March 2017 - New York City

 
Garden Volunteers
Concrete Safaris
 
Date/Time: Saturday, March 4, 10am - 1pm
 
Location: Mad Fun Farm, 1775 Third Avenue, New York
 
Garden Volunteer Sessions consist of a variety of garden maintenance activities such as repairing raised beds, shoveling topsoil, planting herbs, vegetables, fruits, and flowers, spreading mulch, picking up trash, weeding, and more. Please wear comfortable clothes, proper footwear, preferably work boots or sturdy sneakers, and bring a reusable water bottle. Food will not be provided, so bring a bagged lunch or order from one of East Harlem's amazing local eateries. The event will take place rain or shine, so please dress for the weather!

Ages: Everyone can participate
 
Time Commitment: Three hours
 
Contact:  Chevon Cooper, Concrete Safaris' Garden Program Coordinator, 646.647.4472. Registration is available online.
http://concretesafaris.org/en/
 
 
DOROT
Purim Package Delivery
 
Date/Time: Either Wednesday, March 8, between 4 - 6pm or Sunday, March 12, between 1 - 3pm.
 
Location: Manhattan

Celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim by delivering gifts of food to our older friends and sharing a wonderful gift - the gift of friendship.
 
Ages: Families with children age 4 - 12 are welcome to volunteer.
 
Time Commitment: One hour between 4 and 6pm
 
Contact:  Shelley Levine, 917.441.5051, [email protected]. Registration is available online. Please disregard registration deadline listed on website - registration is open until all volunteer slots are filled.
www.dorotusa.org
 
 
Annual Book Drive
Project Cicero
 
Date/Time: Friday, March 10 through Sunday, March 12, a variety of volunteer shifts are available. Book drives run from Friday, March 3 through Wednesday, March 8. Books can also be donated to Project Cicero through their Amazon wish list page.
 
Location(s):
  •  Sorting and distribution takes place in the Gold Ballroom at The Hotel Pennsylvania, 401 7th Ave, New York.
  • Most of NYC's independent schools will be running book drives, as well as the JCC of Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave, and New York Society Library at 53 East 79th Street.
Project Cicero is a partnership of independent, public, and parochial schools, private and public organizations, and corporations whose primary goal is to create and supplement classroom and school libraries for children in under-resourced New York City public schools through an annual citywide book drive. Project Cicero also puts books into homeless shelters, juvenile detention facilities, community centers, before and after school programs, and wherever else there is a need. Since its inception in 2001, Project Cicero distributed more than 150,000 books. To date, Project Cicero has placed 2.3 million books into more than 13,000 classrooms and school libraries reaching over 550,000 children in under-resourced schools in New York City. Donated books must be in excellent condition, and only children's book (through Young Adult/high school level) will be accepted.
 
Ages:  Everyone can participate in book drives. Sorting and distribution volunteers should be in 5th grade or older.
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: [email protected] or 212.288.6900 x 511. Volunteer registration is available online.
www.projectcicero.org/

 
Soup Kitchen Volunteers
The Manhattan Church
 
Date/Time: Saturday, March 11 and 25; 10 am - 2 pm.
 
Location: Prospect Park, 9th Street Entrance, Brooklyn

The Manhattan Church provides a soup kitchen for the homeless and impoverished. Volunteers are needed to set up, prepare food, serve, break down and clean up.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate.
 
Time Commitment: Four hours
 
Contact: Email Rev. Carl Garrison for more information and to volunteer [email protected]
 
 
Weekend Repack in Hunts Point
Food Bank of NY
 
Date/Time: Saturday, March 11, 12:30 - 2:30 pm
 
Location: Bronx Distribution Center, 355 Food Center Drive, Bronx

Collected food must be re-packed in order to be distributed to the Food Bank's network of approximately 1,000 community-based member programs throughout the five boroughs. The Food Bank's free, full-delivery operation dispatches 8 to 10 tractor-trailers full of food to help our network provide free meals every day to New Yorkers in need. The Food Bank distributes millions of pounds of food every year, including approximately 13 million pounds of fresh produce and more than 1 million pounds of meat and seafood. To date, the Food Bank has distributed more than 958 million pounds of food.

Ages: Families with children ages five and older are welcome to repack the food
 
Time Commitment: Two hours
 
Contact: [email protected], 212.566.7855 Dial 5. Registration is available online.
www.foodbanknyc.org
 
 
Donation Checking and Sorting
Room to Grow
 
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 14 or Wednesday, March 22, noon - 2pm
 
Location: 7 West 30th St, 3rd Floor, NY, NY 10001 (between 5th Avenue and Broadway)

Volunteers are needed to check and sort donations of baby/toddler clothing and toys, and assist in organizing inventory for use in the clinical program working to enrich the lives of babies born into poverty.

