I want to volunteer this summer for 2 weeks. anyone know good organizations?

Question

I'm 16 and am going by myself so it's hard to find one that is for ppl under 18. Also I want to go abroad. Hope u can help!

Answer 1

If you live in a city it should be easy to find something to do.  Check with you local boy or girl scout association, boys and girls club, etc.  Also, talk to someone at the Red Cross.  Local animal shelters can always use an extra hand, or a food drive, do you have a PAWS near you?  Is there a sore spot in your area, like a empty lot that need cleaning, check with your town supervisor.  Also,  check with churches and hospitals they may know of someone in need of help.  Maybe you would be able to go to the local hospital and bring games or song to sick children.  There are never enough people willing to volunteer, thank you for thinking about this.

Answer 2

Being unskilled (only 16) and available for only two weeks, you need to be prepared to pay ALL expenses regarding an overseas experience: flights, in-country transportation, health insurance, accommodation, food, security, translators, training, staff to create the service opportunities and then to supervise and support you in your service, liaisons with the police and local officials, etc.

There is a listing of the more-than-30 member organizations of the International Volunteers Program Association (IVPA) that is a good place to find reputable volunteer-for-a-fee programs -- programs where you don't need to have much experience in order to participate, and the placements are just for a few weeks or months:

http://www.volunteerinternational.org/

If you would like to stay local (and, therefore, not have to pay to volunteer), see:

VolunteerMatch, http://www.volunteermatch.org

Idealist, http://www.idealist.org

Change.org, http://www.change.org

CraigsList, http://www.craigslist.com

Network for Good, http://www.networkforgood.org

http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/

ServeNet, http://servenet.org/

If you see an organization that you would like to help, but don't see a volunteering opportunity posted by that organization, it's okay to call them and say you would like to volunteer -- they may have opportunities they haven't posted. Also, many organizations are open to your own suggestions for volunteering activities.

Also, contact your local volunteer center; you can find this via the Points of Light Foundation web site,

http://www.pointsoflight.org/centers/

There's also this government sponsored site, http://volunteer.gov/gov/ which provides volunteer positions through USA federal land agencies like Fish & Wildlife, Forest Service, National Parks, etc.

Remember that finding a volunteering gig can be like finding a job: you may have to interview several times before you are chosen for an assignment.