1960’s
1964 – Volunteer Bureau of Marin County opens
1967– Became a United Way Agency
1968 – Began transportation program; transferred to Marin Senior Coordinating Council in 1991
1969 – Opened an office at the Department of Social Services and Probation Dept.
1970’s
1970 – Held 1st Marin Designer Showcase
1971 – First executive director roundtable in Marin; Volunteer Center of Sonoma County started by group of philanthropists, including Jean Schultz and Henry Trione
1972 – Formation of Auxiliary in Marin; Volunteer Center of Sonoma operates with 1 staff member with a budget of 19K, 75% of which came from one donor
1972 – Founded Youth Division, The Switching Yard, which became Youth Connection; Volunteer Center of Sonoma County became incorporated and has first program, RSVP
1972 – Published 1st county-wide guide to volunteer opportunities
1974 – Established West Marin Volunteer Bureau in Point Reyes Station
1975 – Volunteer of Sonoma County’s Volunteer Wheels Program began with one van for disabled people and 20 volunteers who drove their own cars
1976 – Volunteer Center of Sonoma County begins Court Referral Program; placed 409 referrals in its first year
1977 – Published 1st Marin County Resource Directory
1978 – Started Senior Connection, a visiting program for isolated elders; moved to Family Service Agency
1979 – Developed San Anselmo Volunteer Effort
1980’s
1980 – Volunteer Wheels expands to become a county-wide program
1981 – Volunteer Center of Sonoma County starts the Management Assistance Program (later called Resource Center) as a joint project with United Way and the County of Sonoma
1982 – Opened temporary Inverness office to aid flood victims; Sonoma County Human Race is launched and raises $1,800
1983 – First Marin Human Race; changed name to Volunteer Center of Marin
1985 – Developed volunteer program for Bay Model Visitor Center; participated in the founding of Marin Community Foundation (MCF)
1986 – Began Senior Focus, a 2-year program to develop retiree volunteerism; nominated 1st appointee to MCF Board of Trustees as an appointing authority
1987 – First time Marin Human Race raises $100,000 for agencies and schools; West Marin emergency food pantry opened
1988 – Volunteer Center of Sonoma County starts Youth Program with a Crocker Foundation grant that placed 56 students as tutor companions
1990’s
1990 – Secret Santa program introduced as The Giving Tree, with 1 tree and 600 wishes; Volunteer Center of Sonoma County starts Hands Across the County, where residents cleaned up and improved schools and nonprofit agencies
1991 – Launched Holiday Gifts of Love, a holiday gift & service opportunity to help those in need
1992 – Produced booklet on schooI-community partnerships, distributed by State Department of Education; joined management team of new Marin InterAgency Disaster Response Plan; deployed staff/volunteers to assist in disaster relief after Hurricane Andrew and Oakland Hills fire
1993 – Corporate Volunteer Council started to support corporate/business employee volunteer engagement
1994 – Deployed staff to help after Northridge earthquake
1995 – Directors of Volunteers in Agencies created to provide professional development for volunteer managers
1996 – California Management Assistance Partnership (C-MAP), a consortium of regional nonprofit support organizations providing training and technical assistance to nonprofits, are provided funding by James Irvine Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, California Wellness, and California Endowment
1998 – C-MAP funding from California Endowment is instrumental in Marin Council of Agencies (MCA’s) ability to build core support training and education
1999– Alliance talks begin between Volunteer Center and MCA
2000’s
2001 – Merger between the Volunteer Center and MCA, creating Marin Nexus; partner with Tamalpais Bank on Heart of Marin; study commissioned: “Fostering Leadership and Community in Marin’s Non-profit Sector”
2002 – Technical assistance provided to MCF Faiths Initiative grantees
