Our organization prefers 'Go Direct' communication. We also understand that not every situation will be improved by that preference. If you are uncertain with whom to share a particular concern, if you do not feel comfortable or prepared to speak in person, or if you process better through written platforms - this form is for you.
Staff Picks sell products! Is there a product you love, that you want to tell customers about? Fill out the form below, and your Pick will be printed and put on the shelf! Staff picks should be concise; try to limit it to two sentences. The marketing department may edit for length and appropriateness.
A branch of employee engagement at The Merc Co+op.
The co-op is looking for interested employees to help test potential products. Each month, we receive a number of items from our distributors’ representatives who hope that we will sell them in-store. These items can be an opportunity for an employee to give feedback to help make that decision.
Interested employees will fill out the survey below. Be sure to include any preferences and restrictions, as this will determine what kind of products you may be asked to test and which you wish to avoid.
When a product is available, you will be contacted for the next steps. Employees can expect to test 0–2 products a month, depending on total number of participants, your preferences and restrictions, and the products being considered.
You will test the product at home within a week of receiving it.
After testing, you’ll fill out a survey with your thoughts on the product. This survey then gets sent to our Promotions Specialist to help decide whether or not we will carry the product.
Testing (i.e. eating or using the product) is not paid time. But the 1–5 minutes needed to fill out the digital feedback form is paid time. You should clock in for that period of time, or complete the form during your scheduled shift.
You must agree to provide feedback via our digital feedback form. The form is an extension of our website. You may use a store device or your personal device.
You must complete a digital feedback form for each product(s) to remain eligible to receive additional products.
You must agree to test the products yourself.
Right here! ↓↓↓
We appreciate your feedback on the product you tested. Please note that not all positive feedback will result in the product making it to our shelves. There are several factors that go into determining how we select what products we will carry at our stores, including quality, taste, price and whether or not the category is “filled” with similar items.
The 1–5 minutes needed to fill out this form is paid time. You should clock in for that period of time, or complete this form during your scheduled shift.
The co-op’s Outreach Incentive program connects co-op staff with the non-profit organizations committed to serving our communities, and provides us the opportunity to demonstrate that same commitment. Employees can volunteer up to 8 paid hours when they are not working, or take time off from their normally scheduled shifts, with their manager’s approval.
The following organizations are pre-approved for Outreach Incentive. To volunteer for organizations not on this list, reach out to our HR director.
Audio Reader
Audio-Reader has several volunteer opportunities, both one-time and ongoing. Our primary volunteer service is reading information to be either recorded or broadcast, such as small town newspapers, special interest books and magazines, etc. We also regularly need volunteers to help us with marketing and outreach, at our fundraisers and events, and with front desk/administrative projects once we're back in the office full time. Additional information can be found on our website or call any staff member for details.
Audubon of Kansas
We offer volunteering on our Sanctuary near Salina, and during other special events all over the state during the year. We encourage involvement of our community, and create opportunities based on the skills and interests of volunteers (such as historical research opportunities, video production, graphic design, trail work, etc).
Kansas Rural Center
There are always opportunities! If someone is skilled at working on websites, for example, we would love to have some help. We also typically hold an in-person conference and several workshops throughout the year, and having people on hand to both experience the event and help with registration, etc., is always mutually valuable!
Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE)
We do have intermittent volunteer opportunities, including helping present environmental education learning activities at environmental education events like water festivals, earth day events, events at local sites like the Baker Wetlands and more. We can work with The Merc staff to find partner environmental education volunteer opportunities in the community.
Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired
The Annual Trolley Run in April will have approximately 100 volunteer opportunities available.
Cultivate KC
We have plenty of opportunities to volunteer. We have scheduled volunteer events and days out on our farms, where volunteers weed, plant seeds, spread mulch, harvest produce, or do whatever farm tasks are most pressing at the time. In addition to our set days for individuals or small groups to volunteer, we are always willing to work with larger groups to set up specific projects or times to volunteer.
El Centro, Inc.
We have a clothing distribution in mid December where volunteers unload, sort and display are needed
We have adopt a family program for Christmas
We have volunteers for our Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Centers to greet and help people with taxes
We will continue to work with partners to hold Vaccine clinics to increase the number of those vaccinated
We also have (but until further notice suspended volunteers) at our Academy for Children, readers who can spend time reading to the children
Friends of Kaw Point Park
Friends of Kaw Point Park holds a monthly cleanup and gardening day at the park on a Saturday morning, from March thru November. We have also started a once a month Yoga at the Point on Sunday mornings from April to October. We also supervise parking cars in our parking lot for the Missouri 340 river race every year. We are also working on sponsoring a Farmers Market at the park. These activities are posted on our web site and in our email newsletter.
KC Farm School at Gibbs Road
We have year-round volunteer opportunities on the farm. Volunteer work includes field production, greenhouse production, event support and farm construction projects. We would love to host your team on-farm!
