According to a recent study by Harvard Business Review, volunteer programs boost productivity, increase employee engagement and improve hiring as well as retention. Luckily, New Albany companies and their employees can find abundant opportunities to volunteer locally. Healthy New Albany recruits volunteers for programs and events ranging from Community Gardens and Farmers Markets to its Food Pantry. Mount Carmel New Albany Surgical Hospital uses volunteers in various capacities, including interacting with patients, families and visitors who come through the facility each day.
More local volunteer options include Neighborhood Bridges New Albany’s Opportunities for Kindness, a program that enables donors to respond to requests such as funding car repairs or providing furniture, household items and clothing for new residents. Celebrating One seeks volunteers for programs and service projects that motivate individuals to overcome life challenges. Wesley Woods is looking for volunteers for companionship, pet visits, quilting, crafts and more. Lifetown Columbus volunteers role play as shopkeepers to help youths with disabilities get real-world experience in Lifetown’s realistic indoor city. Canine Companions for Life needs volunteers to raise puppies or assist in its New Albany training center that provides service dogs.
Interested in the arts? As part of the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts, the McCoy Center for the Performing Arts uses volunteer greeters, ushers and ticket scanners at its performances and special events. New Albany Symphony Orchestra volunteers assist with its concerts, fundraisers and other events. Are sports more your speed? Volunteers are an important part of Project Hero’s Honor Ride that support rehabilitation and recovery programs for veterans and first responders. Volunteers help the New Albany Walking Classic run smoothly each fall to benefit Healthy New Albany. The Miracle League of New Albany’s volunteers serve as coaches and buddies to help children with disabilities play baseball. Local nonprofit, Buddy Up for Life, uses volunteer “buddies” to encourage and empower athletes with Down syndrome as well as help with life skills, including cooking and communications.