25 Days Of Volunteering—Day 25: Helping The Hudson Valley Community In 2026 And Beyond

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — The season for giving is truly all-year-round, and there are needs in our communities that need to be addressed.

Hunger, homelessness, domestic violence, food insecurity, senior issues, at-risk youth, drug addiction — the list goes on and on.

Volunteer New York! serves as a way to connect people who want to help by giving them myriad ways to help.

Every day since Dec. 1, in this series, Patch has shown ways that anyone — of any age and ability — can help their community.

All you have to do is decide what you want to do. And, as we have shown, many volunteer opportunities don't even require you to leave your home in order to do good in the community.
On the last day of 25 Days of Holiday Volunteering, as we always do, we give Volunteer New York! the final word.

This year's statement comes from Polly Lagana, Executive Director of Volunteer New York!:

Volunteer New York!’s mission is to mobilize our community to address its greatest challenges.

As we celebrate our 75th anniversary, we are incredibly proud of our impact on the community. This year, we engaged more than 40,000 volunteers—a record number—throughout Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland counties. Volunteers of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds contributed more than 531,000 hours of service at a value of $20.4 million back into our region.

Our volunteers gave their time and talents across a wide range of projects designed to meet our area’s greatest needs, from distributing food at local pantries and tutoring students, to designing websites for nonprofits or supplying rides for seniors. Through Volunteer New York!, each volunteer stepped up to help meet the greatest needs in our community.

None of this would be possible without our community members, corporations, and local partners who work together with Volunteer New York! to leverage the power of volunteerism to make positive changes in our community.

Volunteer New York! appreciates Patch.com’s support in getting the word out about volunteer opportunities through the Community Corner column each week. Even though our '25 Days of Holiday Volunteering' spotlight has come to a close, we hope the community continues to volunteer throughout the year!

Here are some ways to get involved in Volunteer New York’s programs in 2026:

• Sign up for local projects on our website (you can search by date, activity type, and more!)
• Join us for our upcoming MLK Day of Service
• Celebrate volunteerism at our 2026 Annual Volunteer Spirit Awards on April 17
• Stay updated on our latest opportunities by subscribing to our e-newsletters

We look forward to another year of giving back to our community! Happy holidays and hope to see you at a volunteer event soon in 2026!