The Heart of Illinois United Way Corporate Volunteer Council collaborates with regional companies to provide a framework for encouraging community engagement through employee volunteering.
Our Corporate Volunteer Council serves as a valuable resource for launching, improving, and enhancing employee volunteer programs. Employee volunteerism is a vital component of many corporate social responsibility plans. With each company defining its own parameters for employee volunteer programs, our Corporate Volunteer Council plays a vital role in nurturing employee volunteerism while enabling company-based volunteer managers to build strong, successful programs.
The Heart of
Illinois United Way can help identify areas of interest within your company and
work with nonprofit organizations to better align volunteer needs to meet
corporate goals and culture. This unique opportunity brings companies,
volunteers, and nonprofits together to address identified community needs through a collective effort. As a result,
increased engagement can lead to more long-term, skills-based, or pro bono
volunteering while also improving employee volunteer recruitment and
retention.
Our Corporate
Volunteer Council offers multiple benefits, including:
- Networking and knowledge sharing
- Encouraging best practices for employee volunteerism
- Identifying and collaborating to address critical needs
- Establishing and reporting volunteer outcome data
- Increasing professional development through educational opportunities
- Fostering and supporting employee volunteer programs
- Building stronger relationships between companies and nonprofits
- Enhancing
quality of life through volunteerism
As a participating company in the Heart of Illinois United Way Corporate Volunteer Council, members can benefit from educational and networking opportunities, including human resource needs related to employee volunteer programs, engaging young professionals, promoting volunteerism to retirees, insights on establishing employee affinity groups, sharing data related to volunteerism and community needs, and increasing skills-based and pro bono volunteerism.
2026 Corporate Engagement Webinar Series
The Heart of Illinois United Way Corporate Engagement Webinar Series is a new quarterly learning opportunity for local businesses to explore how volunteerism and philanthropy create a stronger, more caring community.
Focused on strengthening employee volunteerism, workplace giving, and community partnerships, each session highlights practical tools—from team volunteer planning and skills-based volunteering to CSR best practices—that help companies connect purpose with impact. Offered in conjunction with our Corporate Volunteer Council, the series is a simple, effective way for companies to stay connected year-round, share ideas, and make community engagement simple, rewarding, and sustainable for every workplace.
Series Goals:
- Deepen relationships with company partners year-round
- Provide actionable ideas that align with HOIUW programs and campaigns
- Encourage companies to share their own experiences and successes
- Strengthen the regional network of volunteer and CSR leaders
January 28, 2026 Webinar: Your Partnership Roadmap
Introduced the full range of Heart of Illinois United Way programs available to local
companies through our CVC and employee volunteer program resources.
► May 6, 2026 Webinar: Huddle Up! Inspiring Employee Volunteer Teams Through Simple Team Building
Whether you’re planning volunteer activities for your team, campaign season, or year-round engagement, this session will provide tools you can immediately put into practice.
Date/Time: Wednesday, May 6, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm (Zoom)
Click here to register.
During this session, we will:
- Introduce the Huddle Up! reflection model to enhance team-based volunteering
- Share simple ways to build connection, purpose, and engagement into volunteer activities
- Highlight how to effectively use the HOIUW volunteer center (volunteer.hoiunitedway.org) to find opportunities for teams
- Explore remote and skills-based volunteer options that align with employee interests and talents
► July 21, 2026 Seminar: Engaging Skills-Based Volunteers with Beth Steinhorn
Engaging skills-based volunteers is a meaningful strategy to engage employee volunteers while addressing key organizational needs. Whether because the process can seem daunting or because nonprofit staff and corporate engagement leaders think their goals don’t align, such engagements remain the exception rather than the rule.
To demystify skills-based volunteer engagement, we will convene corporate and nonprofit representatives in an interactive session to explore the steps of assessing needs and assets, identifying projects that can be addressed by skills-based teams, scoping the project, sourcing qualified volunteer teams, and establishing a culture of support and accountability.
Through your success, you will likely inspire others to engage skilled volunteers across the organization and to go beyond traditional days of service for lasting impact.
Date/Time: Tuesday, July 21, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm (Zoom)
Click here to register.
During this session, we will:
- Walk through a real-world example and key concepts to demystify skills-based volunteering
- Explore a simple, step-by-step framework for identifying, scoping, and supporting projects
- Engage in interactive breakout discussions to assess needs, assets, and potential partnerships
- Identify common barriers and practical solutions for successful implementation
- Share tips for measuring impact and telling your volunteer engagement story
The Heart of Illinois United Way will also introduce Skills Link, our local platform that helps connect skilled volunteers with nonprofit needs, making it easier to turn these ideas into action.
Membership in the Heart of Illinois United Way Corporate Volunteer Council represents a network of regional businesses dedicated to improving the community while benefiting from volunteer engagement. Membership is determined by:
- Participation in the Heart of Illinois United Way’s annual campaign (employee giving and/or corporate giving)
- Participation in volunteer needs posted on volunteer.hoiunitedway.org or coordinated by the Heart of Illinois United Way
- Participation in Heart of Illinois United Way Marketing and Community Engagement Committee
Interested in Planning a Meaningful Team Volunteer Experience?
Start by browsing current opportunities or submit a request for help planning a small group project. To make the experience more meaningful, explore Huddle Up!, our simple framework for adding team-building, reflection, and community impact to employee volunteer experiences.
Browse Volunteer Opportunities or Nonprofits
Explore the Huddle Up! program
Request Our Help Coordinating a Team Project
Volunteer Link is a new Get Connected platform offered locally and nationally by Galaxy
Digital
and the Heart of Illinois United Way. The platform helps companies with
employees across multiple locations or states connect with local volunteer opportunities.
Why Would Companies Use Volunteer
Link?
Volunteer Link makes volunteering easy
and accessible for all employees. By
linking to Get Connected volunteer centers nationwide, employers can offer their employees a simple, effective way to quickly browse and respond to volunteer opportunities in their area, all on a single, easy-to-use platform.
Click here to read more.
Interested in joining our Corporate Volunteer Council? Email Gina Edwards, VP of Marketing and Community Engagement, at gina.edwards@local.unitedway.org to get started.
Current Heart
of Illinois United Way Corporate Volunteer Council Members include:
- Advanced Medical Transport of Central Illinois
- Ameren Illinois
- Benjamin F. Edwards & Co.
- Bradley University
- Carle Health
- Caterpillar
- CBI Bank & Trust
- CEFCU
- City of Peoria
- CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
- Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc.
- Cullinan Properties, Ltd.
- Dewberry
- East Peoria Community High School
- First Mid Bank & Trust
- Illinois Mutual
- OSF HealthCare
- Peoria County Employees
- Peoria Public Schools
- PNC
- RLI
- Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc.
Our Committee
The Heart of Illinois United Way Corporate Volunteer Council is overseen by our Marketing and Community Engagement Committee. Members include: Domini Ardis, Advanced Medical Transport of Central Illinois; Libby Derry, Bradley University; Amy Epkins, Illinois Mutual; Martha Kamp, CEFCU; Karen Stecher, SourceAmerica; Nicole Sutherland, RLI; and Jenna Wiesner, PNC (chair).
