Volunteer Opportunities

Boys & Girls Aid is Oregon's oldest nonprofit devoted to building lifelong connections for children in foster care. There are many ways you can volunteer with us to make a difference in the foster care system. Provide office and admin support, help us raise funds, deliver or prepare meals at our sites, provide transport to school and appointments, or help us wrap and deliver Holiday gifts!

CARES Northwest is a collaborative, community-based medical program for the assessment, treatment, and prevention of child abuse. Many of the children seen at CARES Northwest, and their caregivers, are missing the invaluable support of family members. Sharing only four hours a week you can provide warm support during especially vulnerable times in their lives. Volunteers staff our waiting rooms and engage with the kiddos we serve. They offer movies from our large collection, play games and sometimes just listen. We welcome your wisdom, life experiences, and nurturance helping children and their families with a little TLC and healing.

College Possible makes college admission and success possible for students from low-income backgrounds through an intensive curriculum of coaching and support. We have one-time volunteer projects that range from providing one-on-one coaching to helping stuff envelopes. We also have longer term volunteer opportunities for those interested in helping to garner support and awareness for College Possible. Both the Investment Council and Ambassador Board are seeking new members. Please reach out to Christina for more information—we’d love to have you join us!

Volunteer opportunities are on hold until Fall 2021/January 2022. Hacienda assists youth 5 to 12 with homework and foster positive, supportive relationships in the Expresiones after-school program community center sites along NE Killingsworth Street, and one site in North Portland in the Portsmouth neighborhood. Occasional opportunities for a 1-on-1 tutoring relationship. Hacienda especially needs volunteers to help with math and reading. You do not have to be bilingual, but experience with English language learners is a plus.

Human solutions provides after school programming and intensive academic support and tutoring for children residing in public housing sites. After school tutoring volunteers would assist with reading for youth in K-2nd grade, facilitate language learning games with 3-5th graders, and/or assist with middle school math. Tutoring takes place in community rooms at Human Solutions housing sites in seven locations around the Mill Park, Cherry Park and Rockwood neighborhoods. No second language skills are necessary for these volunteer positions. However, many of the youth are English Language Learners, so individuals with Russian, Somali, and/or Spanish skills are strongly encouraged to apply.

We are always looking for volunteers for a variety of roles in the Portland metro area. Some examples of volunteer opportunities are tutoring and helping youth with homework, support at our food pantries through our Hunger Relief program, STEM tutor, youth mentor, and support staff for afterschool programs at 18 different schools. If you have a specific idea in mind for volunteering your time, you can always email us with details of what you wish to do, and we will see if we can accommodate it. A background check will be run on volunteers before they can begin.

Urban Opportunities is a job readiness and training program that serves under-resourced youth in challenged Portland-area high schools. As a way to broaden student exposure to the community, Impact regularly invites volunteers from the community from a wide range of backgrounds in education, training, job and career. Volunteers empower youth by offering skills and tips about school and work and provide opportunities in the classroom and community for youth to practice newly honed skills. Volunteer roles that support students as they learn to navigate the complicated task of job search and retention, include Guest Speakers, Mock Interviewers, and Student Internship Supervisors.

The Meals 4 Kids program serves children and families within the City of Portland experiencing food insecurity. As a Delivery Driver, you will deliver a week's worth of meals to approximately 8 families within the city. Lifting up to 25lbs repetitively, carrying cooler bags and gallons of milk up and down apartment building stairs and SUV or vehicle with back seats down required. "Cleaners 4 Kids" will assist in cleaning reusable bags after volunteer delivery drivers return from their route and wipe down bags. Disposable gloves and cleaning supplies will be provided.

AARP Experience Corps is an intergenerational program hosted by Metropolitan Family Service. Volunteers who are 50+ help children become great readers before finishing third grade by helping them practice reading and developing a supportive relationship. Tutors might tutor virtually or in-person in select Eastside, North Portland and Milwaukie public schools. Volunteers commit to four or more hours per week throughout the school year. Those able to commit eight hours or more may receive a monthly stipend. No formal experience is needed, just the desire to help children succeed. Training and ongoing support provided.

Volunteers are vital to the success of PT&E’s program. Our after school program runs Mon through Thur from 3–6pm, following PPS’s academic calendar. You will be a “coach” alongside one of our staff instructors, and you will participate in tennis practice, provide homework help, and support facilitation of educational and enrichment activities in various capacities depending on the unique skills you bring to the table. Some volunteers will be strong tennis players and will help facilitate the on-court lessons, while some may learn tennis alongside our students and focus on active support in other activities like homework help.

Family Relief Nursery provides essential services for families with children six weeks to five years old, including parent education, therapeutic classrooms, home visitation, and other wrap-around services as a part of our early childhood programming. They are a prevention and intervention program that provides essential services at no cost, helping families establish safe, stable home environments. We welcome volunteers as classroom assistants to work with the children.