By Sue Alenick, United Way Volunteer Columnist
LEND A HAND. VOLUNTEER – United Way of Northwest Vermont’s mobile-friendly Volunteer Connection connects you to hundreds of local volunteer needs. Search by age, date, county, interests or causes that are important to you. Stay connected to community needs. Go to www.unitedwaynwvt.galaxydigital.com or contact us at volctr@unitedwaynwvt.org or 860-1677.
BOOKMOBILE – Franklin Grand Isle Bookmobile invites volunteers with one free morning a month to travel with the Bookmobile to preschools, child care providers and individual families who cannot regularly access a public library. Bring story time, activities, resources, songs and laughter to some wonderful kids! There is also need for an office assistant to learn how to make new books check-out ready, help manage renewals, check books out and back in again, and help create a scrapbook of Bookmobile memories. Background check required. Contact Deb Grennon at 868-5077 or email fgibookmobile@yahoo.com.
CHILD CARE – Lund has need of volunteers to provide morning child care, weekdays from 7-9 a.m. and weekends from 8:30-10 a.m. while moms attend meetings. Volunteers should be able to commit to a regular schedule. There is also a need for evening child care, Mondays from 6-8 p.m. Children range from 9 months to 5 years old. Background check required. Contact Julie Richards at 864-7467, Ext. 2028 or email julier@lundvt.org.
LIBRARY YOUTH HANGOUT BUDDIES – City of Winooski is looking for volunteers to engage and support Winooski’s youth alongside the Youth Meals Program. Tuesday – Thursday 3:30 – 6:00 p.m. Contact Aphaia Lambert-Harper at 655-6410, Ext. 12, or email volunteer@winooskivt.org.
DATABASE – Common Ground Center needs volunteer help to enter names and contact information into their database. They use Microsoft Access and will teach anyone who has not used it before. Flexible scheduling. Contact Emily via email at emily@cgcvt.org.
FOOD SORTERS NEEDED – Northwest Family Foods in St. Albans is looking for morning (between 9 a.m. and Noon) volunteers to weigh and sort donations from local grocery stores and assist with food pick-ups from local donors. There is also a need for volunteers to help stock shelves between 1 and 4 p.m. Contact Toni Auriemma at 527-7392, Ext. 106 or email tauriemma@cvoeo.org.
A FRIENDLY GREETING – Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity needs greeters to welcome clients and help them fill out forms at its Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) from February 1 through April 16th. Mondays through Thursdays between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., Thursday evenings from 5:30-8 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Contact Travis Poulin at 863-6248, Ext. 736, or email tpoulin@cvoeo.org.
READ TO THEM! – Champlain Valley Head Start will welcome volunteers with a love of reading and children to share books with kids once or twice a week in Head Start classrooms in Colchester, Burlington, Swanton, St. Albans, Essex, Winooski, and Middlebury. All ages welcome, and readers 55 and over are especially encouraged. Background check required. Contact Kelley Newell at 651-4180, Ext. 210, or email knewell@cvoeo.org.
WARMTH NEEDED – Community Health Centers of Burlington asks volunteers to share their warmth with guests at the Winter Warming Shelter. Volunteers can help guests get settled in the shelter, provide snacks, be active listeners, help with meal service at 6:30 p.m., share music and art talents, and help keep the space clean and orderly. 5:45-8 p.m. or 6 a.m.-8:15 a.m. through April 15th. Contact Maggie Merriam via email at mmerriam@chch.org.
Megan Bridges, 861-7822 or megan@unitedwaynwvt.org