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News | Media | Press Releases
DRESS FOR SUCCESS SEES SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN
VOLUNTEERS
Increase ensures more disadvantaged women are better prepared to enter the
workforce
New York, NY—
Dress for Success Worldwide, an international not-for-profit organization that
promotes the economic independence of disadvantaged women,
has seen a steady increase of volunteers supporting its
efforts during the past few months. This increase is
attributed to the current economic climate and the number of
job losses in New York City.
Dress for Success relies heavily on its volunteer operation
to assist with all programs serving its clients. The
total number of volunteers increased 62% from January to
December 2008. Beginning in October, women began
stating on their volunteer applications that they chose to
get involved with the organization because they had lost
their jobs. By December, attendance at volunteer
orientation trainings had increased 25% from the previous
month and approximately 30% of volunteers stated that they
were recently unemployed. At the January orientation,
60% of attendees reported recently losing their jobs.
Dress for Success volunteer opportunities include
helping women find their perfect interview suit and one
week's worth of employment clothing, conducting mock
interviews and résumé
editing. Prior to this recent surge, it was difficult
to fully staff the suiting program and Career Center with
volunteers since many worked during the day. Dress for
Success has always maintained a high-caliber volunteer pool,
but because of lay-offs, attorneys, fashion industry
leaders, marketing executives and others are now available
to work with clients on weekdays. The increase in the
number of volunteers has also allowed Dress for Success to
expand its outreach efforts to partner agencies,
organizations that refer women to be suited, and new
volunteers are able to assist staff with administrative
tasks.
"The increase in volunteers, especially with this high
level of experience, is critical for our organization at
this time," said Joi Gordon, CEO of Dress for Success
Worldwide. "Many of our partner agencies have closed
their doors, leaving a large gap in the services provided to
these deserving women, which Dress for Success must now
address."
Volunteering with Dress for Success provides women with
considerable benefits. In addition to giving back to
the community and impacting the lives of nearly 5,000 women
each year in New York City, they are able to network with
other supporters both professionally and socially.
Volunteers who are currently in between jobs keep their
skills sharp by guiding clients through the job search
process and making presentations on behalf of the
organization.
The current economy has affected nearly
everyone, including Dress for Success clients.
Fortunately, these women are given a step-up as they work to
achieve economic independence by the organization's
extremely qualified and dedicated volunteers.
Dress
for Success always welcomes volunteers to serve as personal
shoppers, career coaches, mentors, clothing sorters and
more. For additional information on volunteer
opportunities at Dress for Success, please contact
volunteers@dressforsuccess.org.
About Dress for Success
Dress for Success is an international not-for-profit organization that promotes the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and the career development tools to help
women thrive in work and in life. Since starting operations in 1997, Dress for Success has expanded to more than
90 cities in the U.S., Canada, Jamaica, Mexico, the
Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland and the UK. To date, Dress for Success has helped more than
500,000 women work towards self-sufficiency. Visit www.dressforsuccess.org to learn more.
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