Community Corner
Patch Picks: Volunteer Organizations and Opportunities
National Volunteer Week is a time to commemorate the impact of volunteers and celebrate the civic efficacy that takes place in the Trenton area. Here are Patch's Picks for outstanding service organizations.
Patch Picks: Volunteer Organization and Opportunities
The Scene: This nonpartisan, nonprofit veteran’s service organization offers numerous local programs and the capability for grassroots organization and volunteering. The Legion is committed to mentoring and sponsoring community youth programs, including American Legion Baseball, one of the nation’s most successful amateur athletic programs. Continued devotion to both servicemen and veterans is evident in their Heroes to Hometown program, a service for wounded veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq that assists in reintegration into society. Because the success of the American Legion depends entirely on active membership, participation and volunteerism, it offers great opportunities for citizens to display civic duty while helping the local community thrive.
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The Scene: The world’s largest Catholic family fraternal organization, the Knights of Columbus allows opportunities for members and their families to provide service to the Catholic Church, their community, families, and youth. They work in conjunction with various other service organizations and charities, including the American Red Cross, Boy Scouts and American Cancer Society. With grassroots help, the K of C boasts its ability to change communities, as well as provide scholarships that totaled more than $1.6 million in 2009-2010 to 673 students nationwide.
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The Scene: One of Trenton’s oldest and most active service organizations, the Trenton Rotary Club supports more than 50 different organizations each year. With the aid of financial contributions or volunteer efforts, they have sponsored such events as the Wild Game Luncheon, Winter Beach Blast and Turn off the Violence Family Fun Fair. The Rotary Club also engages in efforts to support various educational exchange programs, as well as international projects to benefit the needy. By joining this global network of volunteers, members can participate in a vast array of humanitarian, cultural and educational programs to improve lives and work to alleviate problems of poverty, health, hunger and illiteracy.
The Scene: Dedicated to changing the world, one child and community at a time, Kiwanis is an international organization that partners with UNICEF to boost maternal health and child survival, promotes literacy through their Read Around the World program, and addresses children’s needs of health care, development and trauma situations through the Young Children Priority One service program. Volunteers can work with the Trenton Kiwanis and their attempts to aid the homeless, hungry, disadvantaged and the sick. In addition, they work to develop leadership in children, build playgrounds and raise money for pediatric research.
The Scene: Because volunteers constitute 96 percent of those contributing to their work, there are numerous local opportunities for citizens to join the organization's humanitarian efforts. Volunteer opportunities include registering blood donors and serving refreshments at blood drives, assisting with clerical work at a donor center, preparing the packs for blood donors, pick up and delivery of blood products, and much more. Whether providing relief to disaster victims, helping people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies, or helping a sick child who needs blood, join the Red Cross for a rewarding experience in providing aid to others.
