Volunteering unites New Yorkers for the single purpose of making a valuable contribution to society. It implies improving the life of others, the environment or the organization’s effectiveness. To achieve this, special skills or knowledge are not necessary, you can simply choose an activity to your liking, which is useful for people. This city has always plenty of options to do this. Learn more about them at newyork1.
Why is volunteering important in New York?
In this huge metropolis, there are many volunteer associations that do good work for residents every day. The small donation of each of them is a step towards a better life in society, new opportunities and self-improvement. Being a volunteer is always best both for yourself and for others. We offer to learn several reasons why you should engage in charitable activities in New York. Here are some of them:
- It is an unforgettable experience. The primary value of volunteering is to help others selflessly. You can choose a favorite amusement or a completely new one and gain new knowledge, broaden your horizons, reveal your uniqueness and try things you wanted to do before.
- Charity unites and introduces people. Through volunteering, you can meet new acquaintances, find friends with similar values and have a great time.
- You can acquire new knowledge and change your lifestyle. Volunteering may be related to studies or work, so it’s a great opportunity for self-education and gaining new experience. It will help you to become better as a person and improve your skills.
- Be happy by helping others. There is always a feeling of joy, self-worth, and contentment when you do things without seeking to profit.
- Increase your self-confidence. Volunteering allows you to reveal a new side of your personality, be helpful to more people, develop your skills, gain new knowledge and become confident and active. All these features have a positive effect on self-esteem and improve your attitude toward yourself.
- Get a promotion by doing philanthropic projects. Volunteering can be both a useful activity for others and a chance to improve the performance of your organization. Just remember, don’t be afraid to take initiative and confidently pursue your ideas. Perhaps that will help you to get a new position and a higher wage.
- Spend more time outdoors. There are many types of volunteer activities that bring people together in nature, on the terraces of skyscrapers and elsewhere in New York. A few hours in the fresh air is good for your health.
- Change your normal lifestyle. Volunteering is an additional physical activity, occupation, amusing pastime and personal growth. All this helps not only to become more valuable in society but also to start a different life and find friends at any age.
- Do what you love. It often happens that you want to spend your spare time profitably for yourself and others. Volunteering is perfect for that. In particular, you can start gardening, teach foreign languages, provide medical care, arrange entertainment for children and much more.
- Visit new places and organizations in New York. You can get to know this city in a quite simple and interesting way by helping people as a volunteer. This activity involves trips, work in different places and new acquaintances.
How to become a volunteer in New York?
Volunteering can be combined with work or studies as it takes a few hours a day. In NY, anyone can become a volunteer from the age of 18. All you have to do is to apply on the charity organization website, for example, NYC Service or Volunteer New York and wait for a response. You can also find out about volunteer vacancies at the local community center or non-profit organizations, libraries and boarding houses.
How to decide which volunteer activity to choose?
New York has a huge range of volunteer opportunities and sometimes it’s not easy to choose one. Therefore, you should first think about your interests and hobbies. After all, it is your favorite occupation that will bring joy and a lot of benefits to people.
Secondly, you can work or study alongside volunteering in order to develop yourself. Another advantage of this is a good reason to learn more about New York and make new friends there. It all depends on personal needs, desires and capabilities.
Volunteer opportunities in New York
- Hand out food to poor people. Since 1985, the food programme Grand Central has operated in this city. It offers volunteers to work in a catering kitchen and also to get new experiences in cooking among like-minded people. Volunteers hand out from 800 to 1,200 portions of food daily to poor people. These products include stew, fruits, bread, juice and milk.
- Improve the environment. Employees of the Parks Department are responsible for the ecology. 30,000 acres of land, millions of trees, sports and playgrounds, beaches and recreation centers are under their control. To keep these grounds well maintained, representatives from the environmental sphere encourage volunteers to provide assistance.
- To sort waste. There are millions of items in New York that need to be sorted for further efficient recycling and preservation of the environment. The organization World Vision appeals to volunteers who want to take care of the environment.
- Teach high school students. This is an excellent opportunity to develop your teaching skills and improve your English. Besides, interaction with children is a fascinating pastime and a unique work experience.
- Help children with homework. While studying, children often face difficulties, so they need the help of a tutor. Hillside Center for Education in NY invites anyone who wishes to engage in such activities to complete an internship at school.
- Provide psychological counseling to spouses. Family and parenthood are new stages in life. Sometimes, it is difficult for young couples to prepare for this. Therefore, many take psychological training courses. If you want to become their mentor, you can join the Expect Hope program.
- Deliver food and things to the elderly. Retired people always need help, for example, food, medicine, clothes… Citymeals on Wheels organization hires volunteers who can provide senior citizens with all the necessities.
- Conduct trainings for victims of human trafficking. This is a severe issue for the society that remains unsolved. New York is no exception. There are hundreds of people deprived of their liberty, documents and legal work. Volunteers can help them with counseling, upholding, and restoring faith in others so that the victims could return to a normal way of life.
- Help teenage mothers take care of their children. Becoming a mother at a young age is both joyful and difficult. During this period, it is necessary to acquire skills in child care, parenting and interacting with the baby. Volunteers can help with all of this. To become one of them, you need to apply on the Young Lives website.
- Interpret people’s language. As New York is a multinational city, people there speak different languages. Sometimes they can’t understand each other and translators can help with this.
You can start interpreting as a volunteer translator at Recovery House of Worship Brooklyn. Thus, you can gain real-life experience and improve foreign language translation skills.
