Finding Community Service and Volunteering for Groups
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Introduction Many people like to volunteer as a team or group. They can be employees from a particular company, members of a club or association, or even just a group of friends who would like to spend time together at a volunteer activity. They may be adults, teens, or pre-teens. Unfortunately, volunteering opportunities for groups are very hard to find. Do not wait until the last minute to try to volunteer! You will probably need to call several places just to get an appointment for an interview! It may take two to three months before you get your group booked for a volunteering activity even if you start calling right away!
What Do Volunteer Groups Do? Group volunteering activities are find because nonprofit organizations have a hard time developing activities for a large group to participate in altogether. It's simple to create volunteering activities for individuals. It's much harder to create activities that an entire group can do together, all at once, that the organization really needs. Here are ideas for group volunteering activities:
Before you begin to search One person from the group will need to be the primary group contact and deliverer of information. This person will receive all communications on behalf of the group regarding volunteering, and will be responsible for communicating with all group members. This person will also attend any orientations required before volunteering, and communicate information from this orientation to other members. The group needs to take an assessment of all group members' availability for, interests in and goals for a group volunteering activity. This will help you in choosing a group assignment, and ensure that everyone has a positive experience and that their expectations will be met. For instance, the group may interested in environmental issues and members may be available to volunteer only on Saturdays after 8 a.m. Does your group want to be engaged in the same activities during the entire group volunteering endeavor? Or, would your group be willing to separate at the event or location to engage in a variety of tasks; for instance, at a community center, one person reads to an elderly person while others help at an activity for youth and others help re-organize the center's stock room. What talents and experiences are volunteers interested in sharing in this group effort? For instance, the marketing director may not want to help with marketing efforts as a volunteer but, rather, share her talents at basic home repair. Do members of your group want to bring family members along to volunteer? The nonprofit you assist will tell you if this is acceptable. Someone in the group needs to have the responsibility to fill out application forms; often, volunteer hosting organizations require the completion of such forms. A representative of the group or just one member may be asked to complete a Waiver of Liability form. If you are participating in an employee-based group volunteering activity on company time, or if you are taking vacation time to volunteer on behalf of the company, make sure you have permission and support from your immediate supervisor. If you are volunteering on behalf of an organization (such as a school) or company (such as your employer), you must make sure the organization or company supports the group volunteering activity and all the responsibilities such entails. Also, ask the organization or company how it wishes to be represented within the group volunteering activity. Sometimes, schools or companies don't wish to be represented officially, other than by their students or employees engaging in the group volunteering effort; others want their students or employees to wear the same t-shirt with an official logo on it while volunteering, and still others may want to publish a press release highlighting the volunteer activity. Most people want to volunteer for nonprofit organizations. Registered nonprofits based in the USA have a federal tax i.d. number. If you aren't sure if an organization based in the USA is a registered nonprofit, ask if they have a federal tax id number, or look up the organization on Guidestar.org, a database of all registered nonprofit organizations in the USA. Helping family with tasks (taking your grandmother to the grocery, cleaning your mother's house, baby sitting your sister's kids, etc.) will probably NOT be considered by universities or other organizations as "volunteering." Your group will be responsible for its own transportation to and from a site. Start thinking about that now: will you take mass transit? Ride a bicycle? Walk? If someone is going to drive you, has that person already committed to always be available during certain days, and certain times of days? If any members of the group are under 18, each will have to get a parent or guardian to sign a permission slip that affirms he or she is permitted to volunteer. You will get this permission slip from an organization that wants you to volunteer. Do not show up at a work site unannounced. For instance, don't just show up at a Habitat for Humanity work site and say, "We're here to volunteer." You need to call well in advance and go through an organization's formal application and orientation process, and get the okay from the organization regarding your start date. Make sure all team members understand that they must be on time for a volunteering event, and that they understand that they must follow the policies of the organization. Where to Find Group Volunteering Opportunities There are many web sites that post volunteering opportunities in the USA, and some of these assignments can be done by groups: Contact your local volunteer center, if you have such; your local United Way agency will be able to refer you.Ask group members to contact nonprofit organizations they have a relationship with to ask about potential group volunteering activities as well.
Go to a search engine such as google.com and type in: You can also call organizations directly, based on your group's interests. For instance, contact the Girl Scouts of the USA council office that serves your area and see if there is a Girl Scout day camp or single event in your area that your group could help with as volunteers. Nonprofit theaters and performing arts centers are often in need of ushers in the evenings and on weekends; you not only get volunteer hours, you get into a show for free! Call local nonprofit theaters, including community theaters, to see if they need ushers and when your group could participate. Local, non-professional/amateur theater companies welcome volunteers in a variety of roles, from selling tickets to performing on stage.
Animals Again, give yourself at least two months to find such opportunities. For instance, Habitat for Humanity allows group volunteering, but their slots fill up quickly -- they may be booked weeks, even months, in advance. City, state and national parks are good places to look for group volunteering activities. You may be able to book your group to provide all of the ushering services for one evening at a nonprofit theater in your area. Call your local or state historical society and/or the government department that is in charge of cemeteries and ask if there are rural cemeteries or neglected historical cemeteries your group could help clean up. There are thousands of such cemeteries all over the USA, and it's very likely there is at least one in your country. Do not clean up any cemetery without the express, written permission of the appropriate government office. Call nearby city, state and national parks and ask if there are volunteering opportunities for groups. You can explore these volunteer "vacations" and see if you could book an entire group, but note that some require you to pay your own transportation, accommodation and food costs, plus a service fee:
If you have a lot of time and enough money, your group may be able to go on a volunteer "vacation":
After the Experience A few days after completion of the group volunteering endeavor, ask all group members about their experience. Bring them together for lunch for an informal discussion, or have all group members complete a survey on SurveyMonkey or Zoomerang. What did they like? What did they learn? What do they wish they could have done that they didn't get to do? What do they wish had been different? What do they hope for the next time? Share these results with the organization that hosted you, as well as the organization or company that sponsored you. Again, if you are volunteering to earn a particular amount of hours, post-event meetings and activities such as this count as part of your volunteering hours. Also see
More than you ever wanted to know about Creating or Holding a Successful Fund Raising Event. Volunteering To Help After Major Disasters. Details on how to quickly fill a community service obligation from a court or school.
Ideas for the Girl Scouts Gold and Silver Awards Ideas for Leadership Volunteering Activities. Ideas for Creating Your Own Volunteering Activity.
Helping People Address Their Problems with Plastic Ideas for Funding Your Volunteering Abroad Trip. Details on volunteering abroad (volunteering internationally).
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