Blanchet House of Hospitality
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.226.3911
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 340 NW Glisan, Portland, OR 97209
E-mail: chezblanchet@aol.com
Web site: www.blanchethouse.org
A soup kitchen that serves over 1900 meals each day at breakfast (6:30 AM), at lunch (11:30 - 1:30 PM), and dinner (5:00 PM) Volunteers work with the regular staff, who are formerly homeless men living at Blanchet in apartments above the dining room. There is a great spirit of service here, a good chance to learn about homelessness and an opportunity to break out of your sheltered lives. Blanchet is one of the oldest service programs in Portland.
Downtown Chapel
Contact: Andy Noethe
Phone: 503.228.0746
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 601 W. Burnside Portland, OR 97209
E-mail: noethe@downtownchapel.org
Website: www.downtownchapel.org/
Dedicated to serving the poor, Downtown Chapel's Open Door Ministries bring healing and hope to our neighbors in Old Town Portland. Open Door Ministries provides basic needs to our neighbors and guests from Old Town Portland each day. Volunteers are needed for Morning Hospitality (when you are not at school), in the Clothing Pantry, in the Food Pantry, at Br. Andre Café, and for seasonal events and fundraisers. A great opportunity to meet and work with our neighbors downtown!
Fish Emergency Services
Contact: Ken Lane
Phone: 503.233.5533
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 1335 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, OR 97214
Fish is a social service organization which provides assistance to those who find themselves in crisis situations. Fish supplies nutritious food, clothing, bedding, household items, and infant supplies to individuals and families. It also helps individuals learn urban survival skills which encourage independence from social service programs and promote dignity. Volunteers are needed to act as receptionists, food baggers, check out clerks, and perhaps interviewers. A fabulous place!
Good Neighbor Center
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.443.6084
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 11070 SW Greenburg Rd. Tigard, OR 97223
E-mail: volunteer@goodneighborcenter.org
Website: www.goodneighborcenter.org
A Tigard placement! Good Neighbor Center is dedicated to providing safe emergency housing and supportive services that empower individuals and families to become self-sufficient. The shelter has 9 bedrooms to serve up to 9 families, with a total capacity of 36. Each family has a private room where they can keep their belongings and sleep. Volunteers are needed to prepare and serve the evening meal for 30 people. Teen groups are welcome with an adult, and many families volunteer together in this way. Volunteers are also needed at special events. One scheduled project is shelter bedroom maintenance. Groups can adopt-a-room to paint and shampoo the rug. Call the Volunteer Coordinator for details about scheduled projects.
Goose Hollow Family Shelter
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.228.3195 Ext: 215
Time of year: Winter
Mailing Address: 1838 SW Jefferson, Portland, OR 97201 Website: http://www.fumcpdx.org/GooseHollowFamilyShelter/
Goose Hollow Family Shelter provides emergency winter shelter to homeless families in the Portland First United Methodist Church. Homeless families from throughout the metropolitan area are welcome here. They serve up to 24 people nightly, November through April. Families are provided a light meal and continental breakfast, hot showers, laundry, sleeping areas (partitioned for families), and constructive activities for kids. Volunteer positions include Overnight Hosts, Light Meal Provider, Kid Time Host, and Extra Hand.
Human Solutions
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.548.0200
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 2900 SE 122nd Avenue Portland, OR 97236
Website: www.humansolutions.org
The mission of Human Solutions is to help low-income families and individuals gain self-sufficiency by providing affordable housing, skill development, and family support services. Annually they serve more than 50,000 people in over 17,000 families to move away from poverty and towards economic independence. About two thirds of our clients (33,000) are children. Volunteers are needed to prepare and serve meals at shelters, to help with special events, and to work with the children at active after-school programs.
JOIN: Connecting the Street to a Home
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.232.2031
Time of year: Vacations
Mailing Address: 3338 SE 17th, Portland, OR 97202
E-mail: immersion@joinpdx.com
Web site: www.joinpdx.com
JOIN works to help people move off the streets. Volunteers work the front desk, meeting and greeting people and assigning "barter jobs," scheduling showers, and setting appointments to meet with outreach workers. (Join also runs the Homeless Immersions and the Portland Plunge.)
