Volunteer work for employees in the NYC area

March 5, 2015 11:22 PM

I work for a startup company and on our company's 3-day meeting we would like to use a half day or full day of work to volunteer for an organization (soup kitchen, maybe?) It is at the end of April. We are looking for something we can all do together. There are about 20 people in our company and our office is in downtown NYC, but can travel anywhere. It will be on a weekday. Any recommendations on what to do/who to contact?
posted by anonymous to Grab Bag (7 answers total)

My employer has worked with the Black Rock Arts Foundation to help organize multiple volunteer opportunities. They're based in SF, but I got the impression they worked with lots of charitable organizations and could at least put you in touch with the right people.
posted by politikitty at 11:35 PM on March 5, 2015

Holy Apostles soup kitchen is pretty well set up to accept large groups of volunteers, so long as you contact them ahead of time to coordinate things.

I volunteered there on and off a few years ago. The staff and regular volunteers were really friendly towards newcomers, and they seemed to do a good job of finding useful tasks for whoever showed up, including occasional big corporate groups or church groups. (Though don't expect to do any cooking. More likely you'll be doing setup and cleanup, greeting guests, or serving food — basically, one-on-one friendly human interaction stuff that necessarily requires a lot of people because it can't just be scaled up using professional techniques and big fancy commercial kitchen tools.)
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:52 AM on March 6, 2015

New York Cares
posted by Sweetie Darling at 3:25 AM on March 6, 2015 [1 favorite]

Came in to say New York Cares. I've seen them work with employers to set up and coordinate projects for a large group.
posted by bunderful at 5:03 AM on March 6, 2015

God's Love We Deliver! Your team can help put together nutritious meals for people with life-altering illnesses who are unable to shop and cook for themselves and their families. Here's the volunteer page or you can contact Kate directly at [e-mail]. It's an incredible organization and you will have a really fun time where you cook together while you make a difference. They are organized with their volunteer process.
posted by valeries at 7:53 AM on March 6, 2015 [1 favorite]

If there is a school near your office, you might talk to them and see if there is a project you can help with - cleanup or build some playground space, put in a raised bed garden, or sponsor some kind of day like Read to the Kids or Science Experiments or Art Projects.

This kind of thing would require a lot more time up front to create and coordinate the activities, and it would require a higher commitment of time and/or money and it might require an ongoing commitment of time both before and after the single day, so it might not be what you are looking for. But you might think about whether an ongoing commitment to a local school fits in to your corporate vision and then go from there.
posted by CathyG at 7:58 AM on March 6, 2015

Hoboken True Mentors would be a great place to help and make a real difference. It is a wonderful organization in Hoboken that betters the lives of children by providing afterschool educational opportunities and classes; pairs children with volunteer mentors to make a real difference in their lives, and does many beneficial community events. It is a quick mass transit ride over to Hoboken from Manhattan on the PATH system. They are wonderful people to work with. If you MeMail me or reach out in some way I can put you in touch with the founders/directors of the organization to facilitate your effort. We work with local corporate and business donors frequently (ie Ben and Jerry's, Taco Truck... ).
posted by incolorinred at 8:45 AM on March 6, 2015