The strength of Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston (IM) lies in the selfless contributions made by our dedicated corps of volunteers. Each year, more than 4,000 volunteers lend their time and talents toward helping refugees and homebound seniors who turn to IM for help. For upcoming volunteer trainings contact: [email protected].
Make an IMpact in your community by signing up to volunteer today!
Getting started takes a few simple steps:
Welcome and thank you for your interest in volunteering with Refugee Services. Houston has a rich history of welcoming refugees, and we are honored to work alongside you in welcoming our new neighbors!
The first step to volunteer is to register with Volunteer Houston and select Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston as an agency you want to volunteer with. After that, you may select a need you would like to assist with.
For some needs, volunteers will need to complete a basic background check that will cost the volunteer $9. After the background check clears, we can proceed to the orientation phase and then you will be set to begin!
Please follow these steps:
Steps to Become an IMGH RS Volunteer:
1. Attend an online volunteer orientation. Sign up for an orientation date below.
2. Set up a Volunteer Profile on Better Impact
3. Complete a $10 Background Check (link will be emailed to you from Sterling Volunteers)
4. Complete a 30-minute online Anti-Child Abuse Training
For questions, please email [email protected] or call (713) 533-4900.
During orientation, you will receive a detailed description of our available volunteer opportunities and complete the necessary volunteer paperwork. Volunteer orientations are held two times a month. To register for an orientation, please RSVP to one of the dates offered at the end of the Volunteer Application.
Once you have completed the online application and attended New Volunteer Orientation, you will be ready for Training. Trainings are offered anywhere from once/month to once/week, depending on the program.
At New Volunteer Orientation you’ll be able to select your volunteer preferences and will be sent training date information and details after your volunteer application has been successfully processed, processing usually takes about 1 week. Please know that if you indicate your interest in volunteering for any Refugee Services opportunities you will also be scheduled for a one-on-one interview to determine your best match.
Once you have completed the online application and orientation as well as your training, you are ready to serve in your volunteer role. From application to first day volunteering can take a few weeks but this is the best process to fully vet each volunteer.
Individual Volunteer Opportunities
To volunteer with Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston every volunteer must complete the onboarding process, which includes filling out the attached a paperwork and passing a background check. Some heavy lifting involved with different opportunities. Volunteers age 15 and under must be accompanied by an adult guardian, volunteers age 16 and older are welcome to volunteer independently onsite at Meals on Wheels with parental consent, all volunteer drivers must be age 18 and older. Most volunteer opportunities are M-F, except for remote opportunities. AMOW pet food can be picked up one Saturday a month on Super Saturday (every 3rd Saturday of the month) and delivered over the weekend, otherwise pick up is M-F.
For more information about onboarding, contact us at [email protected].
Ongoing Opportunities
Houston, Let’s do lunch! The Meals on Wheels program at IM is the largest such program in Texas, serving about 4,000 homebound seniors and persons with disabilities each day. Our clients are unable to prepare their own meals and have no one else to help with their daily nutrition, making their Meals on Wheels delivery absolutely essential. Get involved in this important work by helping with one or more of the following opportunities:
- Meal Delivery: Volunteers pick up prepared meals during lunchtime (Monday – Friday) and hand-deliver them directly to the homes of seniors and persons with disabilities. Training is required prior to delivery. Once assigned a delivery route, volunteers can pick up meals between 10:30 and 11:00 AM, on their assigned delivery days, from of one of seven Interfaith Ministries distribution sites throughout Harris or Galveston Counties. Deliveries typically take about 1-1.5 hours to complete and are done, by volunteers, on a weekly basis (every Wednesday, every Friday, etc.). Contact us at [email protected] for details.
- Volunteer Coordinator: Coordinate meal distribution for volunteer drivers at an assigned distribution site. Volunteer Coordinator shifts are Monday-Friday from 9am-Noon.