JOIN: Portland Plunge
Contact: Immersion Coordinator
Phone: 503.232.2031
Time of year: Summer
Mailing Address: 3338 SE 17th, Portland, OR 97202
E-mail: immersion@joinpdx.com
Web site: www.joinpdx.com/immersion.htm
The "Plunge" is a week-long, overnight, immersion retreat with homeless people of Portland. Learn about homelessness from the people who live it every day. An amazing experience! Students reside at the JOIN Center in SE Portland. Dates are typically the week immediately following Final Exams. Applications due in the spring. (Limited spaces available)
Outreach Ministry in Burnside
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.225.0590
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 207 NW 3rd Ave., Portland, OR 97209
E-mail: contact_outreach@yahoo.com
Web site: www.aracnet.com/~omib/
This agency serves people in the low-income hotels in the Old town area of Portland. Volunteers will have the opportunity to meet and work with clients in the hotels, assist in shopping trips, write letters, help with office duties and generally build relationships with the people that Outreach Ministry calls "family". Volunteers are needed weekdays any time of the year. Also a great summer placement.
Ronald McDonald Houses
Ronald McDonald House East
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.287.7600
Time of year: All year
Mailing Address: 2620 N. Commercial St. Portland, OR 97227
Ronald McDonald House West
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.494.5200
Time of year: All year
Mailing Address: 3440 SW US Veterans Hospital Rd. Portland, OR 97201
A "home away from home" for families of seriously ill children who must travel to Portland for medical care, there are two Ronald McDonald Houses in the area. While the people who are staying there are not homeless in the typical sense of the word, they are away from their own homes and so need help. The East house is near Emmanuel Hospital, and the West house is near OHSU. Volunteers are needed to prepare meals for and visit with the residents. Most meal groups provide their own ingredients. Ronald McDonald House provides the cooking facilities. This is a great place for families to volunteer together!
SHARE Inc.
Contact: Susan Oberst
Phone: 360.695.7658 Ext: 309
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: PO Box 1209, Vancouver, WA 986661209
E-mail: volunteers@sharevancouver.org
Web site: www.sharevancouver.org
A Vancouver placement! Share operates Valley Homestead and Inn at the Orchard, family homeless shelters, and Share House, a men's homeless shelter in downtown Vancouver. Volunteers may prepare and serve meals to shelter residents, assist with play and educational activities like story hour, child care and tutoring. Volunteers may also assist with clerical duties, annual Holiday celebrations, or donation deliveries. Share House also runs a hot meal program open to the public that operates totally on volunteer labor.
Sisters of the Road Café
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: (503) 222-5694, ext. 17
Time of year: Vacations
Mailing Address: 133 NW 6th, Portland, OR 97209
E-mail: mary@sistersoftheroad.org
Web site: www.sistersoftheroad.org
Sisters is a café, not a soup kitchen. A philosophy of nonviolence and respect and dignity for each person sets Sisters apart. This placement serves a great meal at a low cost from 10 AM - 3 PM, M-F. Volunteers are needed to "work the floor" during open hours and could assist in the office during off hours. A great place to meet folks who live on the street. Volunteers must attend an orientation to begin, held the 2nd Wednesday of each month, from 5-7 pm. Call to reserve your spot for the orientation. (Due to hours of business, students could only volunteer during days you are not in school.)
St. Francis Dining Hall
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator
Phone: 503.234.2028
Time of year: All Year
Mailing Address: 330 SE 11th, Portland, OR 97214
Anyone is welcome to come for a meal, served at 5:00pm M-F and at 3:30pm on Sundays. There is a feeling of community and openness here, and a philosophy that all be treated with dignity, no matter what their situation. Help serve an evening meal, but more importantly, meet and build relationships with the diners. Located at St. Francis Parish in SE Portland.
