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Center for Values and Community Service:
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| The SWFS Community | Hungry and Homeless | Children | ||
| Elderly | Disabled People | Environment and Public Spaces |
SWFS Community
SWFS Caring Community
The SWFS Caring Community provides assistance to members in times of need and celebrates with them in times of joy.Click here for more information.
Shiva Visitor
Provide support to a member who recently lost a loved one by visiting their home during the period of mourning. Recommended for ages 8 and up.
Holiday Packages
Help to pack and/or deliver holiday packages to members who could use some extra cheer at holiday times. All ages welcome.
Friendly Phone Calls or Visits
Make a connection with a member who is recently home from surgery, has trouble getting around, or who could simply use someone to talk to. All ages welcome.
Hungry and Homeless
Emergency Food Program
Every Saturday morning, SWFS volunteers prepare hot chocolate, and add fresh fruit and whole grain bread to our prepared non-perishable food packages and give them to anyone in need. Our guests represent a wide range of ethnic, racial, age, and gender categories.
Volunteer Roles: Help to prepare and distribute food packages to guests in need.
Times Available: Saturday mornings 8:00-9:15am
Time Commitment: As often as you would like
Location: SWFS lobby
Click here for more information.
All ages welcome.
Next Step! Men’s Shelter
The SWFS Homeless Shelter provides shelter for ten men, five nights a week, nine months of the year. Our goal is to provide a warm, caring, and safe environment for these men who are in a transitional period in their lives.
Volunteer Roles: Help to set up and cook for the men; sleep at the shelter; or provide training in resume writing or computer skills.
Times Available: Sunday through Thursday evenings. Set up and cooking 6-8pm; Sleepover volunteers 8pm-6:30am; Other programs vary.
Location: SWFS Berns Lounge
Click here for more information.
All ages welcome.
City Harvest
In an attempt to end hunger in communities throughout New York City, City Harvest rescues and distributes food, educates the public, and seeks other practical, innovative solutions.
Volunteer Roles: Visit the market to collect excess food from farmers and load it onto City Harvest trucks, which deliver the food directly to community programs in the five boroughs; Help with SWFS High Holiday Food Drive to benefit City Harvest.
Times Available: 5:30-7pm Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings between April and January.
Time Commitment: As often as you would like.
Location: Union Square Greenmarket; SWFS
All ages welcome.
Children
Little Baby Face Foundation
The Little Baby Face Foundation transforms the lives and faces of children born with facial deformities through corrective surgery.
Volunteer Roles: Spend time with a child in NYC for surgery and bring them to a park, museum, or other child-friendly location.
Times and Locations: Varies.
All ages are welcome, but at least one volunteer must be 18 or older.
Only Make Believe
Only Make Believe provides theatrical workshops free of charge to children living with chronic illnesses and disabilities.
Volunteer Role: Help build costume pieces, backdrops, and props to stuff their trunks. People of all levels are invited to join their bimonthly circle.
Times Available: First Wednesday of every other month from 6:30pm-8:30pm
Time Commitment: Come one time or many!
Location: Metro-Baptist Church (410 W. 40th at 9th Ave)
All ages are welcome, but hot glue guns, potent glue, and house paint are sometimes used.
Knit or Crochet for Children
Help bring warmth and comfort to children. Knit or crochet stuffed animals for children at St. Luke's Hospital or blanket squares for adolescents living in a residential treatment center in Westchester.
Time, Commitment, and Location: Can be done anywhere at any time.
Recommended for ages 8 and up.
West End Intergenerational Residence
West End is the only program in New York State which takes a unique, intergenerational approach to housing. West End Serves Young homeless mothers age 18-24 with one or two children age 0-7 and single low-income adults age 55 years and older.
Volunteer Roles: Volunteers are needed to assist with child care for the children of single homeless mothers.
Times Available: Weekdays 9-11am and 2-6pm and 6-8pm Monday and Tuesday evenings.
Time Commitment: Any time you can give would help.
Location: 483 West End Ave (at 83rd Street)
All ages welcome.
Elderly
All ages welcome for the programs below.
Kateri Residence
Kateri Residence provides short-term rehabilitation, subacute and long-term care.
Volunteer Roles: Join other SWFS members as we visit the Jewish residents at the Kateri for friendly visits and programs for Shabbat and Jewish holidays.
Times Available: Once a month on Saturday afternoons (other times may be available if desired).
Time Commitment: Any time is appreciated.
Location: 87th and Riverside
DOROT
DOROT enhances the lives of Jewish and other elderly in the greater New York metropolitan area through a dynamic partnership of volunteers, professionals, and elders, and fosters mutually beneficial interaction between the generations.
Volunteer Roles: Friendly visits and/or holiday package delivery.
Time Commitment: One time package delivery or weekly visits to one senior.
Location: Upper West Side or Upper East Side depending on your preference.
PETS Project
JASA matches volunteers with elders who need help caring for their beloved pets.
Volunteer Role: Opportunities range from helping to walk a dog or to clean a litter box on a weekly basis, to escorting pets and elders to the vet, serving as an emergency contact, or providing emergency boarding for an animal.
Times, Commitment, and Location: Varies.
Paws and Reflect
Through Puppies Behind Bars and JASA, New York volunteers puppy-sit guide dogs for the blind on weekends and take the puppies to visit homebound elderly.
Volunteer Roles: Puppy sit for a guide dog in training and bring the dog to visit an elderly person.
Times Available: Weekends.
Time Commitment: Two weekends a month.
Location: Pick up and drop off the puppy in midtown and bring him/her home with you.
Disabled
Special Olympics
An international program of year-round sports training and athletic competition for more than one million children and adults with mental retardation.
Volunteer Roles: Volunteer at a competition or special event.
Times, Commitment, and Location: Varies.
Volunteers under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.
Environment and Public Spaces
Riverside Park Fund
Volunteers help to keep the parks beautiful by planting and maintaining gardens.
Volunteer Roles: Help maintain the gardens which beautify Riverside Park.
Times Available: Fridays through Sundays, times vary depending on location
Time Commitment: As often as you would like.
Location: Various locations in Riverside Park between 91st and 120th.
Recommended for ages 12 and up.
For more information or to volunteer for any of these programs, please contact Heather Stoltz, Community Service Coordinator, at 212-877-4050 x244 or CommunityService@swfs.org.
Also check out these other ways to help:
- SWFS Service Programs
- Upcoming Events: Volunteers Needed
- How Teens Can Help
- Volunteering on a Tight Schedule
- All Volunteer Opportunities by Type of Program
Also check out our Mitzvah of the Month and see how SWFS Members are giving back to the community in our 100 Minutes in Action Article.