The Holidays are a great time to donate and volunteer your time. Let’s spend this season appreciating our friends and family, but also giving back to our Oregon community. Governor Brown encourages those who are able to donate whatever time or money you can to our amazing volunteer programs in Oregon. Here’s a list of some volunteer opportunities.
- The ARCHES Project
“ARCHES works to help homeless individuals identify housing opportunities and navigate resources. We do this by operating a Drop In Day Center, Emergency Weather Shelters, Mobile Outreach Team, and Mobile Shower Trailer. Recently ARCHES even renovated an old motel to create the ARCHES inn to provide emergency housing for Oregonians.” Click here for more information and to sign up for volunteering with ARCHES.
Governor Brown at the ARCHES Inn Grand Opening this past December
2. Oregon Humane Society
“OHS was founded by 14 volunteers in 1868, and today relies on nearly 2,000 volunteers to keep the shelter operating. Today, we offer a variety of volunteer opportunities for adults, youths, groups and more. While OHS is unable to accommodate in-shelter volunteer experiences during this time, we encourage you to support our pets from home! View our guide to volunteering from home.” Click here for more information.
Photo Credit: Oregon Humane Society
3. Oregon Food Bank
The Oregon Food Bank works hard to make sure all Oregonians can have access to food and be safe from food insecurity. They try to address systemic injustices that result in food insecurity and also do direct action of providing food boxes to those in need. Click here for more information and to sign up to volunteer.
Photo Credit: Oregon Food Bank
4. CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Marion County
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program educates people about disaster preparedness and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, and disaster medical operations. Using their training, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event and can take a more active role in preparing their community. The motto is “doing the greatest good for the greatest number of people”. The CERT program is administered by the Department of Homeland Security. This is a great way to serve your fellow Oregonians and serve yourself. With the Cascadia earthquake and tsunami coming to Oregon soon, we can all be more prepared for disaster response. Click here for more information and to sign up for training.
Community Emergency Response Team’s Logo
5. SOLVE Oregon
SOLVE Oregon supports litter cleanup and restoration projects year-round to improve the health and safety of our neighborhoods, shared community spaces, and natural areas, including our coast, rivers, parks, and forests. It’s a great organization to volunteer with, you can better Oregon while enjoying the great outdoors. Click here for more information and to sign up for volunteering.
SOLVE Oregon’s Logo
So this Holiday season, beyond planning out what gifts to buy, spend some time thinking about how you can give back to those who may be less fortunate. After all, giving back is the best way to spread holiday cheer.
There are many other volunteer opportunities than what has been listed here, please find whatever organization works with you and your heart.
