Actor's Theater of Washington: "After Dark"

• Member Review:
  "We were generously requested to stay to watch the performance and
  to help out if needed at intermission. The people were friendly and the
  performance and show were well done."
• Member Review:
  "It was really simple. In fact, I felt kind of guilty for taking the free ticket. The artistic director was very appreciative for our being there. There
  were about 45 people there--full house. Fun show, too."

American Red Cross

• Member Review:
  "This turned out to be a lovely experience. Sorting the letters was interesting and the Red Cross folks were really nice. Thanks for
  getting us involved."

DC Marathon

• Member Review:
  "This is one of the best events I've ever volunteered with. Granted,
  we were at the finish line, providing much needed libations to folks
  who had just run 26 miles, so our situation was ideal. Really though,
  I had a great time, really enjoyed the atmosphere and people with
  whom I was working, and truly enjoyed helping the runners. I would
  be delighted to work with them again next year!” -- Sabrina

Food & Friends

• Member Review:
  "Thanksgiving was amazing. The Food and Friends folks and the
  other volunteers were fantastic to work with, and I'm looking forward
  to volunteering with them more. After we finished, they had a ton of
  pies left over. I mentioned the [Thanksgiving Dinner for the Homeless and Needy] at Rosemary & Thyme Restaurant, and the F&F folks
  loaded up my car with about 5 big boxes of pies! Turns out there
  weren't any other desserts at the Rosemary and Thyme dinner, thus, thanks to Food and Friends we were able to provide some to the
  dinner guests. Talk about luck! I think one of the coolest parts of the
  day occurred while we were packing up the boxes at F&F, and the delivery driver volunteers started streaming through the kitchen. We started clapping for them, and they started clapping for us. What a
  cool sight to behold. Very inspiring. It was truly the coolest thing I've seen. Each time a new group of the drivers walked through, everyone started cheering. Such a cool feeling. Truly the most gratifying Thanksgiving I've ever had.” -- Sabrina Steele

Fund for Animals Volunteer Night

• Member Review:
  "It went really well last night at the Fund for Animals, and they really seemed to appreciate the help that our members provided. Jennifer
  and the whole staff are terrific to work with. Their mailing nights are similar to the NGLTF's, so anyone who does those might also like
  the FFA. We even finished a little early! It's centrally located in Silver Springs, on Georgia Ave. and in a nice office bldg. In fact, they put out one of the best food 'n snack tables that I've encountered while volunteering, if missing dinner is a concern for anyone. Count
  me in for the next FFA.” -- Margaret

Ground Zero to Pentagon Face of America 2002

• Member Review:
  "None of us knew what we were getting into, and wondered at
  times if we were even really needed in the first few hours. However,
  that changed once the riders came in. It turned into an incredible experience, being able to give in many different ways, one on one,
  with total strangers minutes before. That is one of the reasons
  I believe so much in what Burgundy Crescent is doing, making
  a difference a little bit at a time, in many ways, ways that are
  meaningful. I look forward to many such experiences in the
  future." -- Andy Lee

GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation):
Booth at Black Pride

• Member Review:
  "I had a very nice time. We had 3 volunteers for most of the 1.5 hours
  I was there (I stayed later till the new shift arrived) -- and it seemed
  like a nice number -- one person could wander or go on a food or restroom break while the others had each other for company. During
  the time I was there, the booth was just staffed by us BCVers. The GLAAD booth was easy to volunteer at since they had a great display and visitors loved all the free giveaway goodies! And since GLAAD is such a great organization, I enjoyed talking about GLAAD with visitors who had more of an interest. We had plenty of BCV flyers. In hindsight,
  I wish one of us had thought to walk around to all the booths and hand out a BCV flyer to each of the other booths since most of them were
  non-profit organizations that could well use BCV's help."

Lyra Chamber Ensemble

• Member Review:
  "I didn't know what to expect from Lyra since they are a new
  organization and you can hear so much well intentioned but bad
  music from non-professional groups...but they were excellent!
  Both of the performers are professional and the music choices
  were uniformly very good. Pam was very pleasant and thanked us several times. I already decided on Sunday that I was either going to volunteer again at the next concert or go as an attendee. Please
  do sign me up for the next concert."

