Long-term volunteer opportunities are a great way for volunteers to continue utilizing existing skills, learn new skills, and meet new people.

Available Opportunities

Essential Support Volunteer (Sorting & Restocking)
This position focuses on providing basic needs items for the home to our neighbors seeking to rise out of poverty. The donations we receive to our warehouse from our donors include household furniture, linens, kitchen items, toys, and professional clothing and accessories. Volunteers help us to sort donations and stock the showrooms where our clients select their items. With the help of volunteers like you, A Wider Circle is able to furnish 10-20 homes free of charge each day for our neighbors in need. This opportunity is available for individuals who are the age of 18 and over and can commit to serving in one of the donation sections ( household furniture, linens, kitchen items, toys, and professional clothing and accessories) in our warehouse for 1 shift (3 hours or more) once a week for at least 6 months.

Personal Shopper
This position focuses on assisting job seekers as they shop for professional clothing at our Professional Development Center (PDC). Volunteers welcome clients into our shopping area, select items from our clothing showroom and storage area when needed, and pack up the selected clothing at the end of the appointment. This opportunity is available for individuals who are the age of 18 and over and can commit to a minimum of 1 shift (3 hours) every two weeks. As a volunteer in the professional clothing program, you contribute to the mission of the PDC by ensuring that each client who has an appointment is treated with dignity and has a wide selection of quality items from which to select a professional wardrobe.

Administrative Services Assistant
As a volunteer in the Administration department, you will help serve as the initial point of contact for the guest who arrive at our welcome center and for individuals who contact us by phone, helping to set a positive tone for each guest and caller experience so they know their needs are being addressed.

Key responsibilities include: Answering calls from those who have general questions about the organization, data entry into Google Forms, working within a department and answering calls specifically for that department, and greeting guest(s) at our front desk to determine their purpose for visiting.

This opportunity is available for individuals who are the age of 18 and over and can commit to a minimum of one weekday per week for two hours between 10:00am and 3:00pm (in person).

Available Opportunities

Essential Support
This program focuses on providing basic needs items for the home to our neighbors seeking to rise out of poverty. The donations we receive include household furniture, linens, kitchen items, toys, and professional clothing and accessories. Volunteers help us to sort donations and stock the showrooms where our clients select their items. With the help of volunteers like you, A Wider Circle is able to furnish 10-20 homes free of charge each day for our neighbors in need. This is an SSL hour-approved opportunity for high school students. All volunteers under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult during their orientation, training, and volunteer service. Volunteer shifts are 3 hours long.

Heavy Lifter volunteers are also a part of our Essential Support program. They help our Inventory team unload donations from vehicles that pull up to our warehouse to drop off donations, help load furniture and other items into client vehicles, and take donated items (bags of clothing, boxes of toys, etc.) to the appropriate section in our warehouse. All volunteers are supervised by a member of our Inventory team and provided appropriate instructions and assistance at all times.

All volunteers between the ages of 6-13 are welcome to give back by helping with our Essential Support program as long as they are accompanied by an adult during their orientation, training, and volunteer service.

We work to identify volunteer opportunities in our warehouse that are safe and that don’t require as many steps so our youth volunteers have an easier time staying engaged.

For more information about youth volunteer opportunities, email us at volunteer@awidercircle.org.

A great way for your group to give back is by helping with our Essential Support program. This program focuses on providing basic need items for the home to our neighbors seeking to rise out of poverty. The donations we receive include household furniture, linens, kitchen items, toys, and professional clothing and accessories. Volunteers help us to sort donations and stock the showrooms where our clients select their items. In addition, volunteers unload donations from vehicles that pull up to our warehouse to drop off donations, help load furniture and other items into client vehicles, and take donated items (bags of clothing, boxes of toys, etc.) to the appropriate section in our warehouse. 

With the help of volunteers like you, A Wider Circle is able to furnish 10-20 homes free of charge each day for our neighbors in need.

At this time, we are able to host groups of up to 25 volunteers. The days when we need the most help are weekdays. Available shift times are 10:00am to 12:00pm or 1:00pm to 3:00pm, but we are also happy to explore longer shift times.

Pre-screening interviews for individuals completing court-ordered community service take place on Tuesday from 4:00-5:00pm and Thursday from 3:00-4:00pm via phone. To begin your community service with A Wider Circle, you must complete a pre-screening interview. Following approval, your next step is to schedule an orientation (this will count towards your requirements).

To schedule your interview, email Anthony Washington, Volunteer Team Manager, at  awashington@awidercircle.org.

Our virtual volunteer opportunities are open to individuals of all ages and groups. For more information and to sign up, please email us at volunteer@awidercircle.org.

Available Opportunities

Help Deliver Essentials (low-touch opportunity)
A Wider Circle is seeking volunteers to help deliver care packages, baby items, groceries, and more to the families that we serve. In most cases, volunteers would pick up these items from our headquarters in Silver Spring and deliver them to the doorstep of a client living near our Southeast DC location who will be expecting them.

Create Care Packages
A Wider Circle is always in need of care packages to provide to those we serve. You or your group could create care packages from your home, office, faith community, or school and then drop them off at A Wider Circle.

Here are some of our most needed care packages:

1. Essential Item Care Packages – toilet paper, body soap, toothpaste, dish soap, laundry detergent, and all-purpose cleaner.
   
   
2. Oral Care Kits – toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, and mouthwash.

Help with Pro Bono Services
A Wider Circle is so appreciative of our volunteers who offer their trade or professional skills to benefit this work. Whether you are a mechanic, a therapist, a lawyer, etc. ​—​ we invite you to use your expertise in support of the individuals we serve!