Category: Volunteer Opportunities

For over 30 years, Kansas City Community Gardens has helped thousands of gardeners with low-cost gardening resources in the KC metro area.

The mission of KCCG is to assist low-income households and community groups in the Kansas City metropolitan area to produce vegetables and fruit from garden plots located in backyards, vacant lots, and at community sites.

The Schoolyard Gardens program works with schools metro-wide to establish vegetable gardens on school grounds. KCCG staff support school staff and students so that they can have successful gardens, exposing students to the wonders of growing their own fruits and vegetables. Through the gardening process, we help children learn about nutrition with the hopes that they will develop healthy eating habits.

If you’re interested in getting involved, there’s a training coming up on August 5th. Check out the flyer below for more info!

Happy Volunteering!

Phoenix Family empowers people living in low-income housing communities with the on-site support they need to gain stability and achieve self-sufficiency. Here’s two upcoming opportunities they could use your help with:

You can help seniors in Lee’s Summit celebrate their birthdays, have a little fun playing bingo, and spend some time relaxing while coloring beautiful mandalas.

This is a great chance to meet and get to know some great people. Afternoon dates are scheduled for the first two Wednesdays of July and the third Monday. Volunteer on your own or with friends! Click here to learn more.

 

Every child should be able to start the school year with everything they need to be successful. You can help make sure that happens at Phoenix Family’s Back to School Party on Friday, August 9 from 2:30-5:30pm. The party will take place at East Hills Village, located at 7575 Monroe Avenue in KCMO.

Volunteers will help hand out school supplies and uniforms, serve refreshments, and lead carnival games. This is a great opportunity to volunteer with friends or coworkers, as a family, or on your own. You can sign up here!

Happy Volunteering!

The Fourth of July is a great time to catch up with family, get some sun, and celebrate our independence and freedom. Why not celebrate by donating your time and making this country an even better place? Here are four ideas for giving back this holiday week:

1. Support the troops and our veterans

What better way to give back this Independence Day than by honoring the men and women who have fought for our freedom?  You can send a care package to a soldier stationed in the Middle East through The Hugs Project or donate your time or money to the Veterans Community Project – a local organization that builds tiny homes for vets.

2. Help the homeless 

These hot July days are especially hard for those without homes. Homeless shelters still need your help during holidays. Nourish KC is a great organization that provides a dignified dining experience to anyone who comes through their door. ReStart Inc could also use help in the kitchen. Sign up to volunteer individually, or as a group and still get some family time in!

3. This land is our land

Make sure to clean up after your BBQ or outdoor party, but if you want to go further, check out local organizations like Bridging the Gap or KC Green to keep our city clean. Keep our land beautiful by recycling and helping the environment! Check out this link for tips on how to make your party more eco-friendly as well.

4. Be a neighbor

If you can’t get out to volunteer or donate this fourth of July, you can also help in your own backyard. Offer to organize a neighborhood cleanup after the fireworks or offer to be a designated driver to anyone who needs it. Invite over someone who may not have any plans. Make sure your neighborhood dogs get some extra love before the fireworks start. Any small gesture can make this holiday a special one.

Happy Fourth!

Next week the Johnson County Library is having their Sizzlin’ Summer Book Sale and they could use your help! They especially need help with setup on Monday, 6/24 and pack-up on Monday, 7/1.  Help support the library’s mission to provide access to ideas, information, experiences and materials that support and enrich people’s lives through volunteering! You can sign up here.

Happy Volunteering!

Champions Special Ministries is a non-profit, faith-based organization that provides services and programs for kids and adults with intellectual, physical, and developmental disabilities. Once a month Champions has events at Hillcrest Covenant Church (87th and Nall) that they could use some help with! They ask that volunteers are 15 years or older. Here is a flyer with more info:

Happy volunteering!

 At animal shelters across the metro area, June is typically the busiest month for taking in new pets. This year, KC Pet Project unfortunately broke their May record by accepting 1,022 animals.

The goal for shelters is to keep the amount of time that each animal is in the shelter at a minimum. Shelters are stressful for pets and the sooner they leave the sooner a spot opens up for another animal to be helped.

So if you are looking for a new pet, now would be a great time. There are hundreds of animals looking for new homes. Great Plains SPCA is offering $25 for all adoptions until July 14 and all kittens are adopt one get one. KC Pet Project is offering $30 for dogs and $10 for cats for this weekend.

