Founded in 1966, the Volunteer Center of Bergen County connects volunteers with opportunities to serve, builds capacity for effective volunteering, operates direct service volunteer programs and participates in strategic partnerships that meet community needs. The Center operates a Referral Service linking prospective volunteers with hundreds of positions at area agencies; provides a variety of trainings to nonprofit organizations and executives on Volunteer Program Management, Board Development and other issues of nonprofit management and sponsors the Northern New Jersey Business Volunteer Council, an alliance of 35 area businesses focused on meeting needs of children and families through employee volunteerism. The Volunteer Center also operates two mentoring programs: Volunteers in Protective Services which provides mentors for children who have been abused or neglected and Mentoring Moms, which provides mentors for mothers in need of guidance in parenting and in moving from welfare to work. We also sponsor the Chore Service, in which volunteer handypersons perform minor home repairs for the elderly and/or disabled. We also sponsor Bergen LEADS, an exciting learning and leadership program for adults.