Community Corner
Patch Picks: Finding the Right Volunteer Opportunity
There are so many ways to give your time. Here's how to pick.
Want to help our community? There are numerous organizations that serve our city and county in a variety of ways. Montgomery County and the City of Rockville have programs that make it easy to get involved. Here's how:
Identify the opportunities:
- The Montgomery County Volunteer Center on Twinbrook Parkway is part of the Montgomery County Government's Community Engagement Cluster. Its mission is "to mobilize people and resources to deliver creative solutions to community problems,” according to its website. County nonprofits and government organizations that serve critical community needs post their needs on the center’s website.
- The City of Rockville Department of Recreation and Parks maintains a Volunteer Opportunity website that contains hundreds of opportunities that are searchable by keyword, ZIP code, interest areas and other fields.
The Volunteer Center's website offers opportunities in several categories:
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- Student Service Learning opportunities approved by the Montgomery County Public Schools that satisfy graduation requirements.
- A Pro Bono Consultant Program allows volunteers to offer their professional skills to help government and nonprofit organizations.
- The Retired and Senior Volunteer Program—or RSVP—provides opportunities for individuals age 55 and older to support the community with their lifetime of experience and expertise.
- Group volunteering and corporate volunteering programs to support one-time or recurring events.
The site also allows you to plan your volunteer experience according to the opportunities that meet your interests, skills, geographic preferences, life experiences and time availability. The interest categories include:
- Arts and culture.
- Basic needs.
- Children and youth.
- Community development.
- Education.
- Emergency preparedness.
- Environment.
- Healthy and inclusive communities.
Give it a try. It's easy, rewarding and fun.