Individual Opportunities
By becoming a Raphael House volunteer and contributing your time and talent to our home, you can make a lasting impact in the lives of our families. Our regular volunteers are asked to make a six-month to one-year commitment, and most positions, where we regularly have openings, require a weekly or monthly schedule. For the safety and security of our children and families, all regular volunteers are required to undergo a background check as part of the application process.
Positions we often need help with include:
AfterSchool Tutor
ChildReach Tutor
ESL Program
Evening Children's Program Volunteer
Evening Family Program
Kitchen Volunteer
"I've been inspired and awed by the families in residence, impressed and awed by the dedicated staff, and invigorated and challenged by my fellow volunteers. In many ways, I too think of Raphael House as my home; it is filled with love, respect, dignity, and humanity in the way every home should be."
- Mary Wolfe, Former Chair of the Board of Directors
AfterSchool Tutor – Every week day the children at Raphael House come back from school to a nutritious snack and share their news of the day. Afterwards, they settle in with our Children's Program staff and volunteer tutors to complete their homework. To further improve academic performance, each child is given individualized, supplemental learning material. When that is complete, they read out-loud to an adult and go to the Roof Garden to play. Volunteer tutors arrive at 3 and stay until 5:30pm one day per week, Monday through Friday during the school year. The children in this program are of elementary school age.
ChildReach Tutoring Program - On Saturday mornings during the school year, children in our AfterCare Program from first grade through seniors in high school are invited to come over to Raphael House for special tutoring help. They may have a specific project they are working on or else need help in one particular area. Shelter staff has prepared the academic materials they need to complete their school-work and has assembled the school supplies. Volunteers are asked to come one or two Saturdays per month from 10:15 – noon.
Evening Children's Program - After joining staff and families for dinner, volunteers work with children and assist staff with a variety of activities including art, games, singing, plays and multiple activities designed to capture the imagnation of the children. After the evening activity, families of the younger children gather together for story time, followed by a singing candlelight processional to each child’s room. The evening program takes place Monday through Friday, and volunteers are asked to come one evening each week from 6 – 8:00 pm. they are assigned to either the younger children’s group, usually ages 4 – 7, or with the older children, who range in age from about 8 – 12 years old.
Evening Family Program - Volunteers for the Family Program arrive at 6:00 to join the families and staff for dinner and leave by 9:00 PM. After dinner, from 6:30 – 7:15, volunteers either join mothers and staff to play with the toddlers or (on some Tuesdays) assist staff with a family craft activity. From that point on until the shift ends at 9:00, the volunteer will do a variety of small tasks like bringing up the lunch cart and helping mothers make brown bag lunches for their family or giving the front desk staff a break. It is during these times that volunteers have the opportunity to talk with the parents staying at the shelter.
Kitchen Volunteer - Raphael House serves dinner seven days a week to families, volunteers and staff members. Kitchen volunteers work with our kitchen team. Some afternoon volunteers help with kitchen prep while the evening volunteers come in at 5:15 and stay until 6:45 to serve dinner to our families. This is a lively time with considerable hustle and bustle in getting the meal out to the dining room and serving the families the main course, beverages and dessert.
ESL Program - This ESL Program is for residents and former residents of Raphael House and is taught on a one-to-one basis. Help parents and grandparents learn to speak, read and write basic English to advance in their current job, earn their G.E.D., help their children with homework, read stories to their family, obtain the privilege of citizenship, or speak with a doctor. Tutors and students together will choose a convenient location in the community to meet, with days and times that fit the schedules of both. Volunteers are asked to commit to 1-2 hours, one or two days per week.It is not necessary for volunteers to know a foreign language or have teaching experience.
Apply for this position.
Please note: if there is no option to apply at the end of a position description, then we do not have an opening at this time. If you would like to submit a general application for us to keep on file for the future, you may do so by clicking here.