Ten Ways To Lend A Helping Hand

Traffic, Christmas shopping, office holiday parties, pictures with Santa Claus at North Point Mall and planning out the Christmas dinner menu can leave us feeling overwhelmed, anxious and outright tired. One sure way to recharge the batteries is to do something for others.

Grab the children, your coworkers or a group of friends and start a new tradition this year to make time to volunteer right in your own backyard. Some suggestions are outlined below to get you started. Many are available all throughout the year.

Volunteer opportunities at the Ed Isakson Alpharetta YMCA include front desk greeters, childcare for children six months to 12 years old, teenage mentoring, coaching (soccer, basketball, baseball, running club) and fundraising. Contact Gayle Battersby, executive director, at 770-663-3524 for more information.

Help build leadership qualities with the Alpharetta youth by volunteering with the Alpharetta Police Athletic Activities League (PAL). According to its website, PAL partners with the Alpharetta Police Department and other community leaders to provide programs and enrichment tools for young students. PAL can be reached at 678-297-6364.

Join members of The Rotary Club of Alpharetta by assisting with the different events and cleaning activities throughout the year. Contact president Steve Gillard by visiting the website. Opportunities are also available at the Windward Rotary and North Fulton Rotary.

Help shelve, straighten and keep the Alpharetta Library books neat and tidy by volunteering with the Friends of the Alpharetta Library. Book sales are also held on the first Saturday of each month. Call 770-740-2425 to learn more.

Individuals are always encouraged to visit and spend time with residents at Churchill Manor Assisted Living. Volunteers are encouraged to visit during the months of January through November. Call 770-667-6078 for more information.

United Way of Atlanta provides volunteer opportunities all throughout the year in Atlanta and in North Fulton.  According to its website, volunteers are always needed for programs such as Toys for Tots, Project Overcoat and the Shoebox Project.  

North Fulton Community Charities – Established in 1983 with a mission to prevent homelessness in North Fulton. Serves areas of Roswell, Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Milton and Mountain Park. NFCC provides food, clothing (thrift store) and emergency financial assistance. Areas for volunteering include sorting, distributing and donating food and clothing, recovering food from restaurants and bakeries and filling requests from families in need of these items.

"About 75 percent of our donations come in the months of November and December, so the food supply is acute in the summer months, and the pantry is virtually empty," said Kevin Tracy, volunteer coordinator at NFCC. "So we want to encourage people to be good stewards to provide all throughout the year."

NFCC also provides family enrichment programs in financial awareness, nutrition and job coaching.  For volunteer opportunities, contact Kevin Tracy at 770-640-0399.

Are you a dog lover and want to help rescue German Shepherds? Volunteer with the German Shepherd Dog Rescue Group of Georgia by assisting with foster care, transportation, evaluating potential adopter's homes and fundraising. Applications can be filled out on the website.

Don't know what you want to do but be informed of opportunities in Milton?  Sign up to be a Milton Volunteer Pacer. "Individuals sign up for it, they tell us what area of expertise they're in and then we get them in touch with development groups or we add them to a mailing list and contact them when events come up," said Jason Wright, communications manager for the city of Milton.

You can also find additional volunteer opportunities at various churches in Alpharetta and Milton. Another great way to volunteer is through assisting with ongoing special events. Information on various events can be found on the City of Alpharetta website, and a calendar of events can be found on the City of Milton website.

Post any other volunteer opportunities in which you participate right on the Alpharetta-Milton Patch to let your neighbors know what they can do to help.