Virtual volunteering can be an efficient and cost-effective way to help organizations, said Gordon Mayer, vice president of Community Media Workshop, which provides communications training for Chicago-area nonprofits. ... Some organizations have found that virtual volunteering lets them harness the talents of people who have only a few intermittent hours to give.
—Pam DeFiglio, "Virtual volunteering carries real benefits," Chicago Tribune, December 11, 2009

Too many of us trot out the excuse, "I want to volunteer, but I can't get there because ..." Thanks to the Internet, phone, and virtual work of all kinds, that is no longer viable. "Virtual volunteering" is now a big part of the volunteer sector. My 84-year-old mom has a tough time getting around in the winter, but she volunteers from her living room as a phone screener for families seeking social services.
—Patty Stonesifer and Sandy Stonesifer, "Charity Begins at Home," Slate, February 18, 2009

The newest category of volunteering was not even imaginable as recently as three years ago because it has evolved as a direct result of computer technology and online interaction in cyberspace. In fact, a whole new term has been coined to identify "virtual volunteering."
—Susan J. Ellis, From the Top Down, Energize Inc., June 1, 1996