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Did You Know?

According to The Network for Good, 56% of all adults and 59% of all teenagers, or approximately 122.3 million Americans, volunteer annually. Volunteers each contribute an average of 3.5 hours per week, totaling 22.4 billion hours and an estimated dollar value of $232.7 billion. Join Julie in her commitment to community improvement by exploring the list of public service resources below.

1-800-Volunteer.org

1-800-Volunteer.org is a national database of non-profit volunteer opportunities, events, and organizations. You can tailor your search according to your skills, location, and/or the groups you seek to work with. By creating a free account, you can sign up for volunteer opportunities online, keep a record of your service hours, view your schedule, and receive opportunity email alerts that fit the service criteria you desire.

Visit 1-800-Volunteer.org's Site |

Volunteer Match

Volunteer Match aims to strengthen communities by making it easier for good people and good causes to connect. You can search for regional volunteer opportunities as a guest or create a free account, allowing for a more personalized user-experience. The site includes a special section dedicated to assisting with disaster relief, features volunteer stories, and offers a newsletter.

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Fresh Air Fund

Since 1877, The Fresh Air Fund has provided free summer vacations in the country to more than 1.7 million New York City children from disadvantaged communities. Each year, thousands of children visit volunteer host families in 13 states throughout the Northeastern US and Canada through the Friendly Town Program or attend Fresh Air Fund camps. As a volunteer with this not-for-profit agency, you can host a child, help to recruit new hosts, organize local summer events, serve as a camp counselor, assist the foundation’s NYC office, help raise funds, and more.

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Volunteer NYC

The Mayor's Volunteer Center, in partnership with United Way New York City, created VolunteerNYC.org to serve the dual purpose of providing meaningful volunteer opportunities for New Yorkers and providing nonprofit organizations in New York City the opportunity to post their volunteer needs and publicize the services provided by their organizations. By tailoring this website specifically to New York City, this database allows you to search within your own borough and zipcode and get travel information for posted opportunities. You can also browse listings according to your field of interest and create a user profile to save your searches. The mission of VolunteerNYC.org is to help even the busiest New Yorker become a volunteer.

Visit Volunteer NYC's Site |

The United Way

The United Way is a national network of nearly 1,300 local organizations that work to advance the common good by focusing on education, income and health. The site provides resources not only about how you can volunteer locally, but also about how to become a cause advocate. The organization’s ten-year goals include improving America’s high school graduation rate, reducing the number of financially unstable low-income families, and increasing the number of healthy youth and adults in the nation by one-third. The site includes videos and written highlights of member experiences.

Visit The United Way's Site |

Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness both domestically and abroad. With the help of its volunteers, the organization has built more than 300,000 houses around the world, providing more than 1.5 million people in more than 3,000 communities with safe and affordable shelter. Active in more than 90 countries, including all 50 states of the United States, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico, volunteers work side-by-side building a home with its future owner. The organization offers a variety of programs ranging from women and youth-focused groups to co-ed and disaster relief opportunities. Visit the site to find a local event, read homeowner and volunteer stories, watch videos and scroll through photos of volunteers in action, learn how to become an advocate, or sign up for Habitat’s newsletter.

Visit Habitat for Humanity's Site |

My Good Deed

MyGoodDeed.org, founded in 2003, spearheaded the movement with the support of families affected by 9/11 and other 9/11 leaders to establish September 11 as a National Day of Service and Remembrance to honor the lives of the thousands who were killed and injured on 9/11 and pay tribute to the many who aided in the rescue and recovery efforts. Inspired by the many ways Americans across the nation united during the weeks after the tragic event with selfless acts of public service, the organization’s website not only promotes service on 9/11 but also provides comprehensive resources on how to volunteer for a multitude of causes around the country during any time of the year. Create a free profile and you can post comments about your recent good deeds, learn about and announce upcoming events, and more.

Visit My Good Deed's Site |

New York Cares

Each year, New York Cares helps to support more than 990 nonprofit agencies, public schools, and other deserving organizations throughout the five boroughs. More than 43,000 people volunteer their time through the organization every year and many others contribute to its holiday gift and coat drives. As a result, New York Cares has been able to help nearly 450,000 disadvantaged New Yorkers. The website allows you to search for opportunities to volunteer as an individual and provides guidance on a multitude of ways to get your company involved. Projects range from working directly with children, adults, and animals to preparing meals for the hungry or working in open spaces. Volunteering with New York Cares requires five easy steps detailed on their site.

Visit New York Cares's Site |

National Parks Service

The National Park Service cares for America’s national parks: a network of nearly 400 natural, cultural and recreational sites, including the iconic Grand Canyon and Statue of Liberty as well as lesser known monuments, rivers, and valleys throughout the country. You can search for volunteer opportunities according to a specific state or park. The site also includes information about its Youth Programs for individuals between ages 5 and 24, which include the Student Conservation Association (SCA), Youth Conservation Corps (YCC), Job Corps, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Corps Network, and Public Land Corps (PLC).

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Network for Good

The Network for Good is a comprehensive database of charities and environmental crises to which you can donate your time and other resources. You can customize your search according to keywords, charity names, location, or your cause of interest. The site provides the means for you to keep a private journal of your volunteer time and experiences through its Volunteer Record of Service feature. It also provides information about volunteering and donating wisely, personal volunteer stories, links to hot topics, and the ability to create a personal profile.