Ages: Volunteers need to be fifteen or older.
 
Time Commitment: Two hours
 
Contact:  Allison Luciano, Site Coordinator, [email protected] or 212. 320.8188
http://roomtogrow.org/
 
Boxes of Love: Sort and Pack Non-Perishable Food Donations
HOPE for New York
 
Date/Time: Saturday, March 18, 10 am - noon
 
Location: Cru Inner City Training and Distribution Center, 9 - 11 44th Drive, Queens

Join Cru Inner City to serve families in need throughout NYC. Volunteers will sort and pack non-perishable food donations that will be distributed to communities in need. This is a great group opportunity, and a family-friendly opportunity as well--children are welcome! IMPORTANT: Once you request information for this event through the web page, you will receive a separate email with a registration link from Cru Inner City to complete your sign up. Your volunteer spot is NOT reserved until you complete the registration process through the second link.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Two hours
 
Contact:  917.206.1440. Registration is available online.
www.hfny.org/
 
 
Spring Into Action!
Brooklyn Community Services
 
Date/Time: A variety of dates and times in March and April
 
Location: Various locations throughout Brooklyn
 
Volunteers founded Brooklyn Community Services (BCS) in 1866 in response to the plight of Civil War veterans and homeless children who lost their fathers in the war. Volunteerism remains at the heart of what they do. Spring into Action is the signature volunteer initiative of Brooklyn Community Services (BCS). Now in its 5th year, Spring into Action has galvanized over 1,000 volunteers. This year, BCS is proud to offer more than 20 service opportunities that impact Brooklyn's low-income neighborhoods.
 
Ages: Volunteer opportunities are for families with children ten and older.
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact:  [email protected], 718.310.5823. Visit the Spring Into Action webpage for more information and to register.
http://wearebcs.org/springintoaction/
 
Do you have a teen looking for a summer internship program?
DOROT's Summer Teen Internship Program is for rising sophomores through rising seniors.

The internship inspires high school students to develop leadership skills and give back to the community. Interns volunteer with a diverse group of socially conscious teens to connect with older adults and provide assistance.  Teen interns may:
  • Visit seniors in their home for companionship
  • Teach seniors how to use a computer, iPad, iShuffle, and other types of technology
  • Celebrate seniors' birthdays
  • Deliver meals to seniors
  • Send birthday cards out to seniors
  • Read to visually impaired seniors
  • Shop and deliver groceries to seniors
  • Play chess, cards, scrabble, and other games with seniors
  • Assist with office work at DOROT
  • Have the opportunity to plan, run and implement an intergenerational game day or museum trip
  • Visit DOROT's Homelessness Prevention Program and take part in cooking a meal for the seniors who live in our transitional housing facility
 
Session 1: June 26 - July 20 (exceptions made for Regents exams)
Session 2: July 24 - August 17

The internship is 4 days a week, Monday through Thursday, 10:30am - 5pm
On the last day of the internship, the day ends at 6:30pm.

This is an unpaid internship and is designed to provide students with a minimum of 92 hours of community service. Two locations are available - Manhattan and Riverdale.

Interested teens should complete the online application:

If you have any questions please contact Shelley Levine at [email protected] or 212.769.2850.
 
 
Cook a Meal at a Shelter
Doing Good Together
 
Date/Time: Flexible -- find something that works for your families schedule
 

Location:  
Check the national Homeless Shelter Directory or Emergency Food Programs Directory for shelters or soup kitchens in your area.

Your family can work together to help hungry people in your community by volunteering to cook a meal or bring food to a local homeless shelter or soup kitchen. When you contact a shelter or soup kitchen, ask for the volunteer coordinator, see if they need volunteers and ask if they have any age requirements. Find more information and resources on the Doing Good Together Cook a Meal at a Shelter Project Page.

Ages: Will vary depending on the shelter or soup kitchen's volunteer policy.
 
Time Commitment: Varies; volunteers can typically make either a one-time or ongoing commitment.
 
 
 

One of the hallmarks of DGT™ is that we do more than simply offer opportunities and ideas for sharing kindness and serving others. We also expand on those experiences with important tips that help families prepare for and reflect on the unique situations they encounter during their time spent volunteering. Our newest Reflection Activities are geared specifically to the frequent topics we cover in our listings, e.g. helping the hungry and caring for animals. Look for the reflection banners in our listings to find conversation starters, book recommendations and more. And be sure to bookmark this collection of reflection offerings for easy reference during big-hearted discussions with your family.
 
 

 

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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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