After two years on the job, Katlyn Keane is making the move from the Moab Valley Multicultural Center’s Americorps VISTA volunteer coordinator to a paid staff position with the center.
Keane came to Moab in August of 2013 to serve a one-year term with the multicultural center.
She renewed for a second term in 2014, and also agreed to serve as VISTA Leader of the other VISTAs in the Moab area.
When her current term expires on Oct. 7, Keane will officially become the center’s volunteer coordinator.
“Katlyn is a natural fit for the center and for Moab,” Moab Valley Multicultural Center Executive Director Rhiana Medina said. “She is vibrant, dedicated, bilingual, and extremely grounded for a 24-year-old … We are very excited to have her on staff.”
Joanna Onorato, who previously served as a VISTA volunteer with Arches Adult Education, will take her place.
The center has utilized Americorps VISTA members since 2009 to build capacity and stability. Building a solid volunteer program is one way that the center has been able to meet the growing demand for its services in the last few years, Medina said.
With the addition of Keane, the multicultural center will have five bilingual staff members serving the community in a variety of ways, from providing social services and advocacy to planning cultural events.
Keane said that being a volunteer coordinator is extremely rewarding.
“I have the opportunity to work with those select few people who believe in a mission or cause and are willing to put in their time and effort for no monetary return,” she said. “The value of a volunteer is without measure and I appreciate them more and more every day. One of my goals for this year has been finding ways to appropriately recognize volunteers for their hard work and continued generosity because I believe that is one of the best volunteer retention techniques.”
