Kids & Family
Looking for MLK Day Opportunities in Briarcliff or Pleasantville?
Consider doing these home projects for Volunteer New York!
Local volunteer opportunities are filling up fast for the 2015 Martin Luther Jr. National Day of Service, and the deadline for registration is this weekend.
Volunteer New York!’s day of service focus is on the Saturday & Sunday prior to the national holiday.
Several projects can be done from home, like the Share the Dream Cake project that encourages anyone to bake a cake with a ‘confectionary’ message of hope written on it and donate it to a local community organization, like a homeless shelter or police department.
Find out what's happening in Pleasantville-Briarcliff Manorfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Project: Share the Dream Cake
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Find out what's happening in Pleasantville-Briarcliff Manorfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Location: Throughout Westchester or your home
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th - Monday, January 19th
Description: Have fun with your kids and teach them about sharing. Volunteers of all ages will get together to make cakes or a batch of cookies (maybe in a heart-shape) to be shared or given to a community organization of their choice (e.g. a homeless shelter, neighbors, police & fire departments, etc.). Then share your #dreamcake on social media for the chance to be featured by Volunteer New York!
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Location: Throughout Westchester or your home
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th - Monday, January 19th
Description: Volunteer New York! is encouraging groups to help people experiencing homelessness by making simple sleeping bags from recycled fabrics and distributing them to those who need them. The purpose is to have people in the community help others who are in need stay warm.
Project: Food Drive
Nonprofit Organization: The Mount Kisco Interfaith Food Pantry
Location: Mount Kisco, NY
Date and Start Time: OPEN ALL WEEK
Monday, January 12th through Friday, January 16th
Description: The Mount Kisco Interfaith Food Pantry is holding an MLK food drive the week prior to their sorting project on Saturday. Click the link for donation info.
Project: Food Drive to Support TOUCH (Congers)
Nonprofit Organization: Together Our Unity Can Heal, Inc. (T.O.U.C.H.)
Location: Congers, NY
Date and Start Time: OPEN ALL WEEK
Monday, January 12th through Friday, January 16th
Description: Please click the link above for details about requested items and where the donations can be dropped off.
There are still a few projects with specific places and times:
Project: Sort Donated Food
Nonprofit Organization: The Mount Kisco Interfaith Food Pantry
Location: Mount Kisco, NY
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th at 4:00pm
Minimum Age: 14
Minimum Age w/Adult: 8
Description: A great opportunity for families to discuss hunger in our community. The Mount Kisco Interfaith Food Pantry is holding a food drive during the week leading up to MLK Day and need volunteers to help sort the donated food.
Project: Science Barge Beautification and Cleanup
Nonprofit Organization: Groundwork Hudson Valley
Location: Yonkers, NY
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th at 12:00pm
Minimum Age: 18
Minimum Age w/Adult: 14
Description: Groundwork Hudson Valley’s Science Barge, the floating sustainable farm, is looking for volunteers to clean and sanitize their materials. The volunteers will also be scrubbing the greenhouses metal frames, cleaning the hydroton-substrate, painting the model greenroof and possibly building a woody-vine arbor to go over the gangplank.
Project: Be a Lifesaver: Learn Hands-on CPR
Nonprofit Organization: Worldwide Community First Responder, Inc.
Location: Spring Valley, NY
Date and Start Times: Saturday, January 17th at 10:00am & 12:00pm
Minimum Age: 16
Minimum Age w/Adult: 14
Description: “Nobody should die because they needed first aid and didn’t get it.” Worldwide Community First Responder, Inc. (WCFR) will train volunteers in the Rockland community hands-only CPR and motivate community members to act in an emergency. Learn this life saving skill.
Project: Audubon Great Backyard Count
Nonprofit Organization: Rye Nature Center
Location: Rye, NY
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th at 9:30am
Minimum Age: 14
Minimum Age w/Adult: 5
Description: Be part of this Citizen Science project and be ready for the next Great Backyard Count in Westchester. Volunteer with your family and learn how to identify and count birds in your area. Click the project title to find out more about the Great Backyard Bird Count.
