Current Volunteer Opportunities

BRAILLE LIBRARY AND TRANSCRIPTION SERVICES is gearing up for a new February training to become volunteer transcribers who prepare and provide books in Braille. You can learn to turn print into Braille! All transcribers take a one-year Braille transcription course that consists of weekly classes and culminates in certification by the Library of Congress.

DAIS (Domestic Abuse Intervention Services) is looking for volunteers for their Help Line and Shelter Hospitality programs. Help Line volunteers are trained to respond to survivors, concerned family and friends, or health and service providers on the 24-hour Help line and Text. The Help Line is often the first point of contact for survivors, and conversations are often centered around support and resource sharing. The Shelter Hospitality role is a brand-new program that is focused on maintaining the cleanliness of our shelter space and supporting our Shelter Advocates as they tend to resident needs.

PBS WISCONSIN is looking for volunteers to help at their fundraising events, membership drives, and their Welcome Neighbor community service project at various times throughout the year. Volunteer roles at their two expos, the Garden & Green Living Expo (February) and The Great Wisconsin Quilt Show (September), include greeter, hand-stamper, ticket taker, educational class assistant, and more. Volunteer roles at membership drives (March, June, August, December) include phone bank operators and refreshment hosts. During the Online Auction (June), volunteers are needed to organize auction items and assist with item pickup.

OAKWOOD VILLAGE UNIVERSITY WOODS needs volunteers for the following:

• Digital Display Data Entry & Voice-Over Volunteer to help the campus Life Enrichment Manager create slides with calendar data and do a voice-over for the slides on campus display equipment. A volunteer is needed 2–4 hours once a week, Monday-Friday. Work needs to be done onsite. Strong computer/technology skills are required. Training provided. Scheduling is flexible.
• Volunteer Services Data Entry/Computer Projects Volunteer to help the Volunteer Services Coordinator with volunteer records database data entry and other possible data reports, plus other special computer projects to include Excel documents. A volunteer is needed 2–4 hours once a week, Monday-Friday. Work needs to be done onsite. Strong Windows 11/Microsoft Office 365 (to include Excel), and possible Volgistics volunteer record database experience is required. Training provided. Scheduling is flexible.
• Village Store & Gift Shop volunteers are needed to help do simple online grocery item ordering once a week, help with Tuesday grocery items delivery/shelving once a week, or serve as a cashier a few times a month. Volunteers are needed to serve Monday-Saturday, 2–4 hours between morning and early afternoon. Good customer service skills, computer (for online ordering) and physical ability (to operate a flatbed cart for Tuesday deliveries) are necessary. Training provided. Scheduling to be worked out for placement.
• Therapy Department Volunteers are needed to help Therapy Department staff bring residents to the department for therapy appointments and other possible extra tasks once a week Monday-Friday morning or afternoon. Good customer service skills and physical ability to push residents in wheelchairs are required. Training provided as needed. Scheduling is flexible.
• Weekend Skilled Nursing Front Desk Volunteers are needed to greet and help direct visitors a few times a month or once a week on Sundays, 10:00 AM-2:00 PM, or also possibly help as a Saturday back-up. Good customer service and comprehension skills are required. Training provided. Scheduling somewhat flexible.

NATURAL RESOURCES FOUNDATION needs volunteer help with various office tasks such as mailings, simple data entry, and occasional computer research projects to support their work saving lands and preserves around Wisconsin.

OPERATION FRESH START empowers emerging adults on a path to self-sufficiency through education, mentoring, and employment training. They are looking for volunteers to work at the front desk/reception area to greet visitors and maintain sign-in sheets, answer phone calls and take messages, open the front door via remote button behind the desk, and other light clerical duties. Shifts are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday 3:00-5:15pm at their office on Milwaukee St., Madison.

9 LIVES CAT RESCUE, INC. needs volunteer Application Processors to work from home within an animal adoption software program to review the applications to ensure criteria for adoption are met and send the applications on to an adoption coordinator. Volunteers work one or two three-hour shifts a week. You must have an internet connection, be comfortable in learning a new computer program, good verbal and written skills, and like to work independently.

RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE needs volunteers interested in helping on weeknight evening shifts and weekend shifts.