KC Healing Hands
The Merc could serve as a partner to KC Healing Hands in educational tutoring services, workforce development, food, and meal planning and training and other human services need of the KC Healing Hands' youth residents.
Parkinson’s Exercise & Wellness Center
Though most of our volunteers are OT/OTA/PT students or professionals, we welcome volunteers in any field. Your staff would be welcome to assist with an exercise class by helping set up and tear down class materials, guiding fighters to their next workout station, etc. We do also have a need for administrative volunteers. We could use volunteer help for writing donor thank you cards, preparing mailings, minor data entry, and assistance with our monthly social events (which include Virtual Bingo, Guys’ Night, and more). These events are quite fun and would be a wonderful way for your staff to get to know their local PD community.
Shepherd's Center
We have opportunities for volunteer groups to work with our home repair coordinator on small, manageable repair and cleanup projects, as well as opportunities (once we move beyond COVID-19) to make presentations at any of our Health Enrichment Lunch and Learn events, or at our monthly Adventures in Learning series.
100 Good Women
We would encourage everyone to follow us on Facebook or sign up for email updates through our website. We will pass requests on to our members with information about opportunities to donate your time and efforts at one of our in-person events, now that we are having in-person events again, and when special items are needed by someone. We also share how we have helped the community each month, so our members see exactly how their involvement helps our neighbors in need.
Americana Academy of Music
We have two big yard cleanup days during the year to maintain our facility at 1419 Massachusetts St. We also seek volunteers for FidPick, the Kansas State Fiddling & Picking Championships which take place during the 4th weekend of August every year.
Arc of Douglas County The Arc of Douglas County has various volunteer opportunities available. Opportunities include helping support our local self advocate group, Self Advocates of Lawrence (SAL) by assisting with activities that this group chooses for their monthly meetings. As we work to implement our cooking classes, we would welcome volunteers to assist with these classes. Like any small non-profit, there is always administrative work available for a volunteer interested in these tasks.
#BeMoreLikeClaire
There are always volunteer opportunities at #BeMoreLikeClaire. Volunteer opportunities vary depending on the project we are working on. Some examples of volunteer opportunities include volunteering as a mentor with Claire’s Community, working on a home build with Habitat for Humanity Douglas County, sharing recipes for our cookbook from Claire’s Kitchen, volunteering at #BeMoreLikeClaire events, and helping with set-up or distributing flyers to promote our Candlelight Vigil for Domestic Violence Awareness. Learn more about volunteer opportunities at #BeMoreLikeClaire on our website, //www.bemorelikeclaire.org/volunteer-opportunities.
Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center
The Bert Nash Center offers the opportunity for volunteers to serve as ambassadors to host private tours which serve as community education opportunities. We are, however, in the process of developing a more robust volunteer program to provide two new and unique opportunities for groups and organizations to serve the community. Our first volunteer opportunity will be for groups to create snack bags comprised of pre-packaged non-perishable snacks for clients. The other opportunity for groups will be for them to create hygiene kits of travel sized items for clients served at the center as well as within the community. It is our belief that physical health and mental health work hand in hand and for our clients to be able to care for their mental well-being, they must also care for their physical well-being as well.
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library
Volunteers are needed to help with marketing and fundraising activities, such as manning information tables or helping staff a fundraising event. We have our very own “Dolly”: a cardboard cutout who has been visiting notable sites in Lawrence and Douglas County. We need a volunteer to continue to take Dolly to new places (such as The Merc!) and take pictures to post on social media to raise awareness of the program. Anyone interested in volunteering can contact us to find out about upcoming opportunities.
Douglas County Visiting Nurses Association
VNA appreciates its volunteers and all they do! VNA maintains a Memorial Garden outside of the Community Health Building it shares with Bert Nash and Lawrence/Douglas County Public Health which always needs extra volunteers. VNA also has volunteer needs to assist with office-work and mailings. There are also a number of volunteer opportunities in VNA’s Hospice program reading to patients, playing games, playing music or just visiting. No prior medical knowledge is required for any of these opportunities.
Ecumenical Campus Ministries (ECM)
We actively seek volunteers who are interested in taking on a role as one of the coordinators on a regular basis. Veggie Lunch Prep night is a good way to get started, and we would welcome the participation of a Co+Op staff member. On Wednesday evenings, from 5:30 pm on, volunteers gather in the ECM kitchen to begin preparing food for Thursday’s Veggie Lunch. We also need people to help with setting up, restocking, and cleaning up on Thursdays, any time between 10 am and 3 pm.
Growing Food Growing Health
We have had several workdays where Merc employees have helped with big garden projects, like digging potatoes, or helping with large plantings. Several individuals have been assistants at educational cooking classes as part of recovery for residents at First Step. We've made some great connections over the years, and have some returning employee volunteers.
Justice Matters
We would love for the Merc’s staff to get involved in Justice Matters' work! For any employees who belong to one of our member congregations, we can connect them to a team leader who will keep them informed of opportunities to take action on local justice issues throughout the year. Our Neighborhood Network is open to any unaffiliated community members who would like to be involved.
