Convening

When we share clients’ stories, whose voice comes through? How can the way we lead and the strategies we shape position volunteers as partners in advancing our mission?

Join Hello Neighbor and our National Network members for a morning of ideas, conversation, and connection, featuring two interactive sessions on ethical storytelling and the power of volunteer coordination. The sessions are followed by a networking lunch. 

Led by COMPACT Cohort members, these sessions bring firsthand experience and practical tools to a conversation with Pittsburgh’s nonprofit community. Whether you coordinate volunteers, serve in a nonprofit leadership role, or want to strengthen community relationships, join us to exchange perspectives, explore approaches you can bring to your work, and connect with local and national peers.

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Date: Friday, October 23, 2026

Time: 10:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Location: The Kingsley Association - 6435 Frankstown Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206

Registration Fee: $30, including both sessions and lunch.

Please register by Wednesday, October 21, 2026.

About the Convening

Ignite! Sparking volunteerism, kindling community brings together nonprofit leaders and volunteer coordinators from six organizations across the country for Hello Neighbor’s 2026 COMPACT Convening - a gathering to learn from one another and strengthen organizations’ capacity to engage volunteers in building trust, connection, and belonging with refugee and immigrant communities.

The convening is part of the COMPACT Cohort, a 30-month pilot funded by the Walmart Foundation. COMPACT invests in full-time volunteer coordinators, capacity building, and peer learning. Through evaluation, it examines how this support strengthens volunteer engagement and builds trust and belonging between new neighbors and volunteers.

By opening these sessions and lunch to Pittsburgh’s nonprofit community, we’re inviting local practitioners into that exchange to contribute their experience and take new ideas back to their organizations.

About the Program

10:30–11:15 a.m.

Whose Story Is It? Ethical Storytelling as a Tool for Trust and Community

Led by Kateryna Vynohrdova, Volunteer Coordinator, New Neighbors Partnership

How we collect and share someone’s story matters just as much as the story itself. Drawing on New Neighbors Partnership’s work with immigrant and refugee families, Kateryna will explore informed consent, confidentiality, trauma-informed approaches, strength-based language, and people’s agency over how their stories are told.

Through shared examples and discussion, participants will examine how storytelling can build -or undermine- trust. You’ll leave with practical questions to guide your own storytelling and keep people’s voices, privacy, and dignity at its heart.

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11:15 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

Volunteer Engagement by Design: How a CVA-informed Leadership Approach Turns Volunteer Commitment into Organizational Strategy

Led by Audrey Holtzman, CEO, Heartfelt Tidbits

Volunteer engagement touches every part of an organization, from its vision and culture to its daily operations. Drawing on her Certified in Volunteer Administration (CVA) training and executive leadership experience, Audrey will explore how to connect volunteer roles to mission-driven outcomes, build shared staff responsibility, and give volunteers the preparation and support they need.

This interactive session offers adaptable tools, reflection questions, and a 90-day framework for organizations of different sizes and capacities. You’ll identify one action you can take within the next 30 days to strengthen volunteer engagement in your organization.

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12:00–1:00 p.m.

Networking Lunch

Continue the conversation over lunch with local nonprofit peers and COMPACT Cohort members. Exchange ideas, make new connections, and take part in a candle activity inspired by our Ignite! theme.