we are always acknowledged to be the most philanthropic states," O'Neill said. "That's true in volunteerism, too. We've seen it in emergencies—we've seen it when disaster hits, but even day-to-day, we have so many people that want to volunteer and get involved in this state, and it's not just what (volunteers) will do for those organizations. It's really about helping the (volunteer) feel some pride in what they are doing."

Mayor Tony Yarber, who attended the University of Southern Mississippi and volunteered with groups in Hattiesburg, said volunteerism is vital to the city's strength.

"How do we make people feel accountable for our city? While there may be better job opportunities (elsewhere), there may be better places to make more money, how do we create a situation where they just cannot leave the children that they are volunteering with (or) the senior center where they've been working with since their freshman year in college?"

Therein lies the center's value, Yarber said: "People who get engaged in volunteering are more likely to stay and contribute to a community."

For more information about how to get involved, call 601-589-0708.