So not only are we leaping merrily towards a 10% unemployment rate, but it seems the state’s also got a severe shortage of volunteers.

According to the Projo:

According to a study by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Rhode Island is short 27,000 volunteers, ranking it 41st in the nation for its overall volunteer rate and 46th for its overall volunteer hours.

Now two nonprofit agencies dedicated to promoting volunteerism are merging to create one statewide organization and they hope to address the shortage of volunteers.

The merger between the Volunteer Center of Rhode Island and Serve Rhode Island was formally announced today when the two organizations held a news conference at 3 p.m. at the State House. Since the names of both organizations are well established, part of each name will remain. The umbrella organization will be called Serve Rhode Island and it will oversee an operation to be called the Volunteer Center at Serve Rhode Island.

Not that I’m one to talk, since I rarely remember to volunteer for anything, but maybe we’d all be a little less down in the dumps if we spent some of our less productive hours helping out a worthy cause.  There’s a lot of them out there, and as the economy gets worse there’s more and more people that need help.  The Volunteer Center of Rhode Island currently has over 700 listings.

WaterFire Providence seeks volunteers for their upcoming 2008 Season

Want to be part of the most exciting arts installation in Providence?!  You can help to inspire and transform our city as part of the WaterFire family. WaterFire Providence, the local non-profit organization which produces the popular sculpture installation by artist Barnaby Evans, is calling all people interested in a unique volunteering opportunity.  We welcome citizens from around the area to take an active role in the production of the world-renown art installation, WaterFire. more »