Mautner Project (for Lesbians with Cancer): Mautner Gala

• Member Review:
  "Woo! This one was fun! And a feast for the eyes, especially for those
  of us who still enjoy playing dress-up. I enjoyed this event tremendously, in part because there was a lot of need for BCV folks to pitch in.
  Although I ended up doing something very different than I had signed
  up for, that was fine, because I like to be busy. The organization's director, Kathleen, came by and thanked us for just sorting through the silent auction bids... that was really nice of her to take the time on such
  a busy evening. This activity was a little short on food, but otherwise terrific. I will definitely be there next year!" -- Maggie

Mayor's GLBT Holiday Party and Children's Gift Drive

• Member Review:
  "It felt great to be a part of something really meaningful for the holidays. We are all so encapsulated in our comfortable lives, never REALLY wanting for anything. Thanks to the awesome and generous members of BCV, a lot of kids will have a happy Christmas. Regardless of what you believe or how you celebrate, that is what the holiday season is truly about...big thanks to all members who so generously donated [155] gifts!" -- Jodie Cady (the lovely lady in pink)

NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt

• Member Review:
  "Wow Jonathan!!! I had a fabulous time last night with the NAMES Project. Jason Johnston was a great host and there were many NAMES Project Board members there helping with the mailing. They provided the best spread of any group I have attended: sandwiches, chips, carrots, cookies, soda. Plenty of food for everyone to have as much as they wanted to eat. Jason offered each BCV member there a copy of the newsletter and a t-shirt. Great, Great, Great group that I would be more than happy to volunteer for again."

NCADV (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
Volunteer Night

• Member Review:
  "This is a terrific group for BCV volunteers. They are friendly, welcoming, and they have lots for us to do! You'll really feel like you're making a difference by helping this small, vital organization, which operates with limited resources but lots of energy and dedication." -- Maggie

NGLTF (National Gay and Lesbian Task Force) Volunteer Night

• Member Review:
  "The NGLTF Thursday night event was great! As usually Eryca did a great job at rallying the troops and breaking the ice for everyone with introductions. We had a large group and we finished what needed to
  be folded, stuffed, and labeled within the first hour and a-half.
  Everyone was engaged in conversation right from the start."
• Member Review:
  "Things went really well last night; thanks for asking! Everyone
  seemed to have a good time and one guy mentioned to me that it was nice to have an activity where gay men and lesbians were working cooperatively together. I totally agree with him. We need to do more to break down the barriers between our communities. There were lots of people there. There was also a cadre of their regular volunteers helping so it made for a nice mix and interaction of people. They treated us
  very well and had some good food for us for dinner. I would definitely recommend scheduling another activity with them again. Eryca Kasse was very nice and the event was very well organized."

NMHAC (National Mental Health Awareness Campaign)
Volunteer Night

• Member Review:
  "Just to let you know how much I enjoyed volunteering for the NMHAC mailing. Paul was really well organized, the people were nice, and the atmosphere was relaxed and casual. Looking forward to future events."
• Member Review:
  "It was a totally positive experience, and a group that's worth helping
  out. I would definitely volunteer for them again."
• Member Review:
  "I did enjoy working for NMHAC. They were very well organized and friendly, and their offices were a very comfortable place to work. I would certainly work there again. Please let me know when the date is set." - Paul Kearney
• Member Review:
  "It was my first BCV experience, for a very worthy cause, and it was
  great. Had excellent organization and lots of different job requirements, so if you got tired of stuffing envelopes, you could organize papers or play with the stick-on stamps. It took a bit of time for people to kind of warm up and start chatting, but it could have just been me...., the newbie. All in all, a very good experience. Would be glad to help
  them again. "

Pets-DC Fun Dog Show in Dupont Circle

• Member Review:
  "What a good time! Entertaining canines and their entertaining companions, lots of humor, too. I helped with registration, which involved a lot of last-minute financial transactions. I felt like my experience was really well utilized and appreciated. I'll definitely
  sign up for this one again." -- Maggie

Servicemembers' Legal Defense Network

• Member Review:
  "...would most definitely volunteer for the same activity again...nice meal with iced beverages, invited to fill empty table to hear speakers...event coordinators made a special point to note our names, and express appreciation for our assistance...very personable - proud of what they were doing and wanted to share the pride." -- Jon W Rose
• Member Review:
  "The event went well; I definitely think SLDN is a group to support in
  the future. They are a worthy cause and treated the volunteers well.
  They provided a lovely dinner prior to the event, and seemed
  relatively organized."

Washington Parks and People

• Member Review:
  “I really enjoyed the event on Saturday. The organizers and volunteers
  at WPP were laid back and fun. I would definitely go back. It's a nice event because it's very hands-on and you can see the immediate results of your work."
• Member Review:
  "I had a great time with Washington Parks and People. They were
  really nice to us. The organization has a lot of volunteer groups come
  in to help with the mansion restoration, so they are quite organized
  and quite good at putting people to work, even those who have done little work of this kind. We mostly did 2 tasks while we were there: painting windows and scraping excess paint off of windows that had been painted earlier. I'm told tasks change from week to week. Since
  we worked together, we had ample opportunity to chat with one
  another. And at lunch, we shared a few laughs. Once again, [BCV Coordinator] Jen Berger proved to be a laugh riot. All in all, I'd say this
  is a great BCV activity. It is very manual-labor, so it's a nice change of pace. The organization seemed to really appreciate our help. And it's
  a nice group activity, i.e., you're not necessarily assigned a task where you go off on your own and do it by yourself." -- Leo