Visit Network for Good's Site |

The Door

Each year over 8,000 young people, most referred by their peers, join The Door in NYC for primary health care, prenatal care and health education, mental health counseling, legal services, GED, ESL, tutoring and homework help, college preparation and computer classes, career development services and training, job placement, daily meals, arts, sports and recreational activities. The only criterion for Door membership is age (12-21). Of the 8,000 current members, the majority are between 17 and 20 years of age, with the average being 18. Most are African-American or Hispanic and a growing number are immigrants from China. As a volunteer with The Door, you can serve as a tutor in a subject area of your strength, support the organization’s administrative staff, or serve as a group leader in charge of a workshop, such as a book club. You may also opt to join the Member Services Department, which welcomes and orients joining youth and is responsible for providing a brief interview and risk assessment to all new members. Volunteers opportunities are available Monday-Friday, 10 AM – 7:30 PM and require at least three hours per week.

Visit The Door's Site |

NYC Department of Parks & Recreation

Volunteering in New York City Parks is a great way for New Yorkers to give back to their communities. You can join community groups, participate in recreational programming, or work in the parks planting and maintaining the city's greenspaces. The site includes a calendar of upcoming events, detailed information about its ranger and horticulture-based volunteer opportunities, as well as links to other NYC-based volunteer sites and a video about volunteering with the department.

Visit NYC Department of Parks & Recreation's Site |

Big Brothers, Big Sisters

Big Brothers Big Sisters mentors children, ages 6 through 18, in communities across the country. National research has shown that the positive relationships between youth participants and their mentors have a direct and measurable impact the children's lives. Little Brothers and Sisters are more confident in their schoolwork performance, have better relationships with their families, are 46% less likely to begin using illegal drugs, 27% less likely to begin using alcohol, and 52% less likely to skip school. The easiest and fastest way to get started is to complete the organization’s online application. After you complete the short form, a Big Brothers Big Sisters staff member will contact you. You can also call 888.412.BIGS to be routed to your local agency. The organization includes specialists who can offer support and guidance about being a mentor. You can read about the types of bonds formed and the impact you can make on a child’s life by clicking on the site’s “Real Life Stories” section of the website below.

Visit Big Brothers, Big Sisters's Site |

YAI – National Institute for People with Disabilities

Founded in 1957, YAI/NIPD provides Residential Services, Employment services, Day Services, Rehabilitation and Mental Health Services, Health Care and Home Health Care, Recreation and Camping, and Family Support Services to people with developmental and learning disabilities throughout New York City, Westchester, Long Island, Rockland and Orange Counties, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico. YAI also produces publications, conferences, training seminars, video training tapes and television programs for family members and professionals that work with the developmental and learning disabled. You can support YAI locally by participating in its Central Park Challenge.

Visit YAI – National Institute for People with Disabilities's Site |

Big Brothers, Big Sisters NYC

Big Brother, Big Sisters is best known for its youth mentoring program, which pairs an adult volunteer with a youth in need of a mentor for a relationship lasting at least one year. The NYC chapter includes additional community and specialty programs that like the general mentorship program allow youth and volunteers to meet at times of their choosing. These local initiatives include the “9/11 Together We Stand Program,” which provides long-term help for children who lost a parent or close relative in the 2001 World Trade Center attacks, “FDNY Partnership Program,” which pairs current or retired fire fighters with youth who lost a parent in the FDNY in the line of duty, “New American Partnership” to help youth who are first-generation Americans navigate their two cultures, “Young Mothers,” which couples female volunteers with teenage mothers in need of a friend, “Incredible Kids,” through which volunteers can provide companionship to children who have a learning or physical disability or chronic illness, and the “East New York Program,” which concentrates on foster care prevention. The organization also offers site-based programs that meet at specific locations and times, programs focused on youth in danger of incarceration or who are dealing with life with an incarcerated parent, and more.

Visit Big Brothers, Big Sisters NYC's Site |

Save the Children

Save the Children is the United States chapter of the International Save the Children Alliance, which consists of 27 national Save the Children organizations working in more than 120 countries. In the United States, the organization aims to ensure the well being of children by providing literacy, nutritional, educational, and emergency-relief programs in impoverished rural communities throughout the Appalachia region, Southeast, Mississippi River Delta, Gulf Coast, and California’s Central Valley. If you are interested in volunteering in any of Save the Children’s domestic locations, write a letter or send an email to them notifying them of your interest, skills, and abilities. Their address and email is available by clicking on the link below. Save the Children also strongly encourages acts of advocacy, aids women internationally, and provides extensive resources on how to become a cause’s leading voice.

Visit Save the Children's Site |

USA Service

Launched in support of President Obama’s inauguration and his call for Americans to become active participants in their communities, USAservice.org’s website is designed to encourage Americans to serve locally and share their results. The events listed allow you to engage in direct service or come together with others to reflect on how you can commit to becoming a more involved citizen. In addition to allowing you to announce a service event or search for one, the site includes a step-by-step guide on how to host an event, a blog about recent member and presidential service activities, and links to additional volunteering resources. You can also sign up to receive service opportunity updates.

Visit USA Service's Site |