Hands On Nashville, Inc.
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615-298-1108
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2525 Perimeter Place Drive Suite 121
Nashville, TN 37214
Organization Details

Programs

Budget
$250,000.00
Description
During the 2022-2023 service year, HON AmeriCorps members dedicated more than 24,000 hours of service. These 23 national service participants spent a year building capacity for 17 area nonprofits.

Out in the community, members introduced parents of young children to ways to support healthy brain development, distributed diapers to families who attended well baby clinics, led river cleanups, and provided showers to people experiencing homelessness.

Behind the scenes, they analyzed program data, translated materials to make programs more accessible, managed communications with other nonprofit programs, and created video content to move programs forward during the pandemic.

AmeriCorps members are trained annually to prepare for a critical role in volunteer leadership should Davidson Co. have to activate in the wake of a natural or man-made disaster.
Program Areas Served
Middle Tennessee
Budget
$37,500.00
Description
Hands On team members got out into the community as often as possible in 2023, sharing the message about volunteering. In the fall, the organization hired a new fulltime Volunteer Engagement Coordinator to help conduct this important work. Hands On Nashville team members connected with potential volunteers at 28 community events. Our community engagement staff presented to six groups about the need for volunteers and how to sign up.

Hands On added the Recite Me toolbar to its website, which translates text into more than 140 languages and can read aloud in nearly 100 dialects. It also includes accessibility tools for people with visual impairments or different ways of processing written information, such as contrast filters and dyslexia-friendly fonts.

The second annual Nashville Volunteer Week included a new volunteer fair at Shelby Park where more than 30 organizations came out to speak with 300+ potential volunteers about serving with their organizations.
Program Areas Served
None
Budget
$302,855.00
Description
Disaster Preparedness
Hands On finalized and trained on an Emergency Response plan and a disaster-specific role for each team member, ensuring that field operations, data support, and community engagement are all functioning effectively. In August, Hands On recruited more than 80 volunteers to act as survivors and to test out Volunteer Reception Center procedures during the Department of Homeland Security's annual Dense Urban Terrain exercise. The Disaster Volunteer Leader program added 36 new DVLs.

Disaster Response
Within an hour of the Dec. Tornadoes passing through, Hands On section chiefs were meeting, reviewing standby protocols with their teams, and planning to activate in the morning. Using systems it had prepared with the VOAD, Hands On identified survivors in need of help and coordinated services from volunteers and inbound response teams. In Madison, more than 1,000 volunteers/174 projects, Springfield had 48 volunteers and Clarksville with 116 volunteers/69 projects.
Program Areas Served
None
Budget
$141,516.00
Description
GeekCause matches Nashville's most talented techies with community partners in need of their services. From tech consultation to solution implementation, GeekCause provides a low-cost platform for agencies to solve tech-based challenges through the support of skilled volunteers.

In 2023, Geekcause engaged 54 tech volunteers at projects serving 35 agencies. Fifteen projects wrapped up in 2023, representing 174 hours of skilled service.

Volunteers helped NAMI optimize their Google Suites, digitized a scholarship application for the Japan-America Society of Tennessee, set up security protocols for Youth Villages, and completed a technology assessment for Siloam Health.
Program Areas Served
None
Budget
$163,360.00
Description
Hands On served more than 160 community partners in 2023. For some, like The Branch, Hands On volunteers are core to their mission to reduce food insecurity on a daily basis. Others like Second Harvest Food Bank come to Hands On for expertise, learning opportunities, and the chance to convene with other nonprofits. Nearly 8,000 volunteers signed up to serve with Hands On Nashville's community partners. Volunteers filled over 18,000 service shifts, giving more than 56,000 hours of their time to meet needs. This represents a 12% increase in the number of volunteer shifts filled to meet needs identified by area schools, nonprofits, and parks.

The Hands On team hosted monthly volunteer orientations that introduced more than 300 new volunteers to the online signup platform. The Community Partner team shared best practices and useful tools with volunteer managers at 10 in-person and virtual Community Partner Conversations. Representatives from more than 130 organizations attended.
Program Areas Served
None
Budget
$389,918.00
Description
Hosted several volunteer groups and conferences with more than 100 participants, partnered with Amazon for a year of service activities, and developed new ways to bring corporate volunteers and community partners together. Two dozen local businesses and inbound conferences engaged more than 2,400 volunteers and spent over 5,000 hours in service. Coordinated 51 projects on behalf of 32 schools and nonprofits. Corporate partners invested more than $60,000 in supplies to benefit the community. Volunteers cleared mountains of bush honeysuckle, renewed elementary playgrounds, and refreshed Stratford High School's halls, stairwells, and teacher's lounge. They created trauma response kits for schools, planted native trees, made blankets for foster youth, and put together thousands of weekend snack bags for MNPS students facing food insecurity. Notably, volunteers cleared invasive plants at the Native American Indian Association's Bell Road property helping maintain its property tax exemption.
Program Areas Served
None

CEO/Executive Director/Board Comments

Today, nonprofits cite volunteer management as their No. 1 challenge.* Volunteers echo this sentiment, with 61% reporting that they would serve more often if they had a better understanding of the impact they were making.** Over time, Hands On Nashville's programs, services and role has evolved alongside our city's needs. By connecting our partners with volunteers, we help facilitate meaningful opportunities to give back and help strengthen the community through service. *Volunteer Screening Trends and Best Practices. Sterling Talent Solutions, 2017, Volunteer Screening Trends and Best Practices. *2017 Deloitte Volunteerism Survey. Deloitte Development, LLC., 2017, 2017 Deloitte Volunteerism Survey.