Project: See the Birds of Winter & Great Backyard Count
Nonprofit Organization: Greenburgh Nature Center
Location: Scarsdale, NY
Date and Start Time: Sunday, January 18th at 2:00pm
Minimum Age: 14
Minimum Age w/Adult: 5
Description: Join the Greenburgh Nature Center on a winter walk to learn more about birds in our area and be part of a citizen-science program. Volunteer with your family and learn how to identify and count birds. Click the project title to find out more about the Great Backyard Bird Count.
Project: Share the Dream Collage
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Location: Yonkers, NY
Date and Start Times: Saturday, January 17th at 10:30am & 3:00pm
Minimum Age: 14
Minimum Age w/Adult: 4
Description: When Martin Luther King Jr. declared that he had a dream for a more peaceful and united society, he envisioned that one day little children of all races would be able to walk down the street hand-in-hand. He hoped that one day America would overcome the longstanding racial barriers, and today we have certainly come a long way. Join Volunteer New York! at the Yonkers Riverfront Library on Saturday, January 17th to create a “Share the Dream collage” of dreams for our community and the world.
Project: Training Program with Reading to End Racism
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Location: Yonkers, NY
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th at 10:30am
Minimum Age: 15
Minimum Age w/Adult: 15
Description: Participate in a 2 hour training session for Reading to End Racism, a volunteer-centered program of the YWCA of Boulder County at the Yonkers Riverfront Library that aims to empower and educate elementary and middle school students on the topic of racism. Using literature to end discrimination and bullying, volunteers will be equipped with literary resources, tools and knowledge to give their students (or youth groups, after –school program participants) confidence to stand up to peers in the face of racism and to encourage peaceful relationships among students.
Nonprofit Organization: United Way of Westchester and Putnam
Location: White Plains, NY
Date and Start Time: Monday, January 19th at 9:30am
Minimum Age: 18
Description: Are you interested in helping after a disaster? United Way’s 2-1-1 is a free, confidential, multilingual information and referral helpline open 365 days a year. After Hurricane Sandy, 2-1-1 received hundreds of calls each day from people looking for help with disaster related services. If you’re interested in helping after a disaster, join us to be pre-trained to use the 2-1-1 phone system and expand your knowledge of community needs disaster related protocol.
Project: FAFSA Workshop Volunteers Needed
Nonprofit Organization: Latino U College Access, Inc.
Location: White Plains, NY
Date and Start Times: Sunday, January 18th at 12pm & 2pm
Minimum Age: 18
Description: The FAFSA application--Free Application for Federal Student Aid--is the first and most important step in securing financial aid and scholarships for first-generation youth applying to college. Join a team of volunteers as Latino U College Access hosts a FAFSA Boot Camps at the White Plains library to provide assistance with this very complicated form. Volunteers will work at a computer station to assist a student and parent as they complete the application (Training will be given upon arrival).
Project: Share the Dream Cake
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Location: Throughout Westchester or your home
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th - Monday, January 19th
Description: Have fun with your kids and teach them about sharing. Volunteers of all ages will get together to make cakes or a batch of cookies (maybe in a heart-shape) to be shared or given to a community organization of their choice (e.g. a homeless shelter, neighbors, police & fire departments, etc.). Then share your #dreamcake on social media for the chance to be featured by Volunteer New York!
Project: The Sleeping Bag Project -- Family Project
Nonprofit Organization: Volunteer New York!
Location: Throughout Westchester or your home
Date and Start Time: Saturday, January 17th - Monday, January 19th
Description: Volunteer New York! is encouraging groups to help people experiencing homelessness by making simple sleeping bags from recycled fabrics and distributing them to those who need them. The purpose is to have people in the community help others who are in need stay warm.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
