This Organization serve the community with Love and respect. They have been such a blessing to me…read moreand my family.

I have had the opportunity to volunteer for this great organizations three times now. It is well…read morerun and full of wonderful people who are dedicated to helping those with Down Syndrome and their families. The activities are fun ways for the kids to learn skills they need to live. What a great place!

Zebra Coalition has been helping teens for years. I contacted them to set up a drop off, Gustavo…read morewas very responsive and set up a date, time and tour of the facility. Upon arrival we were greeted with huge smiles and learned a lot of their foundation and the process in which the teens are assisted. If you are looking to help, I would definitely reach out and see how you can be of assistance. They accept monetary and supplies.

During my business travels I always seem to collect more and more toiletries. Even though…read morehousekeeping notices my huge assortment of personal care items, they still keep restocking fresh every day. I thought it would be a good idea to bring them by for use here at the zebra coalition. It kills me this organization even needs to exist. But on the other hand, it nearly brings me to tears to know that there are people who do accept LGBTQ youth and who really want to help as much as they can. This organization assists young people facing homelessness, bullying, physical, sexual and drug abuse; and isolation from their families with individualized programs to guide them to recovery stability. There is a 24 hour crisis crisis hotline, and also a drop in center. A great hang out area with washing and drying facilities is also available. Please stop by and take a tour in order to find out more about this great organization and learn how you can help. They are currently working on developing a volunteer program, but I have also listed some of the ongoing needs of this coalition.

I joined Toastmasters about 2 years ago to help me with my leadership and public speaking skills…read more My decision to join was made one day while I was on a work conference call with dozens of co-workers and realized how shaky my voice was from nervousness. The Clermont Toastmaster's club has such a supportive and encouraging atmosphere from a diverse group of people. It helps facilitate my desire to improve said skills. Each week, there are 3 scheduled speakers, impromptu speakers, evaluators and other roles. There are different objectives to meet with each role that are outlined in the various manuals, starting with the basic to the more advanced manuals. I can truly say that the practice and support that I am getting each week has helped settle my nervousness when I do training presentations and conference calls at work. No more shaky voice! I still have a long way to go and really need to continue improving my speeches and impromptu speaking but I know that with the support of this club, I will get there. Even then, there is always room for improvement. The 90 minute meetings are held every Monday night at 7 pm and they allow guests to visit for free to check it out. Being a member equates to less than $10 a month.

A Gift for Teaching is a Non-Profit retail store that is a true gift for…read more Teachers and Students. They provide educational supplies and other resources for students that need it the most. It's always a great experience and the staff and volunteers are so welcoming and eager to assist. I'm always excited about what they will have in store. As a Teacher I am able to "shop" each month for almost any school supplies you could think of... and when I say "shop" - I mean it's free‼

I volunteered here during the Christmas holiday & had an amazing time. I learned so much about this…read morewonderful organization. The mission for A Gift For Teaching is to improve public school education by providing resources and surplus materials for free to teachers for their students in need. I did a variety of things from sorting supplies, books, writing the name on items the teachers wanted, loading them items in the front & i ended the day with directing traffic for pick up. It was so refreshing and rewarding to give back. The staff was so friendly and welcoming. I def can't wait to come back and help with this amazing cause.

I can't say enough things about the Ronald McDonald House Charity…read more I've been volunteering since I was a little girl...it was something that was always important to my parents and it's stayed with me all my life....but I can honestly say that I have found my "Forever Home", if you will. They have very few people on staff and are heavily reliant on volunteers, and so incredibly appreciative of their volunteers. I've never felt like I made such a difference to a single organization as I do now. There are two houses in Orlando. One is near Florida Hospital and one by Arnold Palmer on Orange Avenue, where I volunteer. The Charity is set up to have families and parents of hospitalized children stay near their sick kiddos. They ask for a donation of $15 a night. That's all. $15!!! And if a family cannot afford it, they don't have to pay. It's amazing. The Arnold Palmer house has about 35 rooms, a computer room, gorgeous living rooms, a monster kitchen and more. Local restaurants and organizations come in nightly to cook dinner for everyone and once in a while they will have to cancel at the last minute...and then volunteers like me can fill in. :) So far, I've helped at Bed Day. Tempurpedic donated all the beds to the Houses in the US and I made breakfast for lots of firefighters and police officers while they changed the beds out. I also helped at the Ice Cream Social and Golf Tourney...and I work the desk a couple of times a month at the Arnold Palmer House. I am currently trying to organize an edible garden planting at the houses. If you have any ideas, send them my way. You don't have a lot of interaction with the kids...it's their parents and families you help. Many times it's a quick hello...but sometimes they just want to be taken away from hospital speak for awhile...talk about Gossip Girl or gas prices...they just need a smile and a hug and cup of coffee. Like I said, they are heavily reliant on volunteers so if you have an interest, please visit their site at www.rmhccf.org You can volunteer at special events or if you have a consistent time that you are able to give weekly or monthly you can volunteer at the houses. It's a wonderful thing!

What a lovely facility! 37 families can stay here, the rooms are spacious and well appointed. The…read morecommon areas are lovely. The kitchen was just renovated and is spectacular. I recently volunteered under the "Share a meal" program, where people from the community can come in and cook (or bring in from a commercial kitchen) lunch or dinner. On my stop I baked cookies for the holidays and brought in cupcakes donated from Gigi's Cupcakes of Orlando. I was welcomed by the staff and the families who I met, everyone was very nice. The kitchen has every type of pot, pan and utensil you need to make a meal. I'll be signing up for a shift again in January. Here is more info on the program and how to volunteer: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-12-04/features/os-ronald-mcdonald-heather-mcpherson-20131204_1_volunteers-ronald-mcdonald-house-charities-ill-children

Offers a wide variety of complimentary services catering to the diverse Orlando community including…read morea weekly food bank, counseling, and rapid HIV and STI testing. Wonderful resource for the LGBTQIA+ community

To be honest I don't really know what all they do here. I bring my youngest child here for therapy…read moreservices once a week. It is done in conjunction with the Zebra Coalition just up the road. We've been coming here for a couple of months now and everyone we've met is very friendly. They do a lot of services within the LGBTQ community and they have listings on a board for events and more throughout the area. For the services that we've gone for they have been very reliable and understanding.

This is a Christmas volunteer opportunity…read more Families pre-register online with the Marines. They are then given a date and time to pick up their gifts which have been donated by people in the community. As a volunteer, you go to the designated distribution center, and there are several different ways to help. The most common is as a runner. Runners are given a sheet with the name of the family and the kids (by age) who are receiving the toys. You pick up the corresponding toy bags (for the age of the child), and you bring them out to the family member. Other ways to help include: checking people in, sorting toys, unloading the toy shipments and assembling toy bags. We really enjoyed volunteering for Toys for Tots, but it is a little less organized for first timers than some of the other volunteer options we have tried. It's still rewarding, and makes a huge difference for many families in the community. Check it out! The location and dates of this volunteer opportunity may vary each year.