ELKINS — A new volunteer management program is offering help for community organizations.

The Appalachian Forest National Heritage Area has developed the program, which offers an online volunteer management platform, the AFV Connector, that is open to any individual or organization in the 18 counties within the AFNHA, including 16 counties in West Virginia and two counties in Western Maryland.

The new program, known as Appalachian Forest Volunteers, is designed to “support volunteers wishing to find opportunities in our region, as well as organizations in need of volunteer support, or to build a stronger volunteer program to grow their capacity to fulfill their mission,” an AFNHA press release states.

The volunteer program can help volunteers looking to give back to their community, as well as organizations needing additional help with projects and events.

The AFV Connector allows individuals to “find volunteer opportunities in our region, learn new skills, support their favorite local organizations, track their time and value, build eligibility for the President’s Volunteer Service Award, and receive regional recognition for their efforts,” the press release states.

The program also “allows organizations to list needs or projects and recruit volunteers, grants access to a Volunteer Management Handbook to help build and maintain a solid volunteer program, training to better manage their volunteer programs, volunteer recognition resources to help celebrate and retain their volunteers, networking between organizations and volunteers to support resource sharing and planning, a growing library of ready-made forms, templates, and additional volunteer management resources.”

Agencies can register with the program to submit event listings and recruit volunteers, while individuals can register to follow volunteer opportunities in their area.

Registration is open now at https://afnha.galaxydigital.com.

Community members are encouraged to participate in National Volunteer Week April 16-22 by showing appreciation for volunteers in our area or joining a volunteer event.

The Appalachian Forest Volunteers program was partially funded by a Volunteer Generation Fund grant from Volunteer West Virginia.

To learn more about the work of the Appalachian Forest National Heritage Area, go online to www.appalachianforestnha.org, or email to volunteer@afnha.org for more information.