Another way to help is through donations and volunteering. KC Pet Project is asking for monetary donations or canned pet food. Great Plains SPCA is always accepting food and toys as well. This time of year they could use extra help from volunteers too! Here are the links to their volunteer web pages:

Great Plains SPCA |  KC Pet Project 

Have a good weekend and happy volunteering!

Goodwill is in the process of remodeling its Overland Park store and they need new merchandise for the sales floor. They have a lot of donations to process and are looking for volunteers to sort donations in this social and team friendly opportunity.

Three stores have product available to sort:
Overland Park – 7241 W. 135th Street Overland Park, KS 66223
Olathe – 16630 W. 135th Street Olathe, KS 66062
KC Northland – 4824 N. Oak Trafficway Kansas City, MO 64118

The shifts are typically from 10am-2pm or 2pm-6pm.

If you have a team of people who want to help out, but the shifts offered aren’t ideal, just let them know – they are able to work with your schedule too. Contact us at 816-842-7425 or volunteer@mokangoodwill.org.

Don’t forget that sales in Goodwill stores support their mission to empower job seekers with disadvantages and different abilities to earn and keep employment.

Happy Volunteering!

 

Severe weather has been impacting folks across the Midwest and the country these past few weeks. What can we do to help in our own backyard? Here’s what I’ve found:

1. According to Fox4 News, they are working with the American Red Cross to raise money for disaster relief to the impacted communities.

Here are three ways you can donate to the Red Cross to help people in need:

1. Call toll free 1-800-RED CROSS
2. Give online at redcross.org
3. Text the word REDCROSS to 90999 for a $10 donation.

Financial gifts enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. If you want to help further, you can also sign up to become a volunteer at www.redcross.org

If you were in the area of severe storms and need to pass along that you’re okay, or want to check on someone, click this link for the Red Cross’ “Safe and Well” feature.

2. In  Kansas City, Heart to Heart International stationed its mobile medical unit at Linwood Elementary School in Leavenworth County for those who needed help. 

They will continue to provide relief in these areas over the next couple of weeks. Click here to learn more and donate. 

3. Those living in Kansas who want to volunteer to help with cleanup and rebuilding efforts can call 211.

The number will connect you to 211 of the Great Plains and the United Way who will then connect you with people across the state in need of help. Those outside of Kansas can call 785-832-5313.

A spokesperson with Douglas County Emergency Management said callers should be ready to explain exactly how they would like to volunteer and list any special skills or equipment they have.

4. The Salvation Army is also seeking volunteers from across the U.S. to fundraise for flood relief. You can register online or by calling 402-898-6050.

Happy Volunteering!

Embracing their Latino legacy, and the opportunity to serve all cultures, the Guadalupe Centers is dedicated to improving the community and the quality of life for people of all ethnic backgrounds, and to the celebration of cultural heritage.

One way they help improve the quality of life of their community is through the promotion of education. The Guadalupe Centers Bob Soltero Scholarship Golf Tournament was established in 2004 to involve the community in the development of future generations of leaders by support of the scholarship fund.

The tournament supports two scholarships:

TONY AGUIRRE SCHOLARSHIP:

Supports students pursuing a private high school education that are actively engaged with the Guadalupe Center as a program participant or volunteer.

GILBERT GUERRERO SCHOLARSHIP:

Supports graduates of the Guadalupe Centers High School pursuing a post secondary education, this could be a trade school or college degree.

You can help by playing, sponsoring, or volunteering! To find out more about being a player or sponsor click here. If you’re interested in volunteering, reach out to Alyx Bartrom.

Happy volunteering and have a good long weekend!

For those of us who work or study at Johnson County Community College, we do not have to look far for amazing art and amazing volunteer opportunities. In our own backyard (or really our front yard); the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art has one of the top internationally acclaimed collections of emerging and established artists today. Public Art Review magazine named JCCC as one of the top 10 university/college campuses for public art in America, citing the sculptures, paintings, ceramics, photography and works on paper installed throughout the campus. The museum presents many of the region’s most important exhibitions of leading-edge contemporary art, as well as dynamic and diverse educational programming.

And with that educational programming comes opportunities for volunteering. The Nerman is always looking for help at the front desk, with tours, and with their children’s art classes.

If you are interested in interacting with the community via art, the Nerman is a great place to go. Click here to read more about their volunteer positions. I would recommend reaching out to Katherine Morse first before filling out the application. She can answer any questions you may have and inform you about their current needs.

Happy Volunteering!