Why Volunteer at LaunchSpace?
As a small nonprofit, LaunchSpace Inc. (LS) highly values its volunteers. Volunteers make it possible to keep our space open, safe, clean and exciting. There are many opportunities for volunteers to get involved — from one hour per week, helping organize tools, to more than 20 hours per week, supporting the senior level staff in operations, marketing and fundraising.
In particular, we count on our volunteers to do our most important task: keeping the makerspace fun, vibrant, clean and safe. We feel these roles are best done by community members donating their time and talent in support of our mission: to creating opportunities for the community to participate in, offer feedback and endorse our work.
We also need volunteers who have the skills, experiences, and talents beyond what our excellent professional staff already bring to LS.
LaunchSpace Inc., is also committed to helping cultivate new professionals in a variety of fields. Therefore, we reserve certain tasks and roles for volunteer interns, to provide career-development experiences to emerging professionals.
Benefits of Volunteering
Volunteering at LS can be on an occasional, monthly, or on-going basis. LS offers incentives for volunteers:
- A free locker at the MakerSpace building (based on availability)
- Free membership for volunteer steward or volunteers who contribute ten or more hours per week
- Volunteers get 50% off community garden beds at our Pleasant Street School location (based on availability)
- Free access to select events
Volunteers experience a myriad of benefits including:
- Feeling needed
- Giving back to the community
- Sharing skills
- Fulfilling a spiritual need or obligation
- Having a change of pace
- Getting to know the community better
- Helping someone
- Making new friends
- Exploring a career
- Being an advocate
- Donating time
- Fulfilling a mandate or requirement
- Doing something outside of oneself
- Setting an example for children
- Channeling a passion
- Learning about nonprofits up close
- Contributing to the community on a flexible, part-time basis
- Having fun while making a difference
Volunteer Positions
Assistant Volunteer Manager
The Volunteer Manager is responsible for managing the daily operations of the Volunteer program, including recruitment, training and scheduling of individual and group volunteers and interns. The Volunteer Manager works closely with the Chief Executive Officer to coordinate special visitor groups, support special events, and assist with other projects as needed.
Social Media Manager
The Social Media Manager is tasked to implement the Strategic Outreach and Marketing plan. The Social Media Manager will focus on the following areas: social media content creation, trend research, and impact tracking. Social Media Manager will work directly with Fundraising & Marketing Manager and/or Chief Executive Officer.
WordPress Manager
The WordPress Developer is responsible for both back-end and front-end development, including creating WordPress themes and plugins. This position requires a combination of programming skills (namely PHP, HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript) and aesthetics (understanding element arrangements on the screen, the color and font choices, etc).
Administrative Assistant
The Administrative Assistant and Bookkeeper position is responsible for providing office support, clerical, and daily bookkeeping tasks to ensure LSI adheres to best practices and requirements for non-profit business operations and reporting. Confidentiality, efficient time management, excellent organizational skills, and attention to accuracy are essential qualifications for this position, as is the ability to communicate clearly.
Grant Writer
The volunteer Grant Writer will be responsible for researching, writing and coordinating the grant application process; management of proposals to foundations and corporate sources in pursuit of fundraising goals.
Shop Steward
Shop Stewards are dedicated volunteers who play a key role at LaunchSpace by helping with maintenance and cleaning of specific LaunchSpace areas and equipment, assisting in the Tool Training and Testing process (qualifying new members to grant them access to LaunchSpace tools and equipment). Serving as an in-house mentor and helper who can answer questions about specific tools, processes and crafts to help members better their skills, use of equipment and improve the quality of their projects.
Tool Master
The tool master is a jack of all trades. This position is instrumental in making sure the tools are in good, safe working order. The tools master works in most all workshops and with the stewards to go through the tools and help with maintenance and making the leadership team aware when tools may need to be replaced.
Floor Helper
The floor helper is the glue of the operation. This position is for someone with a friendly personality and like to be all around helpful, whether it’s giving a tour or cleaning up and organizing at the end of the day, the floor helper keeps the space running smoothly.