The first volunteer recognition dinner I planned had the theme of 'The ABC's of Volunteerism' (Appreciation, Benevolence, Chocolate!) I had a chalkboard in the room with the ABC's written on it and an apple drawn on with chalk. Used as centerpieces on the tables were small school slates, a wooden ruler, pencils, and bottles of glue and crayons. At each place setting were two pieces of chocolate candy--a Hershey Kiss and a Hershey Hug. I told the volunteers that 'A' stood for the Appreciation we felt for their wonderful service; 'B' represented Benevolence (an inclination to do charitable or kind acts--what they gave with their donation of time); and 'C' represented Chocolate, the sweetness of their contributions and we were giving them a hug and a kiss.
With a theme of ABC's and school, I told the volunteers their assignment for the evening was a quiz entitled 'Getting To Know You'. I gave them 10 minutes of Mix and Mingle time to gather signatures from fellow volunteers to fill in the spaces on their quizzes. The quiz had 20 items listed and each person had to find someone who...is an only child, had a fried egg for breakfast this morning, is allergic to penicillin, volunteers for more than three organizations, was born in the same month as you, uses the same brand of deodorant as you, has been a volunteer for more than 10 years, likes grits and fried okra, has had their picture on the front page of a newspaper, always twists an Oreo apart and eats the icing first, etc, etc, etc.
It was a bit zany, but was a good ice breaker and many didn't want to stop when I said time was up. I gave a shiny red apple to the volunteer who had the most lines filled in. Volunteers were then recognized and thanked for their valued gift of time in serving others. One volunteer's name was drawn to receive our grand prize of the evening--'a brand new washer and dryer' (washcloth and towel!). The evening was lighthearted and fun for the group.