Volunteering at Calvary
Volunteers are essential to the success of Calvary's programs and residents. These dedicated supporters let the women at Calvary know that someone cares about them and help Calvary provide the best possible services to women in our community.
Calvary's volunteer coordinator works with groups and individuals, women and men, youth groups to seniors to match your individual interests and talents to the needs of our programs and the women we serve.
Below are several ways to volunteer. These are just a few ideas to get you started. If you have other ideas or gifts to share, please contact us. We would love to work with you!
Ways to Get Involved
— Christine, volunteer
Cook a Meal — Dinner and lunch volunteers prepare a meal at home, bring it to one of our programs, and serve it to our residents. This is a great opportunity for families and small groups-and a great chance to get know our residents.
Spend the Night — Overnight volunteers supervise our programs overnight. Individuals or small groups provide women a comfortable, safe place to stay and serve a simple breakfast in the morning.
Teach a Class — Volunteers lead Life Skills classes on a variety of topics-from budgeting to self-esteem to women's health.
Assist the Staff — Evening volunteers assist our program staff with the evening routine and provide informal support to our residents. Tasks may include checking women in, helping out in the office, or just chatting with the residents.
Organize a Wish-List Drive — Calvary is always in need of a variety of supplies to help us care for and assist our residents. Volunteers organize drives at churches, offices, and businesses to receive donations of much-needed items such as toiletries, linens, or household goods.
Walk in the Help the Homeless Walkathon — Each year Calvary participates in the Help the Homeless Walkathon to raise money for our programs. Volunteers walk with us and may ask their friends, families, and colleagues to support them.
Lead an Activity — Volunteers lead recreational activities for the women in our programs. Past activities have been as diverse as games of BINGO, jewelry making, painting, movie night, and yoga. Other volunteers have held special events, such as birthday parties or a manicure day.
Help Maintain Our Programs — Offices, alumni groups, congregations, and others volunteer to spend a day cleaning or painting at one of our programs.
Donate Your Talents — Volunteers offer their unique talents and skills, such as baking a cake for a special celebration, playing music at a fundraising event, or sewing new curtains for one of our programs.
Spread the Word — Volunteers work with Calvary's staff to speak to local congregations, pass out information at workplace campaign fairs, and send mailings to friends and family about our work. These are great ways to help Calvary meet new volunteers and raise money for our services.
To learn more or sign up, please contact Calvary Women's Services' Volunteer Coordinator at (202) 783-6651 or cwsvolunteers@aol.com. To get started, complete our Volunteer Application.
Meal Volunteers
By providing a nutritious home-cooked lunch or dinner, meal volunteers let women know someone cares about them.
Meal volunteers prepare a meal offsite for the 25 women at Calvary Women's Shelter or 10 women at Pathways. After serving the women, volunteers are encouraged to sit down, relax, and enjoy their meal with the women.
This is a great volunteer opportunity for individuals and groups who may be interested in a one-time activity. Others sign up to provide a meal as often as once a month. However often they come, meal volunteers offer a valuable gift to the women at Calvary's programs.
Calvary Women's Shelter:
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday dinner
5:30 pm - 7:15 pm
Sunday lunch 11:30am - 1:00 pm
Pathways
Friday and Saturday dinner at 6:00pm
Overnight Volunteers
An overnight volunteer's main duty is to help our residents feel safe and secure knowing that someone is present during the night if they need assistance.
In the evening volunteers are responsible for turning out the dorm lights, letting in residents arriving late from work or school, and doing a final walk through of the facility. Volunteers sleep on air mattresses in the staff office for the night. Volunteers wake up at 6:00 am and are responsible for setting out cereal, fruit, juice, coffee, and other breakfast items. They see the residents out at 8 am and can leave thereafter. A staff member is always on-call to answer any questions the volunteer may have.
This is a great opportunity for individuals, couples, or small groups. Individuals who volunteer are encouraged to bring a friend or family member along!
Calvary Women's Shelter
Every night 9:30 pm to 8:15 am
Pathways
Friday and Saturday nights 10:45 pm to 8:15 am
Life Skills Volunteers
Life Skills volunteers lead classes and activities that help women build the skills they need to live independently.
Volunteers lead Life Skills classes on many different topics, from practical skills, such as how to interview for a job, to social skills, like game nights. Past topics have included budgeting, breast cancer awareness, yoga and relaxation, knitting, creative writing workshops, and much more.
Scheduling for classes and activities is flexible and varies by program. Often volunteers lead activities on weekday afternoons or evenings or on Sundays during the day. This is a great opportunity to share your knowledge and talents with women are eager to learn!
Evening Volunteers
Evening volunteers are an important source of support for the staff at Calvary Women's Shelter during the busiest time of the day.
Evening volunteers help in a wide variety of ways. Evening volunteers welcome women into the shelter for the evening and hand out chore cards, cleaning supplies and toiletries as needed. Volunteers also assist staff in preparing and serving dinner to the residents or in doing administrative tasks in the office such as filling in schedule boards, stuffing envelopes for mailings, or creating spread sheets or documents on a computer.
Evening volunteers come in as little as once a month or as often as once a week. Most evening volunteers stop by after work and spend two or three hours helping out.
The program's needs vary each evening, so this is a great opportunity for individuals who are flexible and enjoy helping in many different ways.