LITERACY NETWORK needs volunteer tutors to help adult students, immigrants, and refugees achieve their literacy goals. Training and ongoing support is provided.

NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE COMMUNITY CENTER needs volunteers to help host their Memory Café, a social gathering for anyone with memory loss or dementia. They meet on the 3^rd Monday of each month from 11am-12:30pm followed by a Healthy Living Luncheon which is ‘lunch and learn’ and discussion of health topics. Volunteers can help with setup at 10:30am, welcome guests, engage attendees in conversation, help serve snacks/meals, and clean up as well as assist where they feel comfortable.

Volunteers are also needed for the Connections program on Thursdays from 10am-12pm. Connections is a casual drop-in program for older adults (age 50 plus). Volunteers prepare coffee and set up the Community Room to welcome guests, and engage in conversation, games, cards, or any other casual connection.

CATHOLIC MULTICULTURAL CENTER needs help delivering fresh and healthy food to local schools. Their Culinary Creations Catering enterprise delivers catering orders prepared by trainees and staff to four area schools each weekday. Volunteers are asked to sign up for a weekly shift, one day a week. You will be driving their catering van, so it is not necessary to have your own vehicle. All you need are good driving skills and the ability to do moderate lifting (15–20 lbs.).

BADGER PRAIRIE NEEDS NETWORK is a resource center in Verona totally run by volunteers that provides not only a Food Pantry but many other social services and resources in Dane County. Volunteers are needed to help with shifts in the Food Pantry and picking up and delivering donated food from stores and businesses in the area.

HABITAT RESTORE needs volunteers to help sort and shelve used and new building materials and supplies, assist shoppers, and work at the cash register with purchases.

Donation Processing – ReStore East

• Help at our ReStores, which are critical to raising funds that allow Habitat to build affordable housing. This work includes unloading the donation truck, sorting through donated items, assembling/repairing small items, and merchandising the store floor. Shifts are 9am-1pm or 1pm-5pm, offered Tuesdays-Saturdays.
• Location: 4207 Monona Dr., Madison WI

Construction – Oregon

• Build homes with us! No experience is needed as all tools and training will be provided on site. This work includes any number of construction tasks. Be sure to dress for the weather! We welcome volunteers to help build duplexes in Oregon, Thursdays-Saturdays, 8:15am-3:30pm.
• Location: 557 Kay Ct., Oregon WI

SOCIAL JUSTICE CENTER on Williamson St. needs volunteers to help with their food pantry and information desk to support their efforts to connect people with needed resources such as food, housing, and other essential living services.

WHEELS FOR WINNERS is an earn-a-bike program that rehabs used bikes and offers them to participants who earn them through community service. You can help clean and fix bikes and see the smiles on kids’ faces when they earn a bike and helmet!

ALDO LEOPOLD NATURE CENTER needs volunteers at their reception desk to engage with visitors, assist community members in person and via phone and email, and perform administrative tasks. Weekday and weekend shifts are available!

SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK needs help sorting, labeling, and packing food into family friendly portions for distribution. Volunteer projects are well-organized, safe, and led by wonderful staff members! Shifts are flexible and easy to sign up for!

ST VINCENT’S FOOD PANTRY needs more volunteers to help sort and shelve produce in the mornings from 8am – 10am. They also have shifts for Client Greeters, Online Order Fillers, Outside Food Loaders, and Cart Re-loading and Running. The need for food resources has increased, and many volunteers are needed to keep the Pantry running.

SSM ST MARYS HOSPITAL needs volunteers who can offer a caring presence and support to help with various programs:

• At Your Service: escorting patients and families, delivering belongings, etc.,
• Patient Registration: welcoming patients and escorting them to their destination,
• Surgical Waiting Area: supporting families while their loved one is in surgery),

AGRACE HOSPICE CARE has Kitchen Volunteer opportunities including Small Batch Baker, Café Cashier, Nutrition Center Stocking, Soup Brigade, and Kitchen Prep to assist the Kitchen Team with small prep and recipe work! It’s a great place to use your kitchen and cooking skills!

Please contact Jan Karst, RSVP Volunteer Programs Community Connections Coordinator, for more information about these Volunteer Opportunities at jkarst@rsvpdane.org or (608) 441-7891.