2003 – Name changed to Center for Volunteer & Nonprofit Leadership (CVNL); Marin Designer Showcase (MDS) established Heart Tug Award to donate a percentage of proceeds; for 5 years over $100,000 was donated to 14 members including Meals of Marin, Marin Brain Injury Network, RotaCare Free Clinic, Casa Allegra, Marin Abused Women’s Services, Bridge the Gap, St. Vincent de Paul, Wildcare, Helen Vine Detox Center, and Ritter Center; joined Marin County School to Career Partnership; BoardMatch Marin launches to connect agencies with board candidates; Community Action Team started to expand and enrich youth volunteerism
2004 – Masters of Marin/ProBono Marin established; opened the Nonprofit Library Resource Center
2005 – With MarinSpace, developed nonprofit resource center at 555 Northgate Drive; Marin Leadership Institute established; participated in the establishment of Marin 2-1-1; Michael Lerner, founder of Commonweal, keynotes at Marin Nonprofit Conference
2006 – Honored with Excellence in Communications by Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network
2007 – Published 1st Marin Nonprofit Landscape Study; National Council on Aging grant to engage 50+; Executive Search & Transition Services and Emerging Leaders Program launched
2008 – Achievement in Innovation Award from California Association of Nonprofits for work in engaging older adults in high impact volunteering; Nonprofit Sustainability Forum held
2009 – Designated a HandsOn Affiliate; Flexible (FLEX) Volunteer Program launched; 211 is launched in Sonoma County, connecting people to health and disaster information, social services, and referrals
2010’s
2010 – Union Bank becomes presenting sponsor of Heart of Marin
2011 – Awarded George W. Romney Award for Excellence by Points of Light Institute; selected as lead for California Volunteers Service Enterprise Initiative
2013 – “Marin Nonprofit Study: Resilience, Resourcefulness, and Recovery” is commissioned
2014 – Designated HandsOn Affiliate for Napa and Sonoma; celebration of 50 years serving community!; expanded into Napa County; deployed staff and opened Emergency Volunteer Center (EVC) to help after American Canyon earthquake
2015 – Move to 65 Mitchell; Service Enterprise expands to Napa County and San Quentin; Volunteer Center of Sonoma County holds first Desserts, Purses, and Cocktails fundraiser
2016 – Expanded into Solano County with a contract from the Board of Supervisors to run their Volunteer Matching Program; released landscape study on Napa County nonprofit sector, “Creating Community: Napa County Nonprofits at Work”; launched new volunteer portal, “Bay Area Volunteers”; began partnership with One Mind Institute to recruit and coordinate volunteers for their Music Festival for Brain Health
2017 – Partnered with Redwood Credit Union to distribute $1.621 million to people impacted by the North Bay Fires; held first Napa County Volunteer Fair; partnered with the Home Depot Foundation, California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet), the Tug McGraw Foundation, and Habitat for Humanity Napa Solano to deliver a day of service project to benefit more than 900 veterans at the California Veterans Home Yountville
2018 – Heart of Marin celebrates 25 years!; restarted the Marin Volunteer Fair
2019 – Merged with the Volunteer Center of Sonoma County to better meet the growing needs of Northern CA nonprofits and volunteers; 211 becomes part of United Way Wine Country
2020’s
2020 – Disaster response deployed in four counties; transitioned to virtual work and services as a result of COVID-19
2020 – Activated Emergency Volunteer Center in Sonoma County in response to the Glass Fire
2020 – Partnered with 100MARIN to educate, engage, and connect individuals to local philanthropy
2021 – Hosted the 2020 Heart of Marin and Heart of Napa virtually
2021 – Launched the 1st Annual Heart of Sonoma County Awards
2022 – Heart of Marin celebrates 30 years!
2022 – San Rafael office moves to 1 McInnis Parkway
2022 – CVNL begins to offer scholarships to Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and under-represented individuals who are nonprofit staff or volunteers serving in Marin, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano Counties
2022 – New Learning & Leadership programs added (Grant Writing Certificate Program, Leading for Equity & Inclusion, Program Development & Evaluation)
2023 – All Heart Events return to in-person programming
2024 – CVNL celebrates its 60th Anniversary!