December 2018 - Twin Cities 

 
Cookie Decorating Event
Open Arms
 
Date/Time: Saturday, December 8, 8:40 - 11:20am
 
Location: 2500 Bloomington Ave S, Minneapolis
 
Open Arms cooks and delivers free, nutritious meals to people living with life-threatening illnesses in the Twin Cities. Looking for ways to introduce your kids to helping others? We're hosting our fourth annual cookie decorating event on Saturday, December 8, where you and your family can decorate cookies that will be sent out to clients. Join us for bag decorating, treats and coffee following the event.

Ages: Families with children age six and older are welcome to participate.
 
Time Commitment: Twenty-minute shifts beginning at 8:40am
 
 
 
Adopt-A-Family: Holiday Gifts
The Link
 
Date/Time: Gifts are needed by December 7
 
Location: The Link, 1210 Glenwood Ave, Minneapolis

Help provide holiday gifts to youth and young families! The Link provides holiday gifts to over 300 youth and families each year. We depend on the community's support to make this happen. You and your family can help meet this need by selecting gifts for youth and young families from our online sign-up.
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: Lauren Matykowski, Volunteer Manager, 612.232.6116, volunteer@thelinkmn.org. Sign-up is available online. For the items with initials provided, if you are able to wrap the items and put the initial on a to/from tag that would be wonderful! If not, let us know and we will coordinate volunteers to help wrap.
https://thelinkmn.org/
 
 
Holiday Helper
Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery
 
Date/Time: Gifts will be accepted Monday, November 19 - Monday, December 17. Gifts may be delivered 7 days a week
  • Monday through Friday, 9am - 4pm
  • Saturday and Sunday, 10am - 3pm
Location: 4544 4th Avenue South, Minneapolis

Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery works to end child abuse and neglect and create strong, healthy families. The Holiday Helper Program supports families who access the Nursery's services during the winter giving season. When you donate items from our Holiday Wish List you will be putting smiles on the faces of local families who may not otherwise be able to celebrate the season. Click here for the Holiday Helper wish list. You can also order directly from our Amazon Wish List.
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: 763. 591.0400
 
 
Cook For Kids
Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery
 
Date/Time: We have meals three times a day, seven days a week, so it can work for anyone's schedule! Check our online calendar for shift availability.
 
Location: 4544 4th Ave S, Minneapolis

The mission of the Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery is to end child abuse and neglect and create strong, healthy families. Recruit a team of up to six people to purchase groceries, cook on site and serve breakfast, lunch or dinner to children at the Crisis Nursery. This is a great opportunity for your family to cook a meal for approximately 30 children, care provider staff and volunteers.
 
Ages: Volunteers must be 12 or older. All volunteers under age 18 must be accompanied by an adult age 21 or older.
 
Time Commitment: Two and one-half hours at the Nursery (includes prep, serving, eating and clean up), plus shopping time. This can be a one-time opportunity or an ongoing one.
 
Contact: Keith Johnson, kjohnson@crisisnursery.org. or 612.767.8483. For more information visit www.crisisnursery.org/volunteer or go directly to our application: https://www.crisisnursery.org/volunteer/cook-for-kids-signup-form/  

 
Cookie Baking
The Aliveness Project
 
Date/Time: Deliver to The Aliveness Project during these hours:
  • Saturday, December 15, 10am - 1pm
  • Monday, December 17, 9am -7pm
  • Tuesday, December 18, 9am -7pm
Location: The Aliveness Project, 3808 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis

Bake your favorite holiday cookies at your home, package them by the dozen, and donate them to The Aliveness Project for our members to receive with their holiday gift. Any flavor is welcome - bake your favorites! Bag or box by the dozen and indicate if cookies contain nuts or are gluten-free.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Two to three hours (depending on how many cookies you would like to bake)

Contact:  Laura Henry, Volunteer Manager, laura@aliveness.org,612.822.7946, ext. 221
aliveness.org
 
 
Deliver Holiday Gifts
The Aliveness Project
 
Date/Time: Friday, December 21, Shifts are on the hour, from 8am - 1pm
 
Location: The Aliveness Project, 3808 Nicollet Avenue, Minneapolis 

Deliver gifts to members in the Twin Cities metro area who are mobility impaired or unable to attend the Holiday Giveaway & Party due to medical issues. Choose your preferred area/neighborhood, pick up gifts at The Aliveness Project, and make two to five deliveries. Enjoy some snacks on us!
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Each shift is two-three hours, depending on delivery area
 
Contact:  Laura Henry, Volunteer Manager, laura@aliveness.org,612.822.7946, ext. 221
aliveness.org
 
