Giving back isn’t just good for the community. It’s good for everyone. “Studies have shown time and time again that people who volunteer have better mental health outcomes than those who don’t, they have better cardiovascular health, they experience less loneliness and social isolation,” says Kimberly Nothnagel, director of communications and community relations for SPUR in Marblehead, which connects people with volunteer opportunities across the North Shore. So why not give back? Here are 12 ways to help your neighbors—and yourself!—this holiday season.
FEED YOUR NEIGHBORS
Supporting food pantries is extra important right now. The best way to do that is with a financial donation, says Robyn Burns, executive director of The Salem Pantry. “We can purchase wholesale food,” she says. Cash helps fuel the trucks that do food pickups and deliveries, too. When donating food items, think about helping people stock their pantries, says Cheryl Schondek, chief operating officer at The Greater Boston Food Bank. That means peanut butter, tuna, canned chicken, soups and stews, rice, beans, pasta, cereal, canned juice, and shelf-stable milk. The most-requested fresh item? Fresh eggs, Schondek says.
LIFT UP SURVIVORS
Help survivors of family violence at the Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center in Newburyport. Volunteers staff the hotline, act as court advocates, help with childcare, and assist with administrative tasks and fundraising, among other things.
EMPOWER WOMEN
Uncommon Threads in Lawrence doesn’t just provide clothing and styling services to women in need. It also gives them a boost in confidence, self-esteem, and personal growth, says founder Susan Kanoff. She says volunteers help with “just about everything,” from styling clients, to sorting clothing, fundraising, and assisting with events. Another way to help? “You can make a difference by donating gently used or new clothing and accessories from your closet, making a financial contribution to support our life-changing services, or shopping with purpose at Uncommon Closet, where every purchase gives back,” Kanoff says.
CULTIVATE NOURISHMENT
The Three Sisters Garden Project in Ipswich is a nonprofit, production-scale farm that aims to improve food access on the North Shore by offering free and sliding-scale farm shares, as well as by partnering with hunger relief organizations. Volunteers can get their hands dirty in their greenhouses and fields by planting, caring for, and harvesting crops.
MENTOR YOUTH
There are lots of ways to lend a hand at Lynn’s Raw Art Works, an art-therapy based creative development organization for kids in grades 4–12. Among them is volunteering with Project Launch, a college and career readiness program that matches seniors in high school with mentors who do everything from helping with college essays to offering guidance about life and career. “They get another caring adult who’s not a parent and not a teacher,” says Paul Hurteah, senior manager for strategic growth and partnerships for Raw Art Works. “That kind of giving back is really an investment in the future of individual youth but also our communities.”
SUPPORT FURRY FRIENDS
Cuddling kittens and walking dogs are among the tasks that the MSPCA at Nevins Farm in Methuen relies on volunteers for. But that’s far from everything they need help with. Last year, volunteers provided more than 45,000 hours of service—the equivalent of more than 20 full time staff—just at Nevins Farm alone, according to senior volunteer coordinator Shyre Lancia. “Having volunteers support us is just crucial to the work that we do,” Lancia says, from answering phones and emails, doing dishes and laundry, helping with animal care, and performing community outreach.
PUT YOUR CLOSET TO WORK
Donating money, clothing, and other items isn’t the only way to support Ruth’s House, a nonprofit thrift store in Haverhill, which provides clothing and other programming to people in need. Volunteers can also help with tasks like itemizing product for the sales floor, sorting items, and other operations.
PROVIDE COMFORT DURING CANCER
Medical care for kids with cancer is important, but so are the “extras,” and that’s what Lucy’s Love Bus provides. The Amesbury organization provides free integrative therapies, activities, and support to children with cancer, their siblings, and their caregivers. “We focus on providing moments and opportunities for families impacted by childhood cancer to experience joy, relief, and a sense of normalcy during a really challenging time,” says executive director Jackie Walker. Volunteers can assist with events, fundraisers, and group programs, such as an equine services program in partnership with Ironstone Farm in Andover.
HELP WITH HEALING
The great care at Salem Hospital extends beyond treatment areas. Volunteers there help out with office work, work as greeters, do patient visits, and work in the gift shop, making coming to the hospital a little bit easier for their neighbors.
SHOP FOR A CAUSE
Parcels at the Liberty Tree Mall in Danvers is not only a boutique filled with beautiful handmade gift items. It also supports artists with disabilities and autism. Parcels, a program of Northeast Arc, works with 160 artists to sell their art, jewelry, home décor, and “almost anything you can imagine,” says Tim Brown, chief innovation and strategy officer at Northeast Arc. “We are helping to fuel the creative economy of people with disabilities or autism,” he says. “It’s really high-quality gifts that you can’t find in any other retail store on the North Shore.” Shop in person or online at parcelsgifts.com
PLAY FOR GOOD
Children’s laughter and family memories make a beautiful backdrop for volunteers at the North Shore Children’s Museum in Peabody. Lend a hand by greeting and checking-in visitors, staffing the gift shop, resetting exhibits, and providing visitor resources.
FIND YOUR PASSION
Not sure where you’d like to put your volunteer talents? Marblehead-based SPUR can help you out. “We connect folks who want to give back and volunteer with ways that they can make a tangible, positive impact every day of the year. And we also work with projects and organizations that don’t have a volunteer coordinator or director to recruit, train, and maintain a volunteer base for them, which lets a lot of our nonprofit partners focus on the important workers serving our community,” says Kimberly Nothnagel, SPUR’s director of communications and community relations. The opportunities are as vast as the communities themselves, ranging from rescuing produce, to sewing projects, to serving food at soup kitchens, and so much more.