Grand Valley State University’s Office of Student Life and Civic Engagement hosted a Nonprofit Volunteer and Internship Fair Thursday. A wide variety of nonprofit organizations from the surrounding area offered students a chance to engage in paths like wildlife conservation, community leadership, event planning and charity.
Many booths offered volunteer work for students, including Girl Scouts, local humane societies, museums and even ArtPrize, which is set to begin Sept. 18, and provides numerous volunteer opportunities for students.
“We have a lot of cool events going on,” said May South, ArtPrize volunteer and community assistant manager. “Our opening celebration is on Sept. 19. We have a bunch of workshops for kids, adults and teens as well. We are always looking for volunteers.”
Multiple booths dedicated to Kent and Ottawa County parks were stationed at the event, and encouraged students to spend time outdoors.
“Kent County parks couldn’t do a lot of work without our volunteers, so we are looking for people that really want to get out there and help us take down invasive species to continue with our restoration and initiatives at all of our parks,” said Kent County Parks booth representative and volunteer Zoe VanderBrug.
Ottawa County Parks also have volunteer opportunities for a wide variety of students, including options to work with the public or small, local organizations, with more specialized options for education and environmental majors, such as natural resource management.
“We have a couple different types of volunteer opportunities and we try to tailor those opportunities to each volunteer’s needs,” said the Volunteer Program Supervisor for Ottawa County Parks and Recreation, Carly Garvelink. “They can sign up to shadow a program with our staff or work with our stewardship team.”
Love Your Neighbor of Hudsonville, Grand Rapids’ MomsBloom, Meals on Wheels Western Michigan and the YMCA were also at the event looking for volunteers who are enthusiastic about building connections in the community.
Love Your Neighbor is a community resource for individuals and families facing economic hardship. The organization currently works with 22 staff members and about 450 volunteers, and has operated for nearly 40 years.
“We rely on volunteers for every single program that we do,” said Community Engagement Manager Holly Harvey. “Right now, we are in search of Spanish-speaking volunteers to serve one hour a week in childcare, serve a meal or be peer support.”
MomsBloom provides community support for families with newborns, and runs numerous volunteer opportunities for students interested in this type of care.
“We are looking for volunteers for our program that serves postpartum moms,” said volunteer Audrianna Bell. “We provide support with light housework, maybe dishes, folding laundry or holding the baby so mom can take a shower, just providing that extra layer of support to help moms get through the first 12 weeks.”
Although these organizations are always looking for volunteers and encourage student involvement, so do many others. For students looking for upcoming volunteer opportunities, Civic Engagement provides an extensive list of community service ideas.
