Timeraiser – Capital Style

Kimberly Senf (Twitter) is a displaced Montrealer living in Ottawa, by way of Halifax. She’s a librarian by trade,  currently working for the government as an information manager, organizing and categorizing data and information by day. An avid bookworm, she loves to visit the library and roam the aisles, lugging all-too-many books home each time. Dedicated knitter, coffee lover and garage sale enthusiast, she enjoys wandering around Ottawa neighbourhoods to find previously undiscovered pockets of the city. She’s also one of the co-founders of the retired Montreal blog, The Tragically Unhip.

Imagine bringing home an enticing, brand new piece of art you didn’t spend a penny on. If you’ve ever been to a Timeraiser event and won artwork, you’ll know exactly what this feels like. Saturday night in Ottawa marked Timeraiser’s fifth event in our capital city and, like in years prior, it brought people out in spades to enjoy local artwork and spirited conversations with non-profit agencies. It got people bidding their time in order to have their favourite art pieces living atop their mantles for years to come.

Via @Stuart_Buist on Twitter

In case you don’t know, Timeraiser functions as a volunteer fair and a silent art auction – with an intriguing twist: volunteer hours are used to bid on artwork, rather than money. Asking attendees to volunteer their time rather than open their wallets levels the playing field of interested art aficionados. Purchasing art is an experience not everyone can afford, and volunteering time to a cause of your choice is certainly a unique way to open up the bidding (and the artwork) to anyone with an interest in volunteerism.

One of the volunteer tables at the Timeraiser event (via @HDelphine on Twitter)

The event works as follows: over the course of several months, a variety of artwork is purchased from local artists. Non-profit agencies are approached to participate in the event. On the night of the event, a smattering of these agencies invite attendees into conversation regarding the type of volunteer for which they are looking, and ideally an excellent match is made. After a couple of drinks and a handful of coversations, anyone with the aim of bidding on art surely has their eye on a couple of pieces. Once it’s announced that bidding is open, everyone can bid to their heart’s content on any of the artwork available, but in the spirt of fairness they will only be able to win one piece. Each artwork has a maximum number of 100 volunteer hours that particpants can bid, in order to give winners enough time over the course of the year to complete the volunteer pledge they’ve made to an organization. At the end of the year, each successful art winner/volunteer is presented with the piece they won at the previous Timeraiser, and the fun starts all over again. Sound intruiging? It surely takes the excitement of the silent art auction up a notch or two.

One of the pieces of art up for bid (via @CharityVillage on Twitter)

After hearing about Timeraiser through a friend, I was immediately entranced by the innovative idea and got in touch with the organizers to volunteer. The entire process of setting up for the event is transparent and available to any interested party on the Timeraiser planning site for each city, which is an aspect of the organization that drew my interest. From the moment I met with Amanda, the communications manager for Timeraiser, I was enveloped into the fold and given the go-ahead to tweet, poster and spread the word for the event as far and wide as possible. On the night of the event, getting to work with such an engaged group of people and volunteers was a fantastic introduction to the Timeraiser experience. The goal of the evening was to raise 5,000 volunteer hours for Ottawa, and we came in just shy of the total, at approximately 4,400 hours pledged.

As a volunteer I was encouraged to let other participants bid on artwork, rather than bidding on it myself, so I must admit my new challenge is the dilemma between volunteering with Timeraiser or bidding on next year’s selection of artwork. If the pieces that were on offer this year by Paul Sharp, Tony Taylor, Norah Taylor and Dylan Farrell were any indication of what’s to come, it’s going to be a difficult choice.

Did any of you attend last weekend’s Timeraiser event? We want to hear what you bid on (because this sounds like such a neat experience!)

Canine companionship: Ottawa Therapy Dogs seeks to strengthen animal-human bond

Photo Credit: Brittany Veinot

Ottawa Therapy Dogs is a volunteer organization established in 2000 to promote an understanding of the values and benefits associated with the animal-human bond. The group works with people in such settings as hospitals, nursing homes, retirement homes and schools, offering  more than 100 dog teams that assist with everything from general companionship to healthcare therapy after a medical setback. OTD’s Rachelle Pagé tells us more about this canine community.

Your website tells us Ottawa Therapy Dogs was the first Canadian chapter of the more global Therapy Dogs International. How would you describe Ottawa’s animal community?

