Where to volunteer across New Hampshire, broken down by issue
Volunteering is the best way to show up for your community. In these challenging times, every action you take to help goes a long way.
These are the times that try New Hampshire souls, so what can we do about it? Volunteer! These are tough days for so many low-income New Hampshire residents who are food insecure, unhoused, hungry, and our state’s non-profits, some facing federal budget cuts, are struggling to keep up with demands. These organizations could always use donations of goods and money, but just as importantly, they need volunteer hours. Here’s a listing of where you can volunteer, divided by issues including homelessness, food insecurity, veterans, and volunteer opportunities for those helping rescue animals and state wildlife.
Veterans
If you’d like to give back to the men and women who gave up so much for you, look to the following organizations for volunteer opportunities.
Easterseals NH Military & Veterans Campus in Franklin provides support and services to veterans, military members, and their families. The organization needs volunteers with a variety of skills to help with reception, community events, activities, and life skills. Learn how to volunteer here.
Liberty House in Manchester provides substance-free housing and community connections for unhoused veterans to gain independence and self-sufficiency. Volunteer opportunities include supporting food and clothing drives, helping with community events, and providing other support services. Learn how to volunteer here.
The New Hampshire Veterans Cemetery Association is seeking volunteers to assist with events and holidays at the state Veterans Cemetery in Boscawen. Learn how to volunteer here.
Veterans Count, a program of Easterseals NH-VT, provides services and financial help to veterans, service members, and their families. Volunteers are needed primarily on weekends and/or evenings to help with events and outreach. Learn how to volunteer here.
Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 41 of Central New Hampshire offers volunteer opportunities for veterans and non-veterans for a variety of activities and events. Learn how to volunteer here.
Food Insecurity
Approximately 135,000 to 150,000, or one in nine residents in New Hampshire, are food insecure according to Feeding America. Here is where you can help.
New Hampshire Food Bank in Manchester, a program of Catholic Charities of New Hampshire, is the heart of New Hampshire’s food distribution to the hundreds of thousands of food-insecure residents of the state. The food bank relies on volunteers to help with food sorting, food drops, meal preparation, mobile food pantries, production gardens, and administrative help. Learn how to volunteer here.
NH Gleans organizes volunteers to collect fresh fruits and vegetables from local farms and gardens to be donated to soup kitchens and food pantries in the state. Learn how to volunteer here.
Gather, in Portsmouth, is a community food center, pantry, and mobile food market serving the food insecure in the Seacoast region of the state. The nonprofit relies heavily on volunteers to sort and stock food, load trucks, garden and glean, and assist with food drives. Learn how to volunteer here.
Nashua Soup Kitchen and Shelter provides food and emergency shelter in the greater Nashua area and serves nearly 70,000 meals a year. The nonprofit needs volunteers to help stock food, cook and serve, and perform a variety of other tasks. Learn how to volunteer here.
End 68 Hours of Hunger delivers healthy food bags for children in the state who may be relying on their school for meals—the packages contain enough food to get them through the weekend without hunger. Volunteers are needed to pack and hand out food bags. In addition to volunteers, the organization depends on food and money donations to keep the program affordable to run. Learn how to volunteer here.
Community Action Partnership of Stafford County organizes food pantries and kitchen services throughout the county. Learn how to volunteer here.
Homelessness
The most recent statistics indicate that about 2,200 to 2,400 people are unhoused on a single night in New Hampshire, according to the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness. This number is expected to grow this winter, and the state’s homeless shelters depend on volunteer help. Here is where you can participate.
Catholic Charities New Hampshire has numerous volunteer opportunities throughout the state, including fundraising, homeless shelter help, childcare and tutoring for unhoused families, food delivery, gift shop help, and more. Learn how to volunteer here.
Cross Roads House, Portsmouth, offers shelter and solutions for unhoused individuals and families. Volunteers assist with cooking and serving meals, childcare, food pickups, and professional services, such as tax preparation and haircutting. Learn how to volunteer here.
Concord Homeless Resource Center operates a 40-bed emergency winter shelter. Night shelter volunteers assist shelter staff with greeting and signing in guests when the shelter opens, distributing personal hygiene items, and monitoring shelter space. Morning shelter volunteers assist staff in waking guests, light cleaning, and preparation for the night’s guests. Learn how to volunteer here.
Homeless Veterans
Liberty House in Manchester provides substance-free housing and community connections for over 300 unhoused veterans to gain independence and self-sufficiency. Volunteer opportunities include supporting food and clothing drives, helping with community events, and providing other support services. Learn how to volunteer here.
Clear Path for Veterans New England, whose slogan is “Supporting the journey home,” needs volunteers for its outreach mission to provide peer support and create safe environments for at-risk and unhoused veterans. Learn how to volunteer here.
Animal Shelters/Rescue/Wildlife
There is no doubt these are tough times for low-income residents of our state, and that means it’s a tough time to hang on and care for family pets. But there are ways to help. And there are ways to make sure our state’s wildlife is preserved in times of climate change.
NH Audubon uses volunteers for a variety of projects and to help in wildlife conservation efforts, including data collecting, bird and butterfly counts, surveys, and habitat management. Learn how to volunteer here.
The New Hampshire Humane Society offers roles ranging from cleaning and animal socialization to administrative support. Learn how to volunteer here.
The Humane Society for Greater Nashua has volunteer opportunities for a wide variety of needs, including working directly with animals, administrative tasks, cleaning, and fostering. Learn how to volunteer here.
Pope Memorial SPCA in Concord looks for volunteers to help at the local dog park, with animal care, and with maintenance. Learn how to volunteer here.
Great Derry Humane Society needs a variety of volunteer help, from community outreach to pet transportation. Learn how to volunteer here.
Salem Animal Rescue League has volunteer opportunities for property maintenance, fundraising, dog walking, cleaning, and fostering. Learn how to volunteer here.
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