 
Food Packing
Feed My Starving Children (FMSC)
 
Date/Time: Multiple dates and times, see website for details
 
Location: FMSC has MN packing locations in Chanhassen, Coon Rapids and Eagan

Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) is a Christian nonprofit that provides nutritionally complete meals that are specifically formulated for malnourished children. FMSC offers volunteers a one-of-a-kind experience. Volunteers hand-pack rice, soy, dried vegetables and a nutritionally complete blend of vitamins and minerals into bags which are then sealed, boxed, placed on pallets and shipped to our incredible partners working hard to reach the neediest children around the world. Through volunteering at FMSC, volunteers get the chance to impact hundreds of kids in just two hours per packing shift. You'll experience what it's like to make a tangible difference-today. Please review FSMC volunteering policies before you arrive for your shift.
 
Ages: The minimum age to volunteer at FMSC is five years old. Additional FMSC age requirements can be found online.
 
Time Commitment: Two-hour shifts
 
Contact:  Registration is available online. For questions about volunteering or about registering to volunteer, please refer to the FAQ page. If you have questions that are not addressed on the website or FAQ page please contact the following: General inquiries, info@fmsc.org or 763.504.2919. Volunteer and registration questions, registration@fmsc.org or 763.951.7306.
www.fmsc.org
 
 
Make Cards or Bring Patients Donated Flowers
Intrepid Hospice
 
Date/Time: Ongoing
 
Location: Multiple care facilities across the Twin Cities. Contact for the location most convenient for you.

Intrepid Hospice offers both one-time and ongoing family-friendly volunteer opportunities:

One-time volunteer opportunity:
We would love to have some cards to cheer up and brighten the day of our patients. We are always looking for cards and notes to make people feel thought about. We have a lot of patients who have been sick and sometimes lonely for a while so it always helps to have a handmade card to make their day better. We would welcome messages of "have a good day" rather than "feel better" as we focus on living one day at a time in palliative care.

Ongoing volunteer opportunity:
Volunteers are needed to serve as Flower Delivery Volunteers. We receive donated flowers every Thursday and would love to have our patients receive a five to ten-minute flower donation drop off visit for a few different patients in the facility closest to your home.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate. Volunteers under 16 need to be accompanied by a parent and need parents to sign a waiver.
 
Time Commitment: Up to an hour. For Flower Donations Volunteers we ask for a 30 minute twice a month minimum.
 
Contact:  Sarah Laulunen-Raj, 651.633.6404 or sarah.laulunen-raj@intrepidusa.com
www.Intrepidusa.com
 
 
Brighten the Holidays for a Senior
Gifts for Seniors
 
Date/Time: Now through December
 
Location: Check the Gift for Seniors website for barrel locations

You and your family can help make the holiday season brighter for seniors by collecting and donating new, unwrapped gifts to them through Gifts for Seniors. Click on the Gifts for Seniors wish list to find out which items are most needed. Gifts for Seniors provides donated gifts and life-affirming personal contact during the winter holidays to isolated seniors in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. This is how it works:
  • Donors provide new, unwrapped gifts from the Gifts for Seniors wish list through gift drives or drop-offs at gift barrel locations around the Twin Cities metro area.
  • Community volunteers collect donated gifts and bring them to our operations center where they are sorted, inventoried and displayed.
  • Agency partners select and personally deliver gifts to the isolated seniors they serve.
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact:  Coordinator@giftsforseniors.org, 612.379.3205
http://www.giftsforseniors.org/
 
 
Home for the Holidays - Christmas
Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly (LBFE)
 
Date/Time: On or close to Christmas; volunteers will need to be able to pick-up items from the LBFE office on Saturday, December 22 or Monday, December 24.
 
Location: At an elders' homes or nursing home. Pick-up gift items at the LBFE office:
1845 East Lake Street (entrance on Longfellow Avenue), Minneapolis

This year, LBFE is offering elders a new holiday experience called Home for the Holidays. Volunteers will visit elders in their home, apartment or nursing home for an hour or more, providing friendly conversation and cheer. As a special treat, volunteers will bring with them a red rose, a gift, and festive holiday cookies, all provided by LBFE through in-kind donations! As an LBFE holiday volunteer, you will bring joy and connection into elders' lives during a season when loneliness is most deeply felt.

Ages: Families with children of all ages are welcome to participate. There must be an adult 21 or older. Up to three family members or friends are welcome to join you! Please register additional volunteers age 12+; no registration required for younger children. An online background check is required; link will be provided when you register.
 