- Warehouse Crew: Work with warehouse staff and volunteers to organize and pack meal components including all types of meals (frozen, shelf stable, hot) to be delivered to Meals on Wheels clients. This opportunity is only available at our Midtown location. Contact us at [email protected] for scheduling details and availability.
FAQ:
Where do you need Meals on Wheels volunteers?
Volunteers can pick up meals at one of 5 sites:
- Meals on Wheels Midtown (3202 San Jacinto Street Houston, Texas 77004)
- St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in the Heights
- Humble Area Assistance Ministries in Humble
- Covenant Lutheran Church in Katy
- Katy Methodist Church in Katy
Do I need any supplies for this opportunity?
Meals on Wheels Delivery volunteers use their own vehicle for deliveries. Two small coolers are also needed for Meals on Wheels deliveries (1 for cold food items, and 1 for hot food items). Reusable insulated grocery bags are offered for daily use to volunteers by IM, or volunteers may choose to bring their own coolers.
For more info, contact us at [email protected]
Animeals began after concerned volunteers realized that Meals on Wheels seniors were sharing their limited food supply with their pets. To help our Meals on Wheels clients better care for themselves and their pets, aniMeals on Wheels delivers pet food to supplement the feeding of their hungry cats and dogs. Get involved in this unique program by helping with one or more of the following opportunities:
- Animeals Delivery Driver: Once a month, help to deliver aniMeals on Wheels (aMOW) pet food to Meals on Wheels clients. Training is required prior to delivery. Contact us at [email protected] for details.
- Animeals Donation Pickup Driver: Support the Animeals program by picking up pet food and supply donations from designated vendors, on a route designed by Animeals staff.
- Animeals Warehouse Crew: Using IM-provided bins, scoops, and bags, repackage kibble, for dogs and cats, for delivery to aniMeals on Wheels clients. This opportunity requires repetitive, heavy lifting, of large bags of kibble (up to 55 pounds) and is only available at our Midtown location. Contact us at [email protected]g for scheduling details and availability.
FAQs
When do you need volunteers?
The Animeals Delivery and Pickup routes are perfect for someone in need of a flexible volunteer opportunity. IM offers a number of convenient weekday and Saturday time slots for volunteers to make their pet food deliveries or donation pickups.
Where do you need volunteers?
Animeals routes typically have 4-6 stops that are located close together. Currently, there are routes throughout our entire service area including Harris County and Galveston County. Volunteers are assigned to routes as they become available. We cannot guarantee that a route will always be available in your preferred neighborhood but we work with each volunteer to find a route with which they are comfortable.
Is this opportunity Family Friendly?
Absolutely! Take it from two very dedicated Animeals volunteers:
- “I am proud to volunteer for Animeals because I love animals and the people who take care of them. When I deliver pet food to the people on our route, I feel really good. I recommend this for everyone!”
Quinn, age 10 - “I love volunteering for Animeals because the work I do makes people’s lives easier and it makes me happy to know I can make a difference in someone’s life.”
Sophie, age 13
Interfaith Ministries takes great pride in serving the diverse refugee community in the Greater Houston area. We have a number of volunteer opportunities directed at helping to welcome and resettle newly arrived refugee families and individuals.
- Family Mentor: Volunteers are assigned to a refugee family or client with the purpose of serving as cultural mentors. The number of volunteers assigned to a family may vary depending on size and circumstance. Activities may include exploring the city, practicing English, and teaching clients about public transportation – anything that involves sharing local culture and customs as clients acclimate to their new lives in Houston.
- Time commitment: 1-2 hours every week or every other week for approximately 6 months.
- Employment Mentor: Volunteers will work with a specific client to assist with resume writing, practicing interview techniques, discussing US culture, helping fill out and submit job applications, and if available, transporting the client to and from the job interviews.
- Time commitment: 2-3 hours weekly or bi-weekly, until the client is hired.
- Case Management: Volunteers assist with the ongoing needs of refugee clients & caseworkers – airport pick-ups, school registrations, transportation to and from DPS and Social Security offices and other assignments as needed. Volunteer opportunities often occur on short notice.
