How do you find a place to volunteer?

Question

My Husband and I don't have any plans for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, so we thought it would be nice to volunteer somewhere. I've called a few places I know of, but no one needs help - How can I find more volunteer opportunities? (Shelters, food banks, etc.). We're in the Chicagoland area.

Answer 1

There are nursing homes and assisted living homes everywhere, so I think if you call around you will be able to find a facility near you. In those facilities are folks who never, ever receive visitors. Ask around, find a resident or two (or more :) and visit them on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, or both! Sing to them, play Christmas songs, read to them and/or bring them a little gift basket with hankies, lotions, books, warm socks, slippers, etc.

I visit a nursing home every weekend, and it's something that is very rewarding and enriches my life immeasurably. The residents usually lift me up rather than vice versa!

Answer 2

YoLO!

My recommendation for any volunteer would be to narrow it down a bit. Narrow it down to where your interests lie:

Children in transition? Families in transition? Women? Senior citizens? Those on the streets due to mental challenges? Individuals with substance abuse problems?

Find your niche. I'm sure non-profits would love to have everyone volunteering for Christmas also be available to volunteer throughout the rest of the year.

As a pastor once said at the beginning of Easter services, "The turnout is impressive, but I'll be more impressed with those who show up NEXT Sunday."

I've provided a link in the source box to Volunteer Match.

Merry Christmas !

Answer 3

VolunteerMatch (http://www.volunteermatch.org), Idealist (http://www.idealist.org) and CraigsList (http://www.craigslist.com) all list volunteering opportunities with thousands of organizations, many of them in your area. Also, contact your local volunteer center; you can find this via the Points of Light Foundation web site (http://www.pointsoflight.org/centers/).

Volunteering during the holidays can be VERY difficult, because organizations are overwhelmed with requests from people wanting to do such at this time of year -- there often aren't enough opportunities to go around. Before you contact any organization, you need to have identified the skills you want to offer, identified how often you could volunteer and what time of day you can volunteer, and worked out any transporation issues. Then start applying for appropriate opportunities. Remember that finding a volunteering opportunity is a lot like finding a job -- you have to present yourself very well, and you have to contact many organizations before you are ultimately chosen.

Answer 4

Until we had kids, my husband used to volunteer every Christmas Eve for the Salvation Army. He did the bell ringer/donation collection at a local store.

Answer 5

Wonderful!

Here is a volunteer match site for Chicago area:
http://www.chicagononprofit.org/index.asp

Good Luck!

Everyone thinks of the soup kitchens..but I bet there are a lot of nursing homes, troubled children shelters, meals on wheels, senior centers, and hospitals who are short staffed for the holiday that would appreciate the extra hands or a smiling face to spend time with the forgotten.

Merry Christmas to you and your hubby..and thank you for taking the "bah~humbug" out of my mood.

Answer 6

Place an add in a local paper and explain you wish to offer your services. Depending what you have in mind, you could ask the local community who needs you the most or if a person can recommend a particular area.

If all else fails, ring Oprah............!!! LOL

Answer 7

go ask around and you will find some where to volunteer a
there are a lot of teens out there...