Volunteers

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the organization.

Helping Hands has no paid staff. Our 100+ volunteers come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and range in age from teens to some in their 80’s.

Helping Hands volunteers have these common traits:

  • they demonstrate sincere empathy toward all people
  • they are non-judgmental
  • they are committed to being a team player
  • they demonstrate good social and communication skills
  • they have the physical stamina to stand and lift bags of donations

Individuals who are interested in becoming a Helping Hands volunteer need to complete a Volunteer Application Form. They also must agree to arrange for an interview and a shop orientation with our Volunteer Coordinator. A three-hour training session is mandatory before a new volunteer can be assigned to work in our shop.

Volunteers have great flexibility in the frequency of their assignment in the schedule. For example:

  • some work on the same day, each week from 9:a.m. until 12:00 noon or in the afternoon from noon until 2:00 or 3:00pm.
  • others work once a month on the same day. (third Saturday, for example).
  • some others choose to work a floating schedule and fill in whenever a need arises.
  • several volunteers choose to only assist with special projects — transporting merchandise to storage, assisting with Christmas events for clients or maintaining the grounds.