Boston Volunteering in 2018

Did you set a 2018 goal to spend some time volunteering? The company I work for actually will give you a day off to volunteer somewhere. Just one, but better than none. At my prior employer they had the same policy but went one step further. One day a year, they offered volunteer opportunities for the whole company. They set them up where one group could go to one location, another to a second, and so on. Several were also do onsite, too.

If you ever thought about volunteering yourself, it is easier than you might think. Most large cities have organizations/web sites that group all/many of the available opportunities for you. If you know you're going to be free one day/night/weekend, you can go to the website and see what charities you can offer your time.

In Boston, I found three places that collected these options:

• Doing Good Together
• Volunteer Match
• Boston Cares

The Doing Good Together site offers family friendly giveaways where you can bring younger kids. Also, several of the options can be done at home like baking dog biscuits. Volunteer Match is nationwide, not just Boston.

You can also go directly to a charity to find opportunities. For Boston, here are several such locations:

• Greater Boston Food Bank
• Boston Athletic Association for the marathon
• Community Servings
• Pine Street Inn
• Cradles to Crayons
• Habitat for Humanity
• St. Francis House
• Rosie's Place
• Big Brothers Big Sisters

If you set a new year's resolution to volunteer more, start now. There are many charities out there that could use your time, and not just your monetary donations. I've volunteered with several of these organizations and it is a great feeling you get after helping, especially when you hear about someone moving into a house you helped build.

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