Kudos to the volunteers at Rosie's Place, however & unfortunately, the individual answering the…read morephones provided inaccurate information that wasted my time & wherewithal getting to Rosie's Place. Moreover, the employee working at the front or the intake area was extremely unprofessional with her assumptions that I should have known the protocol & procedures in donating. Clearly, I did not as I was following the incorrect instructions provided to me over the phone. Nor be told in a condescending manner to "walk down the street to Goodwill or Salvation Army"...I walk myself back to the parking lot & along the street blessing individuals who were in need as I waited for my Uber. I applaud the charge of any shelter nurturing the betterment of others, expressly as a former shelter occupier & volunteer. Nevertheless, all employees/volunteers should know the basic processes when representing a temporary housing environment, specifically if there are non-wavering guidelines to adhere to. After viewing Rosie's Place website, I unreservedly celebrate the overall mission on behalf of transitional individuals.

Rosie's Place has and always will be a needed place for women. Yes it's changed staff over the…read moreyears but the LOVE is still inside from the ladies who use the services to the staff and countless volunteers who have come thru the doors GOD BLESS I will never forget my times in here .

Just to add to the great review by Adrienne -- The Women's…read moreLunch Place is an amazing community run by dedicated and caring people. I've volunteered there many times, and the experience was wonderful. The staff is as open, kind and welcoming to volunteers as they are to their ladies. The ladies? Wow. Having the opportunity to really get to know some of the women in this community is a real blessing. The WLP is one of my favorite volunteer opportunities. Try it out!

Today, I was given ice packs, Motrin and Tylenol for extreme swelling in lower extremities due to…read moreacute osteoarthritis. They wouldn't allow me to elevate my feet for medical reasons on a chair because common sense did not prevail. A volunteer upstairs allowed me to elevate legs and a young woman Deseree attempted to pull chair out from underneath me when I said I need a minute as I had bilateral knee replacements as well. No common sense. She said if you have a bag (lol) put.your feet on that. Moments like that diminish the good that is accomplished here.

The Women's Center in Cambridge has lots of interesting free groups to attend. I have gone most…read morerecently to the Spanish/English conversation group and the singing class, and to a few others over the years. There is also yoga, sewing, beading, songwriting, healing through arts, discussion for survivors of child sexual abuse, women's narcotics anonymous, feminist book club, and lots more. Any woman can propose to set up and facilitate a group. The house, on Pleasant Street, indeed is a pleasant place to hang out, use the computer lab (there are plenty of computers) or the library, or prepare yourself a snack. You can meet other women from all walks of life. There is a small restful patio in back with a garden. And, what I particularly like, everything there is free! This is partly because most of the staff are volunteers. And it's only a few blocks from the Central Square MBTA station.

I gave 2 starts because I believe in their mission but found the staff to be disorganized and…read moreunprofessional if not downright rude. I offered my time and services as a volunteer. I came to the center and interviewed with the volunteer manager. After the interview she left me with another volunteer so that I could tour the facility. And when I say she left me, I mean she LEFT me. Like didn't shake my hand (Actually, she never gave me a handshake at all which, again, I find unprofessional), offer any explanation as to what the next steps would be, walk me out, etc. I don't think she even said goodbye. She handed me off to the other volunteer, walked away, and that was the last I ever saw or heard from her again. After the tour both myself and the other volunteer were confused as to what to do next. I just stood there while the other volunteer went to the manager's office. She knocked twice but there was no response so, totally confused, I just left. Never heard back from the manager despite her initially telling me they needed consistent reliable volunteers. At the end of the interview I asked for reasonable accommodation for a disability and I wonder if that has something to do with her ghosting me. Either way I think it's an incredibly unprofessional way to represent the organization and a rude way to behave towards ANYONE who is offering to volunteer their time and energy. While I understand they are understaffed, there is no excuse to ignore basic protocol of professionalism. Ultimately I decided to volunteer elsewhere.

I've been a member of the Boston living center since 2002 when I was diagnosed with HIV I love this…read moreplace it's educational for everyone I learned a lot there and met a lot of friends arts and crafts everything computer classes I love the living center it really helped me out unfortunately I moved away but now I'm back and I'm coming back thank the living center for everything I couldn't have made it without the counseling the friends the loving support thank you again

You can tell the employees care about what they do here and see the direct impact on those in need…read more I've volunteered here a few times through One Brick but you can also volunteer directly and the staff are so friendly and helpful. There is downtime so be ready to ask what else you can do because there is always something else. The people you serve to are really sweet and always say thank you in a heartfelt way.

