INTERESTED IN
VOLUNTEERING?
Here’s where you can go:
Bergen Volunteer Center
64 Passaic St., Hackensack
(201) 489-9454, ext. 202
bergenvolunteers.org
Center for Food Action
192 West Demarest Ave.,
Englewood
(201) 569-1804, ext. 25
cfanj.org
CUMAC
223 Ellison St., Paterson
(973) 742-5518
cumac.org
MEND, Hunger Relief Network
P.O. Box 1304, Maplewood
(862) 250-5216
mendnj.org
opportunities in career fields that interest
them at nonprofit or for-profit agencies.
Volunteer work “allows kids to get out
and explore their passions and career
experiences,” she
says.
VOLUNTEERS CAN SEE
Teens come
A DIRECT IMPACT.
to the volunteer
Young people can pack
bags of groceries for
center looking
needy families and handle
for opportuni-
other tasks. “They get to
ties to fulfill their
see the direct impact of
school or religious the pantry’s work on our
patrons,” says Kate Cahill,
requirements,
manager at Our Lady
searching for a
of Sorrows food pantry
hobby, or some-
in South Orange, and a
times because
board member of MEND,
they must do com- an Essex County nonprofit
that works to fight hunger.
munity service
as a punishment.
Older teens with more time to volunteer
may become mentors working with high-
risk individuals or those in a hospice care
facility. The volunteer center works with
high schools, including ones in Ridgewood
and Tenafly, and Applied Technology High
School on Bergen Community College’s
campus in Paramus.
“It is important to encourage students
to be open to volunteering and to provide
them connections to that world,” says Geb-
hardt Zurburg, a social studies teacher at
Applied Technology High School and fac-
ulty advisor for Teen Leads, a leadership
program that teaches students about local
government and public policy. “It also wid-
ens the context for classroom learning by
providing students experiences that they
can connect to their academic lives.”
Nonprofit groups also work with stu-
dents on projects and events. Partnership
for a Drug-Free New Jersey, a nonprofit
that works through the media to reduce
the demand for illicit drugs, has had
students distribute substance abuse
prevention material at schools and in
neighborhoods and has had students
participate in Knock Out Opioid Abuse
Day, a campaign designed to stop opioid
abuse. “I believe students are simply com-
mitted to spreading messages of substance
use prevention in their schools and com-
munities,” says Matt Birchenough, media
coordinator for Partnership for a Drug-
Free New Jersey. ●
Partnership for a Drug-Free
New Jersey
155 Millburn Ave., Millburn
(973) 467-2100
drugfreenj.org
Ramapo-Bergen
Animal Refuge, Inc.
2 Shelter Lane, Oakland
(201) 337-5180
rbari.org
United Way of
Northern New Jersey
P.O. Box 1948, Morristown
(973) 993-1160
unitedwaynnj.org
Dosomething.org
Plug in your interests to find
volunteer opportunities. Although
it doesn’t sort opportunities by
age, it offers plenty of ideas for
even young children.
Verifiedvolunteers.com
Sorts out volunteer opportunities
by age, range and skill. The online
service allows volunteers to search
from more than 100,000 opportu-
nities and find an opportunity that
interests them.
Volunteermatch.org
Choose a cause, location, and use
filters for kids and teens.
(201) FAMILY | HOLIDAY 2018
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