Time Commitment: Visit with your elder for an hour or more.
 
Contact: Registration is available online. Contact Ann Fosco, afosco@littlebrothersmn.org, 612.746.0725, if you have additional questions.
https://www.littlebrothersmn.org/
 
 
Holiday Home Care Baskets
Our Saviour's Housing
 
Date/Time: Delivery requested by Friday, December 14, contact  Tamara to arrange delivery

Location: 2219 Chicago Ave. S Minneapolis
 
Our Saviour's Housing is a program of Our Saviour's Community Services located in South Minneapolis. We provide three different housing programs: an Emergency Shelter serving 44 adults a night, Transitional Housing serving 16 adults, and Permanent Supportive Housing serving 100 adults. Our Permanent Supportive Housing residents have all gained their own apartments after years of homelessness and health problems. The residents' limited budgets make it tough for them to afford the necessities to care for their homes. You and your family can brighten their holidays and ease their budgets by providing a festive gift basket filled with household cleaning supplies, toilet paper and paper towels along with other festive gifts or treats!  Click here for our list of needed items. **Please note, we serve adults only and are unable to accept items for children.
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Flexible and can be put together at your own location
 
Contact: Tamara Patton, Volunteer Coordinator, volunteer@oshousing.org, 612.872.4193 x2
http://oscs-mn.org/oursaviourshousing/
 
 
Thrift Store Volunteers
Arc's Value Village Thrift Stores
 
Date/Time: Volunteer shifts are available days, evenings & weekends:
  • Monday-Friday: 9am - noon, 1 - 4pm, 4 - 6pm, 6 - 8pm
  • Saturday-Sunday: 10am - noon, 1 - 4pm, 4 - 6pm
Location: Arc's Value Village has locations in Bloomington, New Hope, Richfield & St. Paul

Make a difference in your community by volunteering at Arc's Value Village. Volunteers help unpack, sort, tag/sticker donations; hang and tag clothing; put price stickers on books, dishes and other hard goods; test small appliances to make sure they work; stock the sales floor and more. You will also learn how your efforts will support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families in our community!

Ages: Families with children eight and older are welcome to volunteer.
 
Time Commitment: Volunteer shifts are two or three hours. You can volunteer one-time or on an ongoing basis
 
Contact: Molly or Tisha, 952.920.0855, volunteernow@arcgreatertwincities.org. Registration is available online .

 
Serve and Prepare Food
House of Charity
 
Date/Time(s):
Weekdays:
  • Breakfast; 7 - 9am
  • Lunch Shift 1; 10:30 - 11:30am
  • Lunch Shift 2; noon - 1pm
  • General Prep; 2 - 4pm
  • Dinner Shift; 4 - 6pm
Weekends:
  • 9am - noon
  • 4 - 6pm
Location: 714 Park Ave, Minneapolis

The mission of the House of Charity is to feed those in need, house those experiencing homelessness, and empower individuals to achieve independence by transforming lives one person at a time. Every day of the year the Food Centre serves a hot, free, nutritious meal to over 350 men, women, and children. With a small kitchen staff, we rely heavily on volunteers to assist us in preparing and serving our meals each day. Volunteers, on a given week, make up 60-80% of our daily staff. Volunteers are needed to:
  • Serve food to community members
  • Prepare food for the next day/week
  • Organize food storage spaces
As an industrial kitchen can provide potential hazards during a volunteer shift, House of Charity asks volunteers to follow the following policies:
  • Wear closed-toed shoes to your shift
  • Wear long hair back in a ponytail to fit in hairnet. House of Charity will provide hairnets, gloves, and aprons
  • Inform the volunteer supervisor if you have serious food allergies
Ages: Families with children age nine or older are welcome to volunteer.
 
Time Commitment: One to two-hour shifts
 
Contact: Nicole Laumer, 612.436.2050, n.laumer@houseofcharity.org. Registration is available online.  
 
 
Care Packages for Caregivers
Senior Community Services
 
Date/Time: Ongoing, please call or email first.
 
Location: Bring care packages to the Senior Community Services office in Minnetonka,
10201 Wayzata Boulevard, #335, Minnetonka

Our social workers would like to be able to offer gifts to our caregivers who are caring for a loved one in the community. Caregiving is rewarding, but challenging, and can be stressful and make a caregiver's life unpredictable. We would like to offer a message of kindness and support to encourage caregivers and let them know they are doing a great job! You and your family can help by putting together Care Packages for caregivers. Care Packages include a handwritten note (handmade cards are especially welcome!) and small items such as puzzle books (crosswords, Sudoku, etc.), a box of hot cocoa, tea, tissues, hand crafted soaps, etc. Share a gift of kindness!