- Time commitment: requires schedule flexibility as many of the activities where help is needed the most occur during business hours.
- Medical Case Management: Volunteers work closely with medical case managers to assist clients regularly attending health-related appointments. Activities may include transporting the client to and from appointments, accompany clients during clinic visits, translating, demonstrating how to fill a prescription at a nearby pharmacy, etc. A medical, health or social work background is an asset for this position. Proficiency in relevant languages (Arabic, Farsi/Pashto, and Swahili) is especially advantageous for this position.
- Time commitment: requires schedule flexibility as many of the activities where help is needed the most occur during business hours.
- Special Events/ Projects: Volunteers assist Refugee Services staff with special events and projects throughout the year. Some of the events include the annual scholarship luncheon, Women’s Group, our annual fundraising luncheon, storage unit clean up, etc.
- Time commitment: some events and projects take place during the day and some after work hours or on weekend.
- Translators: Volunteers assist clients, caseworkers or other volunteers and community members with translation either in person or by phone. Language needs are diverse, but we have recently utilized Arabic and Swahili translators.
- Time commitment: depends on the need, during the regular business hours as well as events and weekends.
FAQs
Do I need any special skills or training for these opportunities?
You may think that you need to speak multiple languages or have previous experience to be a volunteer in Refugee Services. This is not the case at all! We just ask that volunteers are patient, flexible, and reliable. In fact, we prefer to partner refugees with volunteers who do not speak their native language in order for refugees to practice English.
Where do you need volunteers?
Most of our refugees are resettled in the Southwest area of Houston, a global community that is also convenient for our Refugee Case Managers to travel to. Since most of our refugees do not have vehicles, our volunteer opportunities are limited to the refugee’s residence or our IM headquarters located at 3303 Main Street Houston, Texas 77002.
When do you need volunteers?
Since most of our Refugee Services volunteer opportunities involve working one-on-one with the client(s), volunteer shifts may vary. Many of our Refugees who have found work will need to meet in the evenings or weekends, while some may be available during the day.
Is this opportunity Family Friendly?
Individual Refugee Services Volunteers must be 21 years of age. Some of our opportunities may be appropriate for a family to participate in. Because our Refugee Services volunteer opportunities are not for everyone, individual interviews are scheduled prior to training and volunteer placement.
Interfaith Relations and Community Partnerships Volunteer and Engagement Opportunities
Help Interfaith Relations and Community Partnerships (IRCP) create a more caring, connected community through public events, tours of houses of worship and cultural sites, online educational resources, vital conversations, dinner dialogues, and other opportunities to unite people in dialogue, service, and collaboration.
Volunteer Opportunities:
- Help set up, breakdown, greet guests, and register people at events.
- Help update lists (educators, youth directors, faith leaders, community leaders, elected officials, organizations, and schools).
- Lend us your administrative support in our office.
- Lend us your facilities and organizational skills.
- Lend us your photography skills for our events.
- Lend us your technical skills.
- Lend us your videography skills at our events.
- Be a trained facilitator for tours of houses of worship and cultural sites.
Community Engagement Opportunities:
- Invite us to speak at a company lunch & learn, adult education class, community program, or houses of worship.
- Support community tabling events promoting IRCP and IM resources and programs.
- Host a group discussion using our virtual educational resources.
- Arrange your own faith, community, school, or company to participate in one of our tours of houses of worship.
- Be a part of a focus group to help us review our online educational resources.
- Be a part of our advocacy team calling for funding for Meals on Wheels and other funding for Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston.
- Sign up to be on our mailing list to receive our program invitations.
- Introduce us to others you think would be interested in our work.
- Follow Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston on social media and share our posts.
For more information, email Gevetta “Jet” Phillips at [email protected].
Can’t commit to volunteering at this time but still want to help?
Consider some of the following options to stay involved!
Hold a drive
For more information, you can reach us at [email protected]