The summer is a great time to slow down and enjoy being in the East Bay. But many nonprofits still need your help. Here’s a list of volunteer opportunities this month, curated by our friends over at Doing Good Together. You might even consider signing up for their newsletter!
Project Open Hand: Toiletries Drive
Date/Time: Drop off donations Monday - Friday, 9 am - 4 pm
Location(s): 1921 San Pablo Avenue, Oakland; 730 Polk Street, San Francisco
Contact: [email protected], (415) 447-2404
Project Open Hand provides nutritious meals with love to our sick and vulnerable neighbors in San Francisco and Oakland. They also collect and share toiletries with their clients, many of whom struggle to afford basic needs. Your family can help by collecting and donating to their toiletry drive.
Items should include: Bar of soap or body wash, Shampoo, Deodorant, Toothpaste, Toothbrush, Disposable wipes. Additional desired items include: Small pocket-sized tissues, Toilet paper, Socks, Depending on the season (hats, gloves, scarves, ponchos), Face mask and hand sanitizer.
St. Mary's Center: Food Donations Needed
Date/Time: Please contact to schedule an appointment for contactless drop-off at (510) 923-9600 x231 or email [email protected]
Location: 925 Brockhurst Street at San Pablo (enter the parking lot from San Pablo)
Contact: Bev Hop at (510) 923-9600 x231 or [email protected]
St. Mary’s Center is a community of hope, justice providing basic needs for over 1,000 at-risk seniors and 40 preschool families in the heart of Oakland every year. You and your family can help by donating food items.
They have an ongoing need for: Nonperishables including canned protein (tuna, chicken, beef, spam, chili, beans); peanut butter; canned vegetables and fruit; and snack items (protein bars, breakfast bars, nuts).
Lake Merritt United Methodist Church: Lake Lunches
Date/Time(s): Mondays 2 - 4pm for lunch preparation; Tuesdays and Thursdays 11:30am - 1:30pm for lunch distribution; Tuesdays 12:45–2pm for curbside lunch distribution
Location: Lake Merritt United Methodist Church, 1255 First Ave, Oakland
Ages: Monday lunch preparations on site: Families with children 6 yrs and older; Tuesday and Thursday lunch distribution: Families with children 10 yrs and older; Tuesday curbside lunch distribution: Families with children 5 yrs and older
Time Commitment: 1.5 - 2 hours
Contact: Rose Lynn at [email protected] or (510) 465-4793
Lake Lunches is a food ministry of Lake Merritt United Methodist Church. They serve 400 lunches twice a week to the hungry and unsheltered - no questions asked - in the areas surrounding Lake Merritt. They also offer a selection of toiletries. Volunteers are needed to assist in preparing and packing lunches and walking the lake area to distribute the meals. The lunches and toiletries are delivered on Tuesdays and Thursdays using wagons pulled by volunteers. Their delivery route takes about an hour and is approximately 1.5 miles roundtrip. Please wear comfortable clothing and walking shoes. An experienced volunteer will guide you.
Friends of Sausal Creek (FOSC): Native Plant Nursery Volunteer Drop-In Hours
Date/Time: Wednesdays, July 19th and 26th, 1 - 4pm
Location: Joaquin Miller Park Native Plant Nursery. Please park at the Joaquin Miller Park Community Center, 3594 Sanborn Dr, Oakland, as parking is not available at the nursery. Walk past the yellow gate and stay to the left, following nursery signs. The nursery will be on your left, about a five-minute walk.
Ages: Volunteers 14 years old and younger must be accompanied by an adult
Time Commitment: 3 hours
Contact: Ella at [email protected] or (510) 325-9006
The nursery is the heart of all restoration projects at FOSC. Join them for an afternoon of native plant propagation at the FOSC nursery. Help them seed, transplant, recycle pots, remove invasive species, and propagate 8,000 native plants each year! All tools, instructions, and snacks will be provided. This event will be canceled in case of rain.
An RSVP is preferred, but drop-ins are also welcome. Go to their website, fill out the City of Oakland and FOSC waiver forms, and bring a copy when you come to volunteer.
Keep Hayward Clean and Green (KHCG) Task Force
Date/Time: Saturday, July 22, 8am - 12pm
Location: Barnes Ct. (next to Hayward Animal Shelter), 16 Barnes Ct., Hayward
Ages: Families with children of all ages are welcome to participate. All volunteers younger than 18 years old must be accompanied by a participating adult.