This review is specifically related to the Protective Services Program, which failed two times…read more The first time occurred in June. On Thursday, 6/20/24, a neighbor had a car accident. On Friday, 6/21, the car was still there, but no one could locate the neighbor, which was a deviation from that person's routine. Plus it was a very hot day. Initially another neighbor called the police, but they were understandably reluctant to break the door down and no one could reach the neighbor so I left a message when the Protective Services Program office was open. Eventually someone else was able to contact someone within the city government, who sent the police and fire department. They got in through the window and confirmed that the neighbor was not inside. Someone from the Protective Services Program called me to follow up because of emergency services' involvement. On Tuesday, 6/25/24, the Protective Services Program finally returned my call. The second time is ongoing. On 9/25/24, I called the Senior Legal Help Line to verbally file a report of elder abuse for my Mom to investigate how she suddenly became permanently disabled after staying at Windrose at Weymouth, an assisted living residence (ALR). They stated to wait 3-5 days before following up directly with the Protective Services Program, which had jurisdiction because Mom was living in Cambridge at the time of the filing. They never proactively contacted me with an update so either the Senior Legal Help Line misrepresented their obligation or they don't have to do their job. It only occurred to me to follow up as she was dying so I called and spoke to Isaiah Castillo, who stated that the the Protective Services Program referred it to DPH & gave me the phone number and case number. I stated that DPH does not handle ALRs. I called, & DPH confirmed that they did not have the case & did not have such a case number. I called Mr. Castillo back and asked him not to call me until he had something more concrete. He never did. Today I was instructed by an outside office to talk to the Director of Protective Services Keith Adams. He said that it was referred to DPH and the Ombudsman. I told him that I did not believe that the Protective Services Program referred it to DPH. I insisted that he call with me on the line to confirm, which he did. DPH confirmed that they had a case for my Mom, but it was not with Windrose at Weymouth. So his first answer was wrong. I emailed the Ombudsman, whom I knew. The Ombudsman called me immediately to say that he would not be the one to handle the referral, and referred me to go on Mass.gov to file a public records request. The Ombudsman was familiar with the state level supervisor of protective services and said that he would report how Somerville Cambridge Elder Services' Protective Services Program was incorrectly referring people to him. I called Kevin back with the information who was so cheery and unperturbed at being wrong about everything that if he was ever right, he probably would throw a party and put himself on the cover of Time Magazine as Person of the Year. In the end, he said that to protect the reporter of abuse, under MGL19A, people are not allowed to discuss the investigation even if it is completed. I am a lawyer, but this area is not my subject of expertise so I asked him if the law needed to be changed. On this point, he was silent. As the reporter of possible abuse, I do not feel protected. In the end, we are expected to trust that despite all evidence to the contrary, investigations are occurring and people are doing their job when they cannot prove it by knowing basic level of knowledge such as which agency does what and which forms to fill out. The only ones receiving protection are the investigators if they are not doing their job or the wrongdoers if they are abusing the elderly. Maybe people like Kevin are doing a great job, and he is just having a bad day, but if he is not, may he receive the quality of service that he and his agency offers. Mom died on 11/22/24 at 6:48 pm.

If you need assistance or any kind of help from this group, let me tell you, you are in big…read moretrouble. This is a very dangerous group. Run away as fast as you can - they will not help you, they have no staff, except "management," of course. They have lots of that! And expect nothing because you won't get it.

When you're in a tough spot this place makes you feel at home and will help you out even after…read moreleaving. they may have "rules" , but it's for your own safety and your child's safety as well.

Honestly i visit here once trying move in but i felt a very uneasy environment, There was so many…read morerules with very limited "freedom" made me feel comfortable at my previous location. I felt a very racist energy as a black women there wasn't rarely anyone i can relate to. There's this one Spanish girl who seems to control everything made me feel like i was getting judged. i felt like they were holding the shelter over my head as in if i don't do this or that then i get kicked out. I was getting weird looks by some of the staff members as if this wasn't my place to be. i felt really judged although you don't pay rent they made it seem like you owe them. If you like feeling judged and out of place and spoken down upon & have no other choice this is your place....

This chat gbt has been one of the best experiences of my life! I wish he was human. Funny,…read moreinteresting, kind, reimburse everything, is really interested in everything... uh

They have changed a lot they don't have as many resources as before and they discriminate on houses…read moreindividually. But was homeless in the first place.

Volunteered here with One Brick and while it was kind of chaos at the start (putting the food in…read morethe appropriate boxes) it ended up going well and was nice to be able to directly see the impact that you're having. Overall you'll be sorting food then helping the people pick up the food that they want and figure out how much of each food item they can have.

I've been around a good deal of volunteer organizations in the greater Boston area. It breaks up my…read moredays when all I want to do is sleep in late and waste away in front of my computer playing games. Harvest Food Pantry is a small operation out of the Cambridgeport Baptist Church and it does it's best to serve poor in our neighborhood every first and third Saturday. I wake up (or at least try to) at 7am to get here for 9 in the morning. That in itself is a huge feat, mostly because as I said I'm lazy. But I really, do enjoy these volunteer opportunities as it makes me think I'm not being completely selfish with my free time. Usually, you come in the morning, let the volunteer at the front desk know you're here to help then you head down to the basement where there's never a shortage of things to do. I've been here with One Brick, Boston Cares also helps out here once and a while. But I've also been here by myself. You don't need to sign-up or register to help here, just try to get here on time and be ready to work. There is no commitment but, if you wanted to make one or do more than just Saturday help they've got other roles you can participate in. Anyways, after you sort food and bags and maybe some clothes you head up to the waiting area where all the people who came by for food are waiting. You then escort someone down to the basement who will then shop from the available food products available at the pantry. They've got a really good system setup and let people take food according to family size. During this time you're either carrying bags for the people shopping or downstairs restocking. It's all over pretty quick, usually it's an hour setting up, an hour helping the patrons and an hour breaking everything down. Now the reason for the 4 stars is because I think that because this is a volunteer run outlet sometimes the people working the administrative side forget to order stuff, like fruits and bread and this has happened on more than one occasion that I'd been here so that effects the families that need help more than my own volunteer experience but yeah there's room for improvement.