History - Pioneers

Susan J. Ellis was more than a passionate advocate for the change that great volunteering could make, and more than a passionate voice for the influence that Volunteer Engagement professionals could make while forging that change.

She ‘walked the walk’ and ‘talked the talk.’ She invested time, money, and her expertise into the development of resources that have become the benchmark of volunteerism the world over.

But more than that, she was a generous soul with a heart that was driven to not only help build volunteerism in her home country – but the world over. Whenever the name ‘Susan J. Ellis’ is brought up at a volunteerism conference or a DOVIA meeting, stories are inevitably shared by volunteer leaders about the knowledge they learned from one of her publications, or the encouragement they personally received while meeting her at the Energize booth during a conference or over a quick chat at the conclusion of a workshop.

To celebrate Ellis’ life, her long-time colleague, friend, and fellow writer Andy Fryar, who serves as manuscript developer for e-Volunteerism, approached key volunteerism leaders from around the world and asked them to share their personal insights about the difference she made to volunteerism in their country – and to them personally. This unique e-Volunteerism feature presents stories and reflections from 10 volunteerism leaders on the influential lift of Susan J. Ellis and her life’s work.

Susan J. Ellis may be best remembered for her prolific writing and famous "Hot Topics," her personal musings on important issues in the volunteer engagement field. But for many people, their fondest memories and biggest 'aha' moments came from Ellis’ work as a trainer. This Training Designs shares the insights and lessons learned from Ellis as she blazed a trail across the field and trained thousands of leaders of volunteers, past and present.  

In its final appearance, Along the Web presents "Impact Susan," a collection of articles about Susan J. Ellis and her lasting impact on the volunteer management profession that appeared around the country following her death in February 2019. Descriptions and links to these publications, online exchanges, and group chats are provided here as Along the Web, which Ellis created, bids farewell.  

This special issue devoted to e-Volunteerism’s Co-Founder Susan J. Ellis begins with a feature by Rob Jackson, the Journal’s new Editor-in-Chief. In this article, Jackson reflects on the legacy of Ellis and her life’s work, including how and why she started the profession’s first online journal 20 years ago. He also shares reflections on Ellis’ work that has emerged in the last 17 months since her passing. And he looks ahead to the future of e-Volunteerism by sharing, he writes, some “exciting news and plans about the future for the Journal.”

Loyal readers of e-Volunteerism will remember Ivan Scheier as part of the journal’s advisory team and frequent contributor until his death in 2008. He was a pioneer and mentor to many of us and we devoted an entire issue in 2009 in tribute to him. He was also a prolific writer. In this Voices, we reprint one of Scheier's article on values that evolved in various stages between 1975 and 1998. It does not surprise us that the challenges Scheier laid down more than 40 years ago remain pointed today.

Here is part of Scheier's introduction to the topic:

I believe volunteerism has the potential to integrate with the best and most powerful values in our society today. We can draw more fully on that power if only we will understand, appreciate, and publicize values. This means raising our own consciousness first, launching dialogue and debate, reaching some decision on what the main values are, then announcing them.  The first announcement should be to ourselves – volunteer leaders and volunteers. Then announcements should be made to the world. The purpose is to buttress our case for fundamental, rather than ornamental, status in the world of work and caring, to place us more securely in the mainstream of society. This article attempts to stimulate dialogue.

We're all trying to up our training game and learn best practices from those with demonstrated experience and excellence as trainers. Who better to learn from than e-Volunteerism’s very own Betty Stallings? The journal’s first editor of the Training Designs section, Stallings is a respected thought leader in volunteer engagement and training throughout the country and abroad.

As Stallings comes to the end of her training career, Erin Spink, the current Training Designs editor, interviewed Stallings and asked her to share not only her best training ideas but also additional tips, tricks, and recommendations to help today’s trainers grow in skills and knowledge. Stallings summarizes lessons from a lifetime of training experiences during her career as an international trainer, consultant, author, and keynote speaker who specialized in volunteerism, nonprofit fundraising, board development, and leadership. This opportunity to hear from one of the profession’s most revered trainers is not to be missed.

Intrepid Australian volunteer and traveler Louise Rogers writes:

Don’t you love travelling? The preparation…the journey…the reflections…the recollections…and ah!...the experiences to be had?

I’ve had an amazing journey over the past 25 years, working in the voluntary sector in Australia and, in particular, the field of educating those who work with and lead volunteer effort. I’ve travelled through this time with many colleagues and friends, accumulating some wonderful experiences and being part of incredible changes in the volunteer world in Australia.

Now in the first flush of retirement, I have the opportunity, indeed the privilege, to reflect on those adventures – the challenges, the achievements, and the lessons learned along the way. As I look back, the landscape is barely recognizable. Like every other area of our lives, volunteerism is responding and adapting to rapid social, cultural, and economic changes.

Join Rogers in this special e-Volunteerism feature as she reflects on a quarter century in the volunteer world. You may find yourself nodding and smiling in recognition.

In his final Along the Web, internationally-recognized author Steve McCurley presents a reference to himself: a guide to “where to find Steve McCurley’s stuff on the Web,” neatly divided into Books, Articles and the ever-popular “Other” category. This is one of those articles to bookmark, print and keep, scan and store. The writings of Steve McCurley, and his impact on the volunteerism profession, are definitely worth keeping. 

Steve McCurley, co-founder and publishing editor of e-Volunteerism, is retiring as of June 2012. We will truly miss him. In this send-off article, e-Volunteerism invited his colleagues and friends to give Steve a stylish exit as he embarks on new adventures. We requested that everyone focus on the things Steve has said, in writing or in presentations, that resonate for each of us. Words have always been the heart of his contributions to the volunteer field, so it seems fitting for us to highlight the words we think of as “McCurleyisms.”