Volunteer
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What Volunteers Do
What does a volunteer do at Interfaith-Works Homeless Services?
Lots of different things! IWHS volunteers serve an integral part of our mission to reconnect our neighbors experiencing homelessness with the community at large. Creating these connections uplifts our community and helps foster a sense of inclusion and belonging. While it may sound simple, having volunteers at our locations to help staff with basic tasks can go a long way towards creating a sense of dignity and restoring agency. Activities and tasks you might help with include:
…We are also very open to fun or creative ideas that you’d like to offer to our guests!
*We kindly ask that for structured events or group activities that you coordinate and plan ahead of time with an on-site manager so that we can properly support your idea
Lots of different things! IWHS volunteers serve an integral part of our mission to reconnect our neighbors experiencing homelessness with the community at large. Creating these connections uplifts our community and helps foster a sense of inclusion and belonging. While it may sound simple, having volunteers at our locations to help staff with basic tasks can go a long way towards creating a sense of dignity and restoring agency. Activities and tasks you might help with include:
- Serving and distributing meals to our guests
- Assisting staff with basic tasks like cleaning showers or tackling house laundry
- Playing board games or cards with guests
- Sorting donations and organizing our on site clothing closet
- Helping out with the community garden
- Conversing with guests to foster a sense of community inclusion
- Facilitating art projects or other creative activities
- Facilitating structured activities like movie night, bingo night, chess tournaments etc.*
- Helping out with hazardous weather event (code blue/code red) set up, breakdown and monitoring
…We are also very open to fun or creative ideas that you’d like to offer to our guests!
*We kindly ask that for structured events or group activities that you coordinate and plan ahead of time with an on-site manager so that we can properly support your idea
Volunteer Training
We ask that you attend one of our volunteer training sessions before donating your time and presence at our locations. We offer services to many people who are experiencing crisis or are in very vulnerable moments in their lives. As such, we feel it’s important to give you the necessary context and tools so that you can confidently interact with folks who might be struggling with a myriad of challenges. Volunteer training is about 3 hours long and includes basic information on employing trauma informed care, harm reduction strategies, other foundational concepts and what it looks like to volunteer during a hazardous weather event. We also offer an overview of how to spot and respond to opiate overdose, including how to use naloxone! This training will allow you to offer your time at Unity Commons Shelter, Sergio’s Day Center, Code red/blue pop-up shelters and/or our donation stockroom at our admin office!
Volunteer training sessions are held every second Saturday of the month, 10am-1pm at our Administrative Office, located at 110 11th ave. SE in the basement of The United Churches of Olympia.
Registration is not required, but highly encouraged! Click “sign me up!” for an invite to our next available training session.
Volunteer training sessions are held every second Saturday of the month, 10am-1pm at our Administrative Office, located at 110 11th ave. SE in the basement of The United Churches of Olympia.
Registration is not required, but highly encouraged! Click “sign me up!” for an invite to our next available training session.
Unity Commons Volunteer Calendar
Sergio's Volunteer Calendar
You can donate either lunch or dinner at Unity Commons any day of the week. This is always needed and much appreciated! Meals are for 30 or 60 guests, and can be safely homemade or ordered from a local restaurant.
Please click the button below to see availability.
Please click the button below to see availability.
Contact us!
Would you or your community like to donate items or meals? Please share your contact information and someone from Interfaith Works will respond shortly.
