Temporary Sticky: Volunteering this Thanksgiving

[RaleighLass]

I know I have mentioned this before since you asked - please consider volunteering at a convalescent center or similar. They often need help at meal times with helping to feed residents. Many of them cannot lift a spoon or fork by themselves without losing most of the food. It's really like feeding a baby. This is a year-round need for many places. Consider reading to a resident. Or simply sit there and chat, or just listen. A former neighbor friend of mine ran one of these centers so I got to see first hand what life is like for many residents. So many are very lonely and family rarely visit them. Some do take them out for holidays but some are bedridden and not able to be easily transported. The happiness you can bring one of these people by doing any of the above is imeasurable. I promise you, you will get more than you give!

Now if Raleigh area facilities don't need help, please consider places away from the triangle (30 mins or so) as this area often has too many volunteers on Thanksgiving and Christmas but the outlying areas many have more opportunities.

I used to work for a local non-profit and we recruited volunteers. We were always overwhelmed with offers during the holidays but for the rest of the year it was very difficult to get people to volunteer. So I encourage you to consider making it a regular thing

Here are some local resources for volunteering year-round and one time (holidays). However, many of these do require more of a time commitment. There are many opportunities if you are willing to think outside the box.

Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteer Programs - The Official City of Raleigh Portal

And then there is the Thanksgiving Day meal at Circus Restaurant on Wake Forest Rd. Northside Church, Knightdale, helps the owner feed hundreds of people each Thanksgiving. I would contact the church Northside Community Church | Located in Knightdale, NC They need help the week and day of Thanksgiving as they not only feed people who come to the restaurant but they deliver food throughout Raleigh to people in need.

If you haven't volunteered before, please give it a try. For non-profits it's a tremendous help and saves on labor costs meaning less funds needing to be raised. Many local non-profits couldn't survive if it weren't for volunteers. Go for it - you'll be glad you did!

[j-mart77]

I used to volunteer at the Salvation Army in Detroit to feed people in the soup kitchen on Christmas, and to ring bells. I've done some bell ringing through the Durham location, but it's pretty likely that the Raleigh location could use some holiday volunteers (maybe for Thanksgiving too).

[evaofnc]

Originally Posted by SALUKI_LOVER

thinking it would be nice to host some local college students who are "orphans' these special holidays and have them over for dinner.

How would you suggest I go about finding students that needs some TLC during Thanksgiving? I know they're out there.

Thanks.

For those in Durham, you can contact Duke's International House about hosting international students for Thanksgiving. They have a listserv where you can put out that you want to host some students and then the students can contact you directly.

Here's their website: Duke University | Student Affairs | International House

[Miss_Monday]

Hi everyone,

I am also looking for any sort of volunteer activities on Thanksgiving day. It can be food panties, delivering food, anything. I've emailed my contact information to the Raleigh Rescue, but if there's anything else let me know.

Thanks!