There are many ways in which you can get involved with Goodwill Industries® of the Valleys. A great first step is signing up for The “Real Goodwill” Tour. A firsthand look at how Goodwill impacts individuals and families in our community, the tour allows you to hear from program participants, volunteers, family members, and staff how Goodwill has helped them achieve greater independence and healthier lives through training, employment, and day support programs. The tour can help you decide how you would like to volunteer in the future with Goodwill.
Volunteers have been a vital part of Goodwill since its beginning and their efforts have helped make Goodwill what it is today. Assisting with special events, donating time as a board member, and mentoring at risk youth are just a few examples of ways to give back to your community through Goodwill.
Some of the programs that volunteers spend time with are:
- Goodwill’s Reality Check - a program in which volunteers have always participated. Reality Check helps to teach financial responsibility and creates an understanding of the role education plays in a student's future success through a real-life simulation that takes place in local middle and high schools. Volunteers help participants as they make monetary decisions, including where to live, what vehicle to buy, and where to shop.
- GoodGuides® - Goodwill's youth mentoring program. Volunteer mentors have been helping youth build career plans, develop skills, prepare for school completion, post-secondary training, and productive work since 2011.
- Day Support Services - In 2012, volunteers began assisting the Day Support program for adults with disabilities.
- Job Seeker Services - Today volunteers also help individuals utilizing Goodwill Job Seeker Services with their cover letters, resumes, and job applications.
The list keeps growing...volunteers have helped make work simulation supplies for participants, cleaned vehicles used to transport participants, and even assisted with Goodwill's new community garden. Not only are volunteers an essential part of Goodwill's service to the community, but Donation Drives are also critical to Goodwill’s mission of helping people and families in our community achieve a better life through work and independence. Goodwill: You Donate & Shop. We Train. People Work.
In 2013, because of donations from the community, in the 31 counties it serves, Goodwill Industries of the Valleys was able to help nearly 90,000 youth, adults, and seniors with disabilities, disadvantages, or those who lost their job due to company closing or layoff and they placed nearly 3,000 in competitive employment. If you or your organization would like to help individuals in your community get back to work and gain greater independence by hosting a Donation Drive, you can contact Misty Adams, Donated Goods Events Coordinator, at madams@goodwillvalleys.com or call (540) 598.2453
To take a complimentary tour or find out how you can get involved by volunteering your time, contact Sarah Stephens, Volunteer Coordinator, at sstephens@goodwillvalleys.com or call (540) 581.0620 ext. 222.
