August 12, 2008
At a Grand Opening Ceremony held at the SCV Chamber of Commerce, Wade Reynolds, President of the Board of Directors for the Volunteer Resource Center of SCV, officially announced the board has voted to change the name to “HandsOn Santa Clarita” as part of a nationwide rebranding to better define the scope and purpose of the local organization. “The new name really exemplifies our commitment to helping the community help itself,” said Mr. Reynolds. “We want people to quickly identify us as a volunteer hub, and comprehensive resource for local charitable organizations.” Following the announcement Reynolds introduced Randy Phillips as the new Executive Director.
Phillips, who has worked in the textbook publishing and nonprofit industries for over 30 years, brings a passion and commitment to helping others to help themselves and building awareness of the rewards of volunteerism and philanthropy. He believes we can all make a difference by sharing our time, our talent and our treasure with others in our community. After majoring in Art Education at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and serving in the United States Army, Phillips became a volunteer with Junior Achievement of Southern California while employed in the aerospace industry in Burbank. His experience as a volunteer led him to ten year career with JA followed by a 12 year career in the textbook publishing industry. Moving to Santa Clarita in 1981 he rejoined the nonprofit industry working as the Financial Development Director for the SCV Unit of the American Red Cross. From there he accepted a position with the United Way of Greater LA before transitioning to the American Cancer Society. Prior to being selected for HandsOn Santa Clarita he served as the Director of Development for the Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley. Locally he has been involved for many years with the SCV Relay For Life, Santa Clarita Valley Veterans Memorial Committee and the Santa Clarita Master Chorale. Last year he was chosen to participate in Leadership Burbank, a nine month leadership course designed to educate and motivate current and emerging leaders to develop ideas and solutions to make a strong, sustainable and vibrant community.
HandsOn Santa Clarita celebrates ten years of supporting the nonprofit community with education and advocacy as well as connecting volunteers with opportunities to make a difference. Each year HandsOn Santa Clarita publishes THE GUIDE to community service organizations. These guides are available at no cost to anyone seeking information on how to serve in the Santa Clarita Valley. HandsOn Santa Clarita is also the host of Make a Difference Day in October. Last year more than 800 community volunteers gathered to make a difference through 35 projects around the community. This year Make a Difference Day will be held on October 25. To learn more about HandsOn Santa Clarita or volunteer please visit our website at
www.VolunteerInSCV.org.
