Volunteer Spotlight: Yvonne

One of our volunteers that has consistently shown up for every major event is Yvonne Yates. She volunteered over 25 hours in 2018. BikePGH staffer, DeAnna, recalled “Yvonne worked longer than normal shifts at two OpenStreetsPGH events because she wanted to help and make sure everything was running smoothly. She’s a great volunteer and we are lucky that she chooses to commit so much time to our organization!”.

Here at BikePGH, we’re so grateful for our amazing team of volunteers. As a small non-profit, we can only pull off the kinds of events we do because we know we can rely on hundreds of Pittsburghers to step up as volunteers throughout the year.

Q&A with Yvonne Yates

Q: Why did you decide to start volunteering with Bike Pittsburgh?

A: BikePGH wasn’t my first volunteer effort – I’ve been volunteering since I was in high school, through church, through my job, and through other efforts. I think it started with my mom – helping her out when she was volunteering. I started volunteering with BikePGH when I was going through a period of unemployment and I was looking for anything and everything to do. I like what BikePGH offers within the community. I’ve seen how some of the smallest initiatives can be impactful. BikePGH brings the community from all over, not just one neighborhood, to connect with one another.

Q: What makes you keep coming back to volunteer?

A: For what the events are first and foremost. It’s about the community involvement. For OpenStreets it’s not just the same route over and over – last year was the first year that it was expanded to Homewood. It’s also about the people. When I volunteer for these events I’m meeting people who are like-minded. They’re not volunteering for personal gain, but because it’s truly something good to do. I’ve met a number of people as a BikePGH volunteer – and I might even see them somewhere else too.

Q: At each OpenStreetsPGH last year you volunteered as a Program Hub Volunteer. What was that volunteer role like?

A: It was something different. In the past I had helped out at barricades or intersections on the OpenStreetsPGH route. As a program hub volunteer I helped set up, put up signs, and sell merch and memberships. Again, it was all about meeting other people and meeting BikePGH staff.

Q:What would you say to those who have thought about volunteering with BikePGH but haven’t signed up yet?

A: Involvement in your community is the best thing. It’s worthwhile when you meet people from different age groups, backgrounds, socioeconomic groups. It informs you about what’s going on in the world – you can’t be in a silo.

Join our Volunteer Community

Perks include getting to know an awesome community of bicyclists and pedestrians, making Pittsburgh’s streets safer, and a free BikePGH membership after 10 hours of service! Want your hours to count towards a BikePGH membership? Register with our Barter Membership Program!