August 2018 - New York City

 
Summer Streets 2018
City of New York, Department of Transportation
 
Date/Time: Saturday, August 4, 11 and 18 from 6am - 1pm. There are two shifts:
  • 6 - 10am
  • 10am - 1pm
Location: Summer Streets runs from the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park. There are five different volunteer locations:
  • Location 1 - Foley Square (Brooklyn Bridge to Canal St. along Lafayette St.)
  • Location 2 - SoHo (Canal St. to Houston St. along Lafayette St.)
  • Location 3 - Astor Place (Houston St. to 14th St. along Lafayette St.)
  • Location 4 - Midtown (15th St. to 42nd St. along Park Ave.)
  • Location 5 - Uptown (43rd St. to 60th St. along Park Ave.)
From the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park, seven miles of streets will be closed to cars for six hours to allow walkers, runners, cyclists and people of all ages to take back the streets and enjoy many free activities along the route. It takes a lot of people to ensure these great events run smoothly. Enjoy Summer Streets from a different perspective as a part of the Summer Streets team and help inspire participants to climb rock walls, fly down zip lines and water slides, enjoy music, games and many other activities and help direct and inform people to ensure they have a great day.
 
Ages: Volunteers must be 16 years old to participate on their own; children are welcome with parent or guardian
 
Time Commitment: Four hour shifts
 
 
 
Garden Maintenance
Concrete Safaris
 
Date/Time: Saturday, August 11 and Saturday, August 18, 10am - 1pm
 
Location(s):
  • August 11, Mad Fun Farm within Washington Houses, 1775 Third Avenue, New York
  • August 18, Jefferson Gardens within Jefferson Houses, 300 East 115th Street, New York
Volunteers will spend a fun day outside assisting with general garden maintenance. Activities may include raking, planting, spreading topsoil and wood chips, garbage collection and more. Please dress accordingly for the weather.
 
Ages: Families with children of all ages are welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Three hours
 
 
 
Supplies for Success - Help Pack Backpacks
UJA Federation-NY
 
Date/Time: Wednesday, August 22, 2 - 5 pm
 
Location: UJA Federation, 130 East 59th Street

Join Supplies for Success, UJA-Federation of New York's initiative and help pack backpacks with new school supplies for children in need. Each year, UJA provides brand new filled backpacks to thousands of disadvantaged children through UJA-Federation beneficiary agencies, schools, shelters, and other local organizations. The goal of Supplies for Success is to ensure that all children in need return to school with the tools they need to succeed. 
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Up to three hours. Drop-in, stay for an hour or the whole time.
 
Contact: Olivia Faden, [email protected], 212.836.1845. Registration is available online.
https://www.ujafedny.org/

 
 
Alternative Summer Break for Teens
GOOD+ Foundation
 
Date/Time: Tuesday - Thursday, August 28 - 30, 10am - 1pm. We ask that the volunteers complete all three days of the Youth Alternative Summer Break Program due to the service learning component. There will be a 30-minute lunch break each day. High school volunteers will receive certificates verifying community service hours upon completion of the program.
 
Location: 306 W 37th Street, 8th Floor, New York

Founded by Jessica Seinfeld, GOOD+ Foundation™ (formerly Baby Buggy) is a nonprofit organization that partners with a national network of leading programs to break the cycle of family poverty through the power of donated child products and life-changing family services. GOOD+ Foundation grants donations of products and services to programs that have demonstrated a capacity to address family poverty in three focus areas: supporting new mothers, investing in early childhood and engaging fathers. Volunteers will be sorting, screening, and processing children's clothing, accessories, books, and toys based on real time needs, in order to prepare clothing to go out to local families in the NYC Metro Are a.
 
Ages: High school students ages 14-18
 
Time Commitment: Nine hours over three days
 
 
 
Volunteer with Seniors
City Meals of Wheels
 
Date/Time: Ongoing, all year round
 
Location: Meal delivery and friendly visiting occurs in seniors' homes throughout New York City; other volunteer opportunities can be done from your home.

City Meals funds 31 community-based agencies that bring weekend, holiday and emergency meals to homebound elderly New Yorkers who can no longer shop or cook for themselves. In addition, the Mobile Food Pantry program delivers weekly bags of grocery staples to the most at-risk elderly and our Fresh Produce program enables us to supplement regular meal deliveries with fresh fruit and vegetables from local farmers. Volunteers are needed to help with the following programs:

