President’s Volunteer Service Award

The President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) is the United States’ premier volunteer awards program, encouraging citizens to live a life of service through Presidential gratitude and national recognition. SASO Girls Fairfield has been designated as an official Certifying Organization by the PVSA which gives us the authority to bestow Presidential recognition to our most exceptional volunteers who meet the criteria established by both the PVSA and SASO.

 

For SASO members, the PVSA award period is the same as that of the SASO membership year, June 1st – May 31st.  PVSA Awards are given for Gold, Silver, and Bronze levels of achievement. Targets for Teens (age 11-15) begin at 50 service hours for a Bronze award; Young Adults (age 16-25) begin at 100 hours of service.  All service must be completed during the 12-month SASO membership year June 1st through the following May 31st. For additional information please visit the PVSA website: presidentialserviceawards.gov

 

CRITERIA

Individuals meeting the criteria established by both the PVSA and SASO are eligible for an award:

PVSA Criteria (please go to PVSA website and read all rules carefully)

  • Recipient(s) must be a United States citizen or a lawfully admitted permanent resident of the United States.
  • Awards are issued for eligible service hours served within the certifying organization’s designated 12-month time period.
  • Awards are issued for volunteer service only; additional levels of participation with the organization (i.e., charitable support) are not a factor considered for the award.
  • Service that does not qualify: court-ordered community service; paid service or financial donations; religious instruction and/or worship; service for family members; political lobbying; proselytizing.
  • Awards are issued by approved Certifying Organizations.
  • Service must be certified with an approved Certifying Organization that is legally established in the U.S., Puerto Rico or one of the U.S. territories.

SASO Criteria

  • Recipient must be an active SASO member, in good standing, during the award year.
  • A minimum of 30% of service hours must be served through SASO events that have been listed on the SASO website and offered to all members. A maximum of 70% of service hours can be with other community service organizations.
  • All hours must be completed during the SASO membership year, June 1st through May 31st.
  • For service hours completed through SASO, the volunteer’s participation must be on record with the SASO Membership VP by emailing name, event and number of hours after completion to sasogirlsct@gmail.com Important: If you do not report your participation after each event, SASO will not have a record of your service and will not be able to certify it for the PVSA.
  • All non-SASO event hours must be verified by a supervising adult at the organization by submitting a signed Community Service Verification Form via email to the SASO PVSA Coordinator at sasogirlspvsa@gmail.com.
  • Volunteer hours independently obtained at one of our established, long standing philanthropy organizations will be considered for part of the 30% SASO requirement. Please contact the SASO PVSA coordinator at sasogirlspvsa@gmail.com.
  • To determine the appropriate age category, Teen (11-15) or Young Adult (16-25,) a SASO volunteer will qualify for the age that they are for the majority of our membership award year, at least 7 of the 12 months between June 1- May 31.

How to Get Started (Note: New Process)

  1. Email your interest to the SASO PVSA Coordinator, Jane Becker (sasogirlspvsa@gmail.com). Include member’s name, birthdate and primary email address (this can be parent or child.)
  2. Candidates must sign up for PVSA by MAY 1.  Volunteer hours will be counted through May 31.
  3. A follow up email asking to verify member’s PVSA eligibility and a Google Doc “Hourly Service Log” will be created and shared
  4. The member is responsible for logging every volunteer hour and ensuring that every hour has been verified by either SASO or the outside organization.
  5. At the end of the SASO Membership year, May 31, the log will be verified by SASO and all members who meet all the criteria will be submitted to the PVSA for an award.

If you are interested in achieving this prestigious award, it is critical to plan your service hours at the beginning of the membership year, considering the time during the year when your schedule will have the most flexibility and taking advantage of summer and school breaks. Also, look for service opportunities that offer larger time blocks, such as Operation Hope Tag Sale or events that need weekly help such as Senior Center, Operation Hope or Wakeman.

 

We hope that this opportunity for Presidential recognition will inspire many of our volunteer leaders to take on the challenge and answer the President’s call to service!

 

If you are interested in the PVSA, please contact the SASO PVSA Coordinator, Jane Becker at sasogirlspvsa@gmail.com

 

Important Links:

Presidential Volunteer Service Award Website

Community Service Verification Form