Time Commitment: 4 hours
Contact: Colleen Kamai at [email protected] or (510) 881-7745. Registration is available online.
Join the Keep Hayward Clean and Green Task Force, friends, and neighbors as they spring into action to beautify the neighborhood. Please bring a pair of gloves for each volunteer in your party. These events provide Hayward residents with an opportunity to make a real and significant difference in their neighborhoods, connect with their neighbors, qualify for community service hours, and learn about money-saving Green City programs.
Alameda Point Collaborative: Ploughshares Nursery Volunteering
Date/Time(s): Wednesday through Sunday shifts, 10am - 2pm
Location: 2701 Main Street, Alameda. There is a front entrance and a back entrance (on Barbers Point Road). Please enter through the main front entrance.
Ages: Families with children 12 years old and older are welcome to volunteer
Time Commitment: Minimum of 2 hours
Contact: Jordan Taylor-McLeggan at [email protected]. Registration is available online.
Alameda Point Collaborative's mission is to end homelessness by providing housing and services to create communities where formerly homeless families and individuals can flourish. Ploughshares Nursery volunteers can look forward to general clean-up projects, helping to organize the shop, interacting with friendly farm animals, and assisting with general daily tasks (such as off-loading deliveries and propagation). Projects may vary from day to day, so please go prepared for a variety of manual tasks. Remember to bring plenty of water, snacks, sunscreen, hats, and closed-toe shoes. Volunteer work often involves building and manual labor.
Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB): Food Bank Warehouse Volunteers
Date/Time: Most weekdays, 8:30 - 11:30am & 12–3pm. Please check the volunteer calendar for shift availability.
Location: 7900 Edgewater Dr., Oakland. Park in the back, in the lot by the building with the Community Engagement Center sign. Please drive slowly and carefully as you head to the parking lot - they enforce a 5 mph speed limit for everyone’s safety.
Ages: Families with children 10 years and older are welcome to volunteer. One adult chaperone is required for every five youth.
Time Commitment: 3 hour shifts
Contact: [email protected]. Registration is available online.
The ACCFB believes we can end hunger, together. Volunteers are needed to sort fresh produce, prepare emergency food boxes, and assist their agency partners in shopping and loading their cars with food.
MyChild’sCancer: Lemon-Aid Stand Campaign
Date/Time: This summer-long event runs until Labor Day, September 4, 2023
Location: Outside your house or apartment building or somewhere in your neighborhood
Ages: Best for children 6 to 14 yrs old
Contact: Inbal, [email protected]. Register your lemon-aid stand here.
MyChildsCancer provides families fighting cancer with the life-saving answers they need. Their team of cancer experts, medical researchers, and oncologists conduct personalized research into cancer type, treatment methodologies, new drugs, specialists, hospitals, and emerging clinical trials. Your family or children can host a lemon-aid stand and donate the proceeds to MyChildsCancer. You will find everything you need to host your stand on their website. They provide downloadable posters, checklists, recipes, social media ideas, and much more. If your stand raises the most money, you can win amazing prizes like VR sets, iPads, gift cards, and more. They can also provide a letter recognizing your community service hours.
Soldiers’ Angels: Operation: Warm Winter
Date/Time: Operation: Warm Winter runs July 1 – September 30, 2023
Location: Ship your collected items to:
Soldiers’ Angels Operation: Warm Winter
2895 NE Loop 410, Suite 107
San Antonio, Texas 78218
Contact: (210) 629-0020, [email protected]
Operation: Warm Winter helps Soldiers’ Angels collect warm items that will be shared directly with homeless veterans in need across the country through VA Hospitals. Formerly an annual blanket drive, this campaign has expanded to include highly requested coats and gloves. The items they are collecting are:
- Blankets: New, unused blankets only; both store-bought and handmade blankets are accepted; twin-sized blankets are preferred. Volunteers are welcome to sew, knit, or crochet blankets.
- Coats: New, unused adult-sized winter coats; all adult sizes and colors are accepted; waterproof coats are a plus.
- Gloves: New, unused adult-sized winter gloves; all adult sizes and colors are accepted; waterproof gloves are a plus.