Kansas Advocates for Better Care
KABC there are various volunteer opportunities available. The Merc staff can join KABC as an Advocacy Ambassador, a developing program, to help promote awareness about elder abuse and neglect, and resources to prevent and stop it. Another opportunity is in October when KABC hosts Stand By Me, a special event to raise awareness about elder abuse and better elder care, and there are great opportunities to volunteer in its planning or during the event. Another possibility is help in revising and updating our nutrition and aging resources.
Lawrence Arts Center
There are a variety of ways community members volunteer —you can greet patrons, take tickets, give directions, assist in special events, compile mailings, distribute fliers, and more. Contact Events Manager/Volunteer Coordinator Jessica Ray at jessica@lawrenceartscenter.org for more info.
Lawrence Barn Dance Association
We encourage volunteers at each dance opportunity to help set up and tear down our sound equipment and tables and chairs. There ae also openings for volunteers on our committees on inclusiveness, outreach, and social media. Those who play music often find camaraderie with our bands that hold jams with other local musicians, a form of volunteering and sharing talent.
Lawrence Farmers’ Market
We are just restarting our volunteer program after putting it on hiatus for the 2020 season. Our current opportunities (can be ongoing or one-offs):
Customer counter
Setup/takedown help
Sanitizing (especially once we allow consumption of food and beverage at the market again)
Running the Info Booth
Market Ambassador
Kids' Booth
Lawrence Humane Society
All members of the community are welcome to volunteer at Lawrence Humane and can provide assistance with a variety of tasks such as Essential Shelter Help (doing laundry, washing dishes, refilling water bowls), creating animal enrichment items, socializing cats and dogs, and more, all based on interests, skills, and training, which we provide.
Lawrence NAACP
As Lawrence opens up and the community begins to gather more, there will be volunteer opportunities through our other NAACP committees like voter registration and community events such as the lynching memorial.
Lawrence Public Library Friends & Foundation
We are a volunteer powered organization and our volunteers move actual mountains of books—around 4,000 donated books come through our doors each week. We also coordinate the library's volunteer program of folks who help us keep books on the shelves for patrons to check out. You can learn more at //www.lplks.org/volunteer
Link
Currently we have several open days if groups of employees would like to volunteer to serve, and we can always use the help if an individual would like to volunteer by themselves.
The Light Center
We always have people with us on work exchange and operate as an all-volunteer organization, so we have endless volunteer opportunities. We love volunteers in the gardens, helping with building projects, space maintenance, etc. We also welcome your staff to participate in pot lucks, ceremonies or to simply come enjoy the woods.
Positive Bright Start
Positive Bright Start has an ongoing need for volunteers to serve on our Board of Directors. Come be a part of the folks who chart our future, secure our financial well-being and provide managerial oversight to our agency. We also look to our Friends of Positive Behavior Support to help us with fundraising events and efforts.
Ready for Good
We have ongoing volunteer opportunities. Volunteers can work alongside youth in our programs as they engage in hands-on work experience, often involving the assembly of furniture, but also maintenance tasks like cleaning and breaking down cardboard boxes. Volunteers may also engage in short-term volunteer needs, as they arise, and which vary from month to month.
Senior Resource Center for Douglas County
SRC depends on volunteers for a number of vital roles. Drivers for transportation program; assistance for seniors needing help with chores; snow removal for Safe Winter Walkways, providing gifts for the Adopt-a-Senior program; event hosts and helpers; leaders and participants for the various clubs, classes, and other groups. SRC strongly advocates inter-generational involvement and welcomes volunteers of all ages. Some require long-term commitment and training. Others are "as needed". And yet others are seasonal. There is something for everyone!
Sunrise Project
Staff are welcome to help prep, cook and serve meals; work in the garden and orchard and help keep our porch pantry clean and organized. We also have special events that staff would be welcome to help with: Plant sales, Coats & Coffee, Pie Auction and more!
MercAid is a mutual aid program established to provide a modest amount of financial support to current co-op employees at times of personal crises.
MercAid is funded through voluntary employee contributions, made as automatic payroll deductions. Employees may elect to contribute a minimum of $1.00 per pay period with no maximum set.
Application/Nomination Process:
An application/nomination for a MercAid donation can be submitted by the person directly involved in the crisis situation or by another employee. Application/nomination should be submitted by letter or ping to one of the MercAid committee members( Rod, Becky, or Daniel S.), or by using this online form.
The maximum donation amount that can be requested for any one crisis situation is $500. The approval of the application and actual amount of the donation will be decided by a consensus of the MercAid Committee on a case-by-case basis.
MercAid funds are available to any active employee in good standing, full or part-time, beginning 90 days from start date of employment whether or not you contribute to the fund. Staff are eligible to apply once per calendar year.*
*Special allowances may be made subject to the approval of the committee.
