Jersey Cares volunteering at NJRISE
For
my community project I decided to sign up with Jersey Cares and join them in
their volunteering opportunities across New Jersey. Jersey cares is a
non-profit organization established in 1993 which recruits and engages
volunteers in effective efforts that address community-identified needs. By working together with local non-profits,
they can identify and implement volunteering projects to meet these needs.
Jersey Cares provides volunteering opportunities for individuals, groups,
families, and even corporate employees ranging from tutoring children to
painting murals and cleaning parks. Jersey Cares is affiliated to the Points of
Light network, an innovative alliance of volunteer catalysts throughout the
world.
The
company provides orientation and onsite training, their opportunities are led
by a Jersey Cares project coordinator. One of the ways they engage New Jersey
residents is through their corporate service, which is intended to help
companies all sizes develop and enhance their corporate citizenship initiatives
with opportunities reoccurring at least once per month.
I
volunteered for an event taking place on April 3rd, 2021 from 1:00PM
to 4:00PM at NJ Rise, a thrift shop located in Hightstown, New Jersey, under
the supervision of Leslie Koppel. The opportunity involved helping clean and
organize the thrift store, along with folding and hanging clothing while the
customers where at the store. Volunteers can also help create displays, collect
unused hangers, fix certain sections of the store by category, and clean up the
store. I was assigned the collection of unused hangers, folding and organizing
men’s pants by size, organizing the purse rack and the women’s clothing
section. There I was able to meet Ronald
Desir, a teammate from the class. All proceeds from the thrift shop are
destined to fund programs that benefit individuals and families in Hightstown,
New Jersey filling their cupboards and helping make ends meet. NJ Rise also
offers a 10 to 12-week English Learning Language program targeted for students
of all skill levels to help them read and write English with more confidence
and ease.
I
would recommend the class to sign up at Jersey Cares and finding an opportunity
to give back to society. Volunteers have the option to become project coordinators,
with training provided by Jersey Cares online. This was my second experience
volunteering, with the previous one being for New York Cares in 2019, where I
helped pack food. I am looking forward to participating in more community
support activities.
