Hands On Volunteer Network of the Valley, a United Way Agency, is the local resource for volunteer

Hands On Volunteer Network of the Valley, a United Way Agency, is the local resource for volunteer recruitment, placement, and management for people of all ages and abilities in the Mahoning Valley. It is located at Youngstown State University, second floor of the Williamson School of Business in the Center for Nonprofit Excellence and at its main office, 5500 Market St., Suite 110, Boardman. Hands On is a monthly column that serves to communicate the impact that volunteering can have on the community. To express interest in one of the opportunities below, contact HOVN at 330-782-5877 or Trumbull County 330-393-4254 or visit the new website at www.HOVN.org!

OPPORTUNITIES

Youngstown Jazz Festival: Volunteers are needed. If you can help before, during and after the event on Aug. 11, please call Hands On at 330-782-5877 or email info@HOVN.org. Enjoy the sounds of Najee and Alex Bugnon while helping Hands-On create a unique fundraising event.

YSU Summer Festival of the Arts: Event Volunteer — assist artists, performers, vendors and the general public during four-hour shifts on YSU campus. Register vendors, artists, and performers, help with artist set-up, booth sit or pack-up, public art installation or de-installation, Festival of Nations set-up or tear-down, help at performance sites, Children’s Art Fest, or information booth. Volunteers get brief orientation, free T-Shirt, and cold water. Minimum age 14. Required: A nice disposition despite the weather and a willingness to assist the public with a smile.

Grow Youngstown: Volunteer pick-up managers needed for summer CSA season for the Fairgreen Neighborhood Garden and the YMCA Davis Branch locations. Although Grow Youngstown cannot provide mileage reimbursement or money in return for time, it will provide a free family-sized share in exchange for the Pick-Up Managers’ commitment and is looking for at least two individuals who are responsible and dependable and have the time, energy and ability to pick up produce in chest-sized coolers from a central location and take the produce to one of two pick-up locations; set up and maintain pick-up station/exhibit in accordance with a standardized design; manage the payments for members who use Ohio Direction Cards, (training provided); record who came for their family, single, and/or value-added shares; tear down and store the exhibit and the end of the pick-up; call in the EBT voucher confirmation numbers to GY Program Coordinator the same evening; take received moneys and vouchers to the Grow Youngstown office within 24 hours after the day of pickup.

YWCA of Youngstown: Volunteers are needed to welcome and register visitors and direct them to their required destination within the YWCA building. You will ensure friendly service to the visitors and assist with the location of various areas as requested by visitors. You must be comfortable interacting with people and making general inquiries as to the purpose of their visit to the YWCA.

Disaster Preparedness and Response Co-op for Nonprofits: Continuity of operations planning and volunteer reception center training: Monday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug 13, at Girard MultiGenerational Center. To register, contact HOVN. Volunteers can choose how and when they serve, but must participate in the training to become a Volunteer Reception Center Volunteer. Medical Reserve Corps Volunteers are encouraged to attend this training.

American Cancer Society Road to Recovery Program: Provides free transportation to and from treatment for any patient who cannot find a ride or is unable to drive. Road to Recovery has two types of volunteers: drivers who donate their time to help drive cancer patients to and from their respective treatment centers and volunteer coordinators who help schedule rides for patients. If you or someone you know is interested, please contact HOVN.

Valu Volunteer at Mahoning County Courthouse: Volunteers assist walk-in clients through the process of applying for a civil-protection order. Time commitment is two days a month between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Qualifications/Requirements: Background check will be required. Good listening and communications skills, sensitivity and awareness of domestic violence and legible handwriting. Eight hours of training is required.

Butler Institute of American Art: Looking for volunteers in the museum gift shop. Duties include cashiering, maintaining shop appearance, and customer service. Shifts are available Tuesday through Sunday.

Make a Difference Day Ohio, Oct. 27: HOVN will be partnering numerous projects in the Mahoning Valley, and help is needed. One of the first projects developed is with the Warren City Firefighters and United Way of Trumbull County to install approximately 2,000 smoke detectors in Warren city residents’ homes. Volunteers will be needed Oct. 27 to help install the smoke detectors. An orientation and installation training will be given before the event. Please contact the HOVN office to register. If you are an organization and would like help design a project, please contact the HOVN office.

Senior Independence Hospice Volunteers: Volunteers provide patient care, bereavement care, office support, errands and/or services according to his/her training and in compliance with agency polices. Serves as a substitute family/caregiver in the home performing activities that the volunteer has been prepared for and has agreed to perform. The volunteer has the option of performing homemaker chores, running errands, and/or providing companionship and respite care. Works with patients as assigned. Serves as an integral member of the Hospice Interdisciplinary Group. The volunteer provides input into the plan of care and interdisciplinary meetings as appropriate. Documents hours and services as instructed while maintaining confidentiality. Training provided; participates in volunteer support groups and/or educational in-services. Maintains open communication and reports regularly to the Volunteer Coordinator at Senior Independence Hospice.

Mahoning County Senior Fair: Aug. 11 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Volunteers are needed to help with Information and admission gates, food and beverage distribution, Bingo tent, parking and traffic control, entertainment and prize distribution, assist in vendor display or general grounds. Help the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office Senior Services Unit provide seniors with the opportunity to enjoy themselves as they learn about the many community resources available to them.

Sweats for Serenity: Imagine, after surviving being raped, enduring the police interview, and an intrusive forensic exam you are told your clothing is being kept as forensic evidence and must be sent to the laboratory for analysis. This is what many survivors of rape experience. Compass Family and Community Services wants to make sure survivors assisted by their rape program have a new set of sweats to leave the hospital. Rather than have the survivor leave the hospital in a hospital gown, the rape program ensures that everyone leaves the hospital with dignity and respect wearing something clean and comfortable. Can you help? New sweat suits of every size range are needed. This is a great opportunity for companies, church groups, service clubs and individuals who want to make a difference in the lives of people who have been traumatized. Call HOVN for more details on how to construct a project in support of Sweats for Serenity.

Potter’s Wheel of Beatitude House: Adult education tutor for computer. Instruct and tutor adult women in basic and advanced computer knowledge. Flexible shifts are available Monday through Thursday, 11a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Potter’s Wheel in Youngstown. With increased job skills, you can help transition disadvantaged women and their families into a healthy, self-supporting role in the local community. Child Care Assistant/Babysitter: Assist the staff to provide child care for children while their mothers attend group meetings Thursdays from 5:45 to 7 p.m. at Beatitude House. Volunteers must appreciate children and their behaviors and display a willingness to engage children in fun activities. Children are divided into three or four age groups.

Guardian Angels of Ohio: Guardian is a court appointed individual who makes decisions on another’s behalf once they have been deemed by the probate court to be incompetent to handle their own affairs. The responsibilities of a guardian may include decisions regarding medical care, living arrangements and, in some cases, financial matters. Help Guardian is a volunteer who assists the Guardian to meet the needs and desires of the ward, be it errands, respite or simply visits on a regular basis. Friendly Visitor of the Court visits various older adults either in their homes or in a facility. This volunteer would listen to and talk with the ward to assess their care and treatment in their current living arrangement and report their findings to the Program Director.

Jubilee Gardens: Community gardens are popular for a variety of reasons. People who do not have a garden of their own are growing their own fruits and vegetables instead of buying produce that often travels hundreds of miles before it reaches the grocery store. Do you have some time to help others grow vegetables or assist with keeping the gardens free of weeds and watered? Please contact HOVN if you have a green thumb.