Community Leadership & Vision
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Because of her passion for volunteerism and her unique ability to inspire productivity in a collaborative way, Marissa Vogel started not only an organization - but a movement - in Central Texas.
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In 2009, when her daughters were 4 and 6 years old, Marissa searched for opportunities to get them involved in service. She understood that if her children were to grow into adults who cared about making a difference, they needed to learn a sense of responsibility for the world around them from a young age. She knew that kids learned best through action, and only by getting involved first-hand in community service, would they truly understand the impact they could have on others. Marissa wanted to make sure that they, and other young volunteers, actually did real work that mattered. But, as she looked for a way to get her girls involved in service, she found that these opportunities did not exist. So she took action. She started an organization called Little Helping Hands!
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Little Helping Hands has since evolved into Generation SERVE, a nonprofit that engages youth of all ages in service.
In the last 10 years, because of Marissa's vision and leadership, Generation SERVE has engaged over 34,400 youth and their families in volunteer work, contributing 78,500 volunteer hours to over 100 nonprofit organizations in the Central Texas area! In April 2018, after nearly a decade of service, Marissa made the decision to move on from Generation SERVE in pursuit of other professional goals. But the organization she built continues to live on and keeps inspiring youth to serve and lead their communities! She brought together nonprofits, families, supporters, and businesses to have an ongoing positive impact on the community we all love.
Generation SERVE's young volunteers will take the kindness, work ethic, and leadership skills they have learned through our programs and use them to improve their communities in the future.
Marissa's impact is multiplied by all of the lives that she has touched during her tenure at Generation SERVE and through each of Generation SERVE's youth, her efforts will continue for years to come!
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Marissa used her business acumen to plan, scale, and create in meticulous detail something that will one day be a template used across the nation. I truly believe that." - Kim Scheberle, Founding Board Member |
Marissa strongly believes children are capable of providing volunteer services, and that it's important to foster a community service ethic in them to guide them through their lives." - Gwen Flory, Founding Board Member |
Support Marissa's Legacy
To honor Marissa's legacy, the Generation SERVE Board of Directors established a Founder's Fund to be held with and invested by the Austin Community Foundation. The Fund celebrates not only Marissa, but all of the early supporters and community members who rallied around her vision in the organization's founding years.
The Fund is a celebration of all that makes Generation SERVE unique and is a catalyst for things to come. Held separately from our annual fund and day-to-day expenses, the Fund will be used at Board discretion for initiatives such as:
To learn more about the Fund or to honor Marissa's legacy and celebrate Generation SERVE's future, please click the link below.
The Fund is a celebration of all that makes Generation SERVE unique and is a catalyst for things to come. Held separately from our annual fund and day-to-day expenses, the Fund will be used at Board discretion for initiatives such as:
- organizational growth and expansion
- innovative programming
- additional staff
- infrastructure and capacity building
- capital campaigns / projects
To learn more about the Fund or to honor Marissa's legacy and celebrate Generation SERVE's future, please click the link below.