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ABSTRACT STATEMENT OF PURPOSE The purpose of the evaluation of the Airman and Family Readiness Program’s Volunteer Program at the 139th Airlift Wing is to ensure that the best practices are being utilized to keep volunteers motivated and continuously involved. The volunteer program provides additional support to the Airmen and Family Readiness Program. Events that the program hosts and/or participates in typically require a large number of supporters to ensure that the event is a success and that it serves the airmen and families to the fullest extent. Volunteer participation was higher in the past but has since declined due to various changes. There has been a decrease in the amount of time available to provide the necessary attention to both the volunteers and the program. Thus, research regarding best practices to employ would be greatly beneficial in order to assure adequate attention while using the available time. STATEMENT OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research participants will consist of the current volunteers who will each complete a qualitative survey that will ask for their thoughts and opinions on the current volunteer program. They will be asked questions regarding what forms of communication they believe work the best, what volunteer opportunities are they most likely to assist, what motivates them to continually volunteer, are they adequately educated and informed on the activities they participate in, and do they feel that the volunteer program is a useful part of the Family Program. Data will be further collected through research from other volunteer programs regarding what practices work the best, as well as whether they believe volunteer programs hold an essential place in various agencies’ programs. ANTICIPATED RISKS AND BENEFITS The benefits trump any risks from the evaluation of the Airman and Family Readiness Program’s Volunteer Program. Participants will not be asked to answer any questions that will solicit emotional or incriminating information. The opinions of the participants will be utilized to alter, eliminate, or create the best practices for the volunteer program and thus the volunteers themselves. Participants will not be required to complete the survey and can choose to opt out at any time. SUBJECT SELECTION Participants will consist of the current volunteers, some 20-30 individuals all over the age of 18. Participants will be asked the number of activities and/or years of participation with the Airman and Family Readiness Program. Contact information will be obtained from the information volunteers have provided themselves when they initially began their volunteer services. By choosing not to participate, volunteers will not have affected their place as a volunteer. CONFIDENTIALITY Confidentiality will be maintained by not using participants’ names but rather assigning a number to each survey. The Privacy Act Data Cover Sheet that the DoD (Department of Defense) requires for the protection of PII (Personal Identifiable Information) will be used as an extra measure to protect volunteers’ contact information and survey answers. Final Report on 05-02-2013 The evaluation of the Airman and Family Readiness Program's volunteer program has been completed and the research went as planned.