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: c.beringer@seniorcommunity.org or call 952.767.7894
 
 
Drives for Our Saviour's Housing Residents
Our Saviour's Housing
 
Date/Time: Deliver laundry kits or snack packs to the OSH shelter Monday-Friday between 9:30am - 4:30pm. Winter undergarment drive items should be delivered no later than Friday, December 14 at 4pm
 
Location: 2219 Chicago Ave. S, Minneapolis

Our Saviour's Housing is a program of Our Saviour's Community Services located in South Minneapolis. We provide three different housing programs: An Emergency Shelter serving 44 adults a night, Transitional Housing serving 16 adults, and Permanent Supportive Housing serving 100 adults. Our Permanent Supportive Housing residents have all gained their own apartments after years of homelessness and health problems. Your family can help by providing some of these basic items:

Laundry Kits: Help us meet one of our residents' most essential needs by making laundry kits for us to hand out. We are able to provide shelter residents with a washer and dryer but they provide their own detergent, etc. Laundry kits should contain enough powdered laundry detergent in a plastic baggie for 2-3 washes or 2-3 detergent pods, 2-3 dryer sheets and a travel-size bottle or packet of stain remover. Just pack them into individual baggies and deliver them to our shelter! We welcome donations of any quantity.

Winter Undergarment Drive: During this holiday season and all throughout the year this is one of our residents' most urgent needs. You can help each OSH resident feel comfortable and clean by coordinating your own drive or donating to ours. Please click here for the list of needed items. All donated items should be new.
 
Snack Packs: Start the day out right for our 40 homeless shelter residents by providing them with the means for a complete lunch and the assurance of knowing where their next meal will come from. Assemble homemade or store-bought snacks such as dried fruit or pre-packaged fruit cups, veggies, chips, crackers, trail mix, granola bars, cookies, beef jerky, etc. in lunch bags. Your snacks, along with sandwiches, will then be handed out to our residents every morning as they head out of the shelter for the day. Click here for more information about the snack pack project.
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: For more information and to schedule of tour of the shelter, please contact Tamara Patton, Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@oshousing.org or 612.872.4193 x2  
 
 
Help Brighten the Holidays for Others

Do you and your family want to find an opportunity to make the holidays brighter for others? Many local food shelves and other community organizations offer holiday food or toy programs to their clients. Here is a list of organizations you can contact to see how your family can help:

Christmas Committee (Anoka County) - Christmas Committee, Toys for Joy
Neighbors, Inc, (Dakota County) - Love Your Neighbor Holiday Program
360 Communities (Dakota County) - Armful of Love
CEAP (Anoka & Hennepin County) - Toys of Joy Program
ResourceWest (Hennepin County) - Toy Chest
STEP (Hennepin County), Holiday Toy Drive
PRISM (Hennepin County), - Holiday Toy Shoppe
Good in the Hood (Hennepin County) - Holiday Help Campaign
PROP (Hennepin County/Carver County) - Holiday Wishes
Community Action Partnership (Scott, Carver & Dakota Counties) - Hope for the Holidays
Sojourner Project (Hennepin County) - Holiday Gift Wish List
IOCP (Hennepin County) - Holiday Gift Program
Love Inc, (Wright County) - Holiday Sharing
Community Thread (Washington County) - Holiday Hope Wish List
 
Giving Plates
Doing Good Together
 
Date/Time: Flexible
 
Location: Your own home or community location

Making some baked goods to bring along to a holiday gathering? You and your family can bake up some extra treats to share as a holiday gift with new or isolated neighbors, sick or stressed friends, or even service providers you meet on a regular basis, like the mail carrier or school bus driver. Then your family can design giving plates to place your home baked goodies on as part of your gift! Visit the Doing Good Together Design a Giving Plate for directions to make your plates and for additional ideas and reflection questions.
 
Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: mail@doinggoodtogether.org
 
Shop Kind for the Holidays!

Whether you're shopping for birthday gifts, making your holiday gift list, or just looking for big-hearted books, games, and activities for your family, be sure to keep kindness in mind. DGT has compiled a variety of "kind vendors," and we've found some fun Amazon products that could turn online shopping into a big-hearted activity. Best of all, as an Amazon affiliate and having sponsored vendors, DGT benefits from these purchases as well. Want to become a Kind Vendor? Contact us and tell us about your big-hearted product!
 

 

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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. 
                                                                            

                                                                                                     © 2018 Doing Good Together™