Lend a Hand
Call the Volunteer Center of United Way, 209-524-1307, or email volunteer@uwaystan.org.
LOVE MODESTO
NEEDED: Volunteers of all ages to take part in projects throughout Stanislaus County on Saturday, April 8. More than 100 projects provide opportunities such as offering food to the hungry, visiting senior adults, building a home for a family in need, delivering baked goods to public servants, clean a park, donate blood and more. Festivities begin at 8 a.m. with free food and refreshments, kids areas, music and activities in front of the Gallo Center for the Arts, I and 10th streets. Love Modesto works with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Modesto Schools, World Relief, Without Permission and others. LoveModesto.com
CONTACT: Jeff Pishney, 209-566-9343, jeff@lovemodesto.com
SOCIETY FOR DISABILITIES MIRACLE LEAGUE
NEEDED: Volunteers 14 and over as buddies to assist baseball players with disabilities during an 8-week season March 18-May 13. Volunteers will be paired with the same player for the entire season. All games played on Saturdays at Miracle League Field on Big Valley Grace Campus, of Pelandale Avenue and Tully Road, Modesto. Register at miracleleaguemodesto.com/registration.
CONTACT: Anthony Arellanas, 209-524-3536, anthony@societyfordisabilities.org
AMERICAN CANCER
SOCIETY
NEEDED: Volunteers 18 and older are needed to assist with the Road to Recovery program, which provides free rides to and from treatment. All volunteers must have a valid driver’s license and insurance. Training is required as well as passing a background and DMV check. Drivers are needed in several areas of Stanislaus County.
CONTACT: Linda Sites, 209-524-7241, linda.sites@cancer.org
STANISLAUS COUNTY AREA AGENCY ON AGING & VETERANS SERVICES
NEEDED: Mature volunteers ages 55 and older to regularly visit older adults who are having trouble overcoming difficulties, connect seniors to service, help them learn to cope and provide support. Peer 2 Peer volunteers will need to attend an initial 30-hour training and are supervised by professional clinicians. Training will begin Tuesday, April 4 from 9 a.m. to noon. Prior to training, volunteers meet with the volunteer coordinator. Volunteers 18 and older are also needed for the Friendly Visitor program, providing social visitors and companionship to isolated, often lonely seniors, in Stanislaus County.
CONTACT: Arthur Ramirez, 209-525-4613, ramirezar@stancounty.com
AMERICAN RED CROSS
NEEDED: Volunteers 16 and older to serve in a variety of roles in Modesto and throughout Stanislaus County. Disaster responders are needed to respond to home fires. Some positions may require 18 years of age and older. Fire prevention volunteers are needed to install smoke detectors in 700 homes in the next six months. Additional needs include general office work and emergency preparedness education. All volunteers receive Red Cross volunteer training. Some volunteer duties may be performed at home. For more information, visit RedCross.org/GoldCountry and click on “Volunteer with Us.”
CONTACT: Eric Goossens, 209-523-6502, eric.goossens@redcross.org
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY DISCOVERY SHOP
NEEDED: Volunteers age 14 years and older can gain retail experience while they cashier, sort, price and steam merchandise and set up displays. Work four hours per week with flexible day and evening shifts available.
CONTACT: Alyssa Wegner, 209-544-9279, alyssa.wegner@cancer.org
HOPE HAVEN WEST
NEEDED: Volunteers 18 and older in the warehouse to sort, box, assemble and pack wheelchairs. Hope Haven West collects discarded and used wheelchairs from throughout Central California. The wheelchairs are shipped to vocational rehab units of 17 federal prisons where prisoners refurbish the chairs. The refurbished chairs are then returned to the agency. The warehouse is located at 1324 Coldwell Ave. Volunteer opportunities are 8 a.m. to noon on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
CONTACT: Lonny Davis, 209-402-7900, hopehavenwest@gmail.com
TURLOCK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
NEEDED: Volunteers 18 and older as Turlock Historical Museum docents, working at least once a month. Museum hours are Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., at 108 S. Center St., Turlock. Docents greet the public, answer phone calls, handle sales and do light chores. An interview and 2-3 training hours are required. Volunteers are also used for special events, as needed. Complete an application online at http://turlockhistoricalsociety.org.
CONTACT: Steve Mayotte, 209-668-7386, turlockhistoricalsociety@gmail.com
PROJECT SENTINEL
NEEDED: A diverse group of volunteers 18 and older who help fight housing discrimination in Stanislaus County. Like mystery shoppers, fair housing testers pose as potential tenants to see how landlords treat different types of people in real-life situations. As a volunteer tester, you will receive a small stipend for your work.
CONTACT: Zoha Khalili, 209-236-1577, zkhalili@housing.org
SOCIETY FOR THE
PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
NEEDED: Volunteers 18 and older and their pets to visit seniors in convalescent hospitals and care facilities through the SPCA Pet Outreach Program. Children are welcome if supervised by parent. Pets need to be friendly and like to be handled. Visits are made the first and second Saturday mornings and the third Wednesday mornings of each month.
CONTACT: Mary Davis, marydavis45@sbcglobal.net
UNITED WAY OF STANISLAUS COUNTY
NEEDED: Volunteers to support the CHEF Health Initiative at Caswell Elementary School in Ceres and Bret Harte Elementary School in Modesto. The CHEF initiative provides bags of healthy food as well as Nutrition Education Classes for parents and students. Volunteers build bags of healthy food two Fridays a month mid-day and/or assist teachers in providing nutrition education at one of our Nutrition Education Workshops.
CONTACT: Cory Brown, 209-523-4562, CBrown@uwaystan.org
This story was originally published March 10, 2017 at 9:35 PM with the headline "Lend a Hand."