Friendly Visiting:
The friendly visiting program brings together our meal recipients with kind-hearted people who want to help homebound seniors stay connected with the outside world. This social visit becomes so important in the lives of our lonely elderly. The time commitment for this program is one hour per week for at least six months. The visiting schedule is arranged between you and the senior.
Meal Delivery:
The heart of our program is the hand-delivery of nutritious meals to homebound elderly. Meal recipients look forward to these essential meals; the personal visits that come with them help brighten their days. Each weekend, teams and individual volunteers help deliver meals from meal centers across the city. Volunteer opportunities are available throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens on weekends and select locations on weekdays.
Senior Chat:
This program lets caring volunteers connect with isolated, elderly individuals by phone once a week. A weekly phone call can go a long way to help homebound seniors feel safe and connected to the world. Calls typically last about a half hour and can be made from the volunteer's home or office. The time commitment for this program is six months.
Handmade Greeting Cards:
Each year, hundreds of students from local public and private schools - ranging from pre-kindergarten to universities - decorate cards for their homebound elderly neighbors to be delivered with either meals or food packages. Last year they created 69,793 cards.  There is a template on the website, along with further information.
Kitchen Volunteers:
During the weekday, volunteers help package food to be delivered to homebound elderly as well as serve meals to seniors at the meal center.

Ages: Families with children of all ages are welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies, depending on project
 
 
 
Operation Backpack
Volunteers of America
 
Date/Time: Now through end of August
 
Location: Click here for official drop-off locations around New York

More than 22,000 children live in NYC's homeless and domestic violence shelters. One of the most devastating consequences of homelessness is the impact it has on a child's education. Each year since 2001, Volunteers of America-Greater New York has been distributing new backpacks filled with grade-specific school supplies to homeless children throughout New York City. A filled backpack relieves parents of a financial burden and provides a sense of normalcy to the otherwise chaotic lives of these children, helping them to look and feel more like their classmates. Most importantly, a filled backpack allows these children to start the school year feeling prepared and confident, with the knowledge that their education is important and that someone believes in them. Every backpack given to a child through Operation Backpack is filled with supplies according to the child's grade. All backpack and supplies are new. Consider donating a filled backpack or two. You can start a donation drive in your building, workplace, house of worship or club, or simply fill a few backpacks with your family. The Volunteers of America website provides a list of needed supplies, posters you can download for a donation drive, and other information. 
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
 
 
Intergenerational Chess - Fall Registration Now Open
Dorot
 
Date/Time: Ten Mondays, October 1 - December 17, from 4 - 5:30 pm. Volunteers must be able to commit to all sessions:

October 1- orientation for youth, no seniors attend
October 8, 15, 29
November 5, 12, 19, 26
December 3, 10, 17
 
Location: Dorot, 171 West 85th Street, NYC

Student volunteers and DOROT Seniors will get to know each other and play chess together. Chess Masters will demonstrate different strategies at each session. Share your love of the game and bring a smile to a senior! Refreshments will be served. Students must be in 6th-12th grade and understand the game of chess, the different chess pieces and how to move them .
 
Ages: Volunteers must be in 6th-12th grade
 
Time Commitment: Ten Mondays, one and one-half hour sessions.
 
Contact: Registration is dependent on a successful phone interview. For more information, please contact Shai Rosenfeld at [email protected]. Applications are available online.
 
 
Is your teen looking for a school-year internship?
Help them apply to Dorot's Teen Internship Program
 
One afternoon a week from 4 - 6 pm
October - January
9th-12th graders
 
You can help improve the lives of seniors through friendly visits, birthday deliveries,
computer tutoring, and much more.
 
 
Back to School Kindness Challenge
Doing Good Together

Date/Time: Starting September 1

Location: Your home and community
 
Take the Back to School Kindness Challenge! The back-to-school season is a great time to re-orient ourselves to our priorities. Let's resolve to make this a big-hearted school year full of compassion, reflection, and thoughtful acts of kindness. These unique ideas help students focus on daily acts of kindness before, during, and after the school day. Choose from the elementary grade and/or upper grade challenge. Starting on September 1 you can follow along with DGT on social media, both on Instagram and in our Big-Hearted Families community on Facebook, for kindness reminders and personal stories.

Ages: Everyone can participate

Time Commitment: Varies

Contact: [email protected]  

 
DGT's Big-Hearted E-Books

Families who are part of our Membership Circle may already know about our big-hearted e-books which expand on important topics and offer in-depth learning opportunities. We're proud to introduce our newest e-book "Host a Mini Family Service" created just in time for National Night Out™ on August 7th. Choose any of the three e-books (on building community, exploring nature, or becoming an upstander) for just $4.99 each in our online store. Or, become a member (for just $29.99) and receive all three of these e-books for free! As always, your purchase supports DGT and helps us offer free and budget-friendly resources to families nationwide.
 

 

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This list was compiled by Doing Good Together™ (www.doinggoodtogether.org)
 When calling to volunteer for any of the opportunities listed above, please let the coordinator know you found it through this listing. You are encouraged to ask any questions you may have of the sponsoring organization before committing to a project.
Disclaimer: This list is provided as a service to families. Inclusion of organizations in this listing does not imply affiliation, endorsement or quality assurance on the part of Doing Good Together.™ Doing Good Together™ bears no responsibility whatsoever for the activities and actions of the listed organizations. 
                                                                            

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