Volunteer your time and effort with one or more of these community service ideas.


1. Reach out to a neighbor in need. Every neighborhood has people or families in need, from elderly or handicapped shut-ins to struggling single-parent households.


2. Perform an act of random kindness. Buy healthy snacks for your office or the teachers at your child's school. Pay the tolls for several people behind you. Give an umbrella to someone stuck in the pouring rain. Learn more ideas here:
Random Acts of Kindness Foundation


3. Mentor children at your local school. library, or neighborhood center. All organizations that deal with children need adults of any age to work with the children in a variety of ways, from after-school tutoring to recreational and sports activities.


4. Serve at a local soup kitchen or food bank. There is no greater gift than helping feed those in your community who are down on their luck and would go hungry if not for the service provided to them.


5. Donate blood. You can help save the life of one or more people simply by giving a pint of your blood at your local blood bank or during bloodmobile visits to your community, school, or office. (And if you can't give blood, help organize a blood drive for those you can donate!)


6. Volunteer at the local animal shelter, rescue group, or humane society. The animals are part of our communities too, and many of these shelters and rescue organizations need much help to achieve their missions.


7. Visit a volunteering-related Website to find multiple opportunities to serve. One of the greatest benefits of the Internet is the amount of Websites that can help connect people with local organizations that desperately need help.


8. Pick up trash along the road, at a local park, or along the banks of a river, stream, or lake. Many times there are organized efforts to clean some of these locations, but there is nothing stopping any of us from picking up litter when we see it. And smokers? Put the butt in the trash, not on the ground.


9. Help build a home with Habitat for Humanity. Working with Habitat not only literally builds the community, but also helps welcome a needy family who would not have a home without the help from people in the community. No building skills are necessary to volunteer.


10. Contact your local United Way, Red Cross, or Salvation Army for discovering new service opportunities. These and other local aid organizations are clearinghouses for many opportunities to serve in your local community, making a difference in the lives of your neighbors.

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