Volunteer Spotlight – What it means to be 100% volunteer run

Did you know?
Stork Support of Northern Colorado is 100% volunteer run. What does that mean? It means that our organization operates solely through the efforts of volunteers. 

Studies show that volunteering your time and skills can lead to better health physically, mentally and emotionally. This benefit is how our founder, Lisa, started Stork Support. And it is why it is just as important to us to host volunteer opportunities as it is to host distribution events for our community.

Check out this article HERE to read about our Executive Director, Nikola’s journey with volunteering.

Now let’s be realistic. This isn’t something that is sustainable long-term. The more we grow, the harder it is to meet the needs of the organization through just volunteered time and talent. And we have big dreams of being a part of the solution for our community in need by creating job opportunities where parents can both raise their children and work.

This dream will take time. Currently Stork Support runs on a “shoe-string budget” as they say. But we have faith that growing Stork Support to have paid staff will some day be in our future.

In the meantime, we’ve gained some amazing, committed volunteers since becoming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2021 and today we’d like a spotlight a special one.

Meet Hayley Geisterfer 

Hayley found Stork Support in late 2022. She immediately asked how she could help and offered ideas of where her skill sets, experience and knowledge could be supportive.

She started to research and created a one-page resource list for us along with following up with potential resource contacts.

This was important because Stork Support has always valued being a network for local resources. Often those that we help are new to the area or just don’t know what resources are available to them. It also helped with us maintaining our focus of practical and essential support for the third and fourth trimesters so we could ensure high quality service to our clients.

Soon Hayley was showing up to all our volunteer events and committed to the weekly “power hour” (that’s turned into two hours) that happens in Nikola’s garage most Thursdays.

In 2023 we announced that we were “boxing up” our service offerings, which meant we were moving away from just donations-based product offerings to kit-based to become more equitable and sustainable. You can read more about this shift in service HERE.

With this change we created the Newborn Essentials Kit, everything you need to care for an infant from bottles to swaddles. From January to November 2023 we have distributed 93 NB Essentials Kits and Hayley has boxed up every single one of those!

Starting in January 2024, Hayley’s availability to volunteer is going to look much different as she starts Physician Assistant (PA) School. We are really excited for this next chapter in Hayley’s life and we are super proud of her. But we would be remiss if we didn’t admit that we are a little worried how we are going to run without her weekly volunteer time. Hayley consistently goes above and beyond. We encourage our volunteers to trust their paths, we can do the same.

So, what does Hayley have to say about volunteering this year? We asked and she answered!

What inspired you to volunteer for Stork Support?
​I met Nikola at a kids’ birthday party that our daughters were both invited to. She told me about Stork Support and between her obvious passion, my desire to get more involved in my community, and the fact that the heart of Stork Support is about something I also have cared for deeply – I knew I wanted to get involved.
What Stork Support service offering is ​the most meaningful to you?
I feel strongly about keeping babies fed and diapered no matter the family situation, and Stork Support fills a major gap in that arena, but on a personal level, I find our ‘due date boxes’ to be the most meaningful. To know that families will be bringing home their babies with all the essentials in place, and to make sure moms are cared for as well during the process of recovery, is pretty special. I also think that packing these boxes throughout the year has helped make the service even more meaningful to me. I get to pick out special blankets, clothes, and supplies and pack them with care and love, knowing how important these things that we often take for granted are to our clients. ​
Do you have a favorite moment from volunteering this year?
​Nothing inspirational or magical, but just the ordinary moments with Nikola and Leigh in Nikola’s garage, getting the work done. It has become a family of sorts, where we share in our passion and our frustration at the world, where we laugh or talk about our own life problems, and where we love the families we serve through the work we do.
Why is it important to you to volunteer?
​A combination of things really. I remember a time in my life when I needed help and appreciating how little it takes to go from surviving to struggling, and want to give that help back. I think ordinary people like me help fill the gap between the reality so many families face and policy that has not yet caught up to basic human rights. Knowing that the people we serve are in my very own community – they could be neighbors or someone I pass in the grocery store – makes it even more important for me to take action. Also, for a selfish reason, I find so much purpose and meaning in it personally. It’s a chance to get out of my own little world, feel like I am making a difference in a time that often feels like we can’t do so, and I get to spend time with people I love and admire!