Ottawa has quite a big animal community — there are many animal, and not just dog lovers, out there!  I believe that you can see people’s dedication with the attendance of so many folks during the many events around Ottawa this summer.  Almost every weekend in the summer you can find a walk organized for rescue organizations, humane societies, etc. and the participation is always quite high! 
 
What is your most popular program? 
 
One specialized program offered by Ottawa Therapy Dogs is R.E.A.D. – Reading Education Assistance Dogs. OTD’s R.E.A.D. teams work in school or library settings to help improve children’s reading abilities. The program improves children’s reading and communication skills by employing a simple but powerful method: Reading to a dog.

R.E.A.D. dogs are registered therapy animals who volunteer with their owner/handler as a team, going to schools and libraries as reading companions for children. It isn’t unusual to see a child lying on her back with her head resting on a dog, a book propped up in one hand and the other hand stroking the dog’s ears while they read together. An experienced mentor is at hand to guide the child through the reading process, as needed, with the help of their dog.

While dogs may not be able to read, they make great listeners. Their relaxed, nonjudgmental presence creates an inviting and motivating environment that is comfortable, safe, empowering and FUN!

Are certain dog breeds better as therapy dogs than others?

Kari, an Afghan Hound

Any dog can be a therapy dog, it is really about the dog’s temperament.  When you take a look at our team member profiles, you’ll see a variety of dogs ranging from a German Sheppard to a Miniature Dachshund.
 
Those interested in the work of OTD can attend a one-hour information session, where we cover basic information about team (handler and dog) requirements, as well as opportunities for volunteer work with OTD for those without a dog.

If people are still interested after that, we ask that they fill out a member application form and attend an orientation session. After that, OTD requires that dog (must at least two years old and less than 11 to be evaluated) and handler (the team) pass an evaluation by an OTD evaluator.

After a successful evaluation, the volunteer coordinator will assist the new team in selecting a placement for therapy work, with the aim of finding a “good fit” and a rewarding experience for dog, handler and client(s). For the initial two visits, the handler accompanies an experienced therapy team, without bringing his/her own companion animal. Then the new team is accompanied by an experienced handler for two visits.

This mentoring arrangement helps to support the new team in gaining skill and confidence in their work.

What’s been the most touching story you’ve heard to date in the Ottawa animal community?

There are so many!  We ask our members to send us stories or examples of how their work makes a different and we’ll often include those in our newsletters. 
 
One example is Cobber, and his handler, Kevin, a team that was presented with a plaque to recognize their partnership, support and commitment to the youth served by the Roberts/Smart Centre (1199 Carling Ave.). Cobber had been visiting the Centre weekly for the past year and won a place in the hearts of both the young people and the staff.

“I really enjoy these visits and even get so excited as we walk up to the Centre that I sometimes woof in anticipation and pull at my leash.” — Cobber, the dog

Cobber’s time with the young people who are at the Centre to learn life skills is spent in a one-on-one situations. They can play with or pet him or even run around in the gym. It is an ideal way to encourage them to learn how to take control of a situation and, by extension, themselves.

Cobber, an Ottawa Therapy Dog

What’s Ottawa’s volunteer community like? How can local residents get involved?

Guests at OTD's Members and Supporters Dinner

I believe that Ottawa is also the capital of the volunteer community!  So many good organizations out there, and, as a federal government employee, I know that a lot of time and devotion is put towards the annual United Way campaign. 

Ottawa is a very giving community.
 
Local residents can get involved by contacting OTD to either become a member, an associate member, or simply to support our organization if they do not have the time to volunteer. 

We will be attending a few events this summer, including a few in the near future, such as the Kanata Community Expo on June 15, and the Walk, Roll and Run at Scotiabank Place on June 19.  Feel free to stop on by and say hi! 
 
What’s up next for Ottawa Therapy Dogs?

Ottawa Therapy Dogs is growing and we need help!  We just held our first Members and Supporters Dinner this past April to rave reviews!  We will continue to embark on fundraising initiatives and grow our presence in the volunteer community. But growing means we need more resources — more facilities want us and we are having a difficult time keeping up with the demands out there. 

The dinner table at OTD's Members and Supporters Dinner

Also, more and more dog owners are interested in becoming an OTD team.  We not only need more teams, but we need more people to help volunteer their time.  We also have what we call an associate membership, which means you can belong to the OTD community, even if you don’t have a dog that can be a therapy dog. Or if you don’t have a dog at all, but are just a dog lover.

Thanks for the chat, Rachelle! Do you know of a cool charity we should be highlighting? Tell us about it!