Needs From: The Volunteer Center of Whatcom County

Come Join Our Amazing Volunteer Team!

The Bellingham Senior Activity Center focuses on building community, while providing a positive and vibrant environment in which to make new connections and participate in a wonderful array of classes, presentations, discussion groups, and recreational activities. Our entire center is primarily powered by amazing volunteers who want to give back to our community and are impactful in making our center a truly delightful place to be.

We are looking for friendly people who are interested in helping at our Greeter station in welcoming our members and guests, assisting members with signing in, and distributing lunch tokens to members coming in to enjoy our delicious lunch. The duration of this volunteer shift is 2 1/2 - 3 hours in length, and has an option of sitting, standing, or a combination of both.

If you are interested in volunteering for this position, please feel free to stop by the Bellingham Senior Activity Center and pick up an application or apply online at www.whatcomcoa.org 

Our delicious lunch is powered by amazing volunteers like you!  

We are looking for volunteers who can set up tables, stock supplies, serve coffee and tea during lunch service, clear trays, wrap silverware, and clean-up after our lunch service ends. Shifts are typically 10:30 am -1:00 pm, Monday thru Friday.  If you are looking to volunteer in an active role, then this is the opportunity for you. The Bellingham Senior Activity Center is a wonderful place where you can make new connections and build lasting friendships, all while volunteering in a fun and energetic team environment!

If you are interested, please feel free to come by Bellingham Senior Activity Center to pick up an application, or complete the application below.

 https://whatcomcoa.org/volunteer-application/

Come join our Amazing Meals on Wheels Volunteer Team! 

Are you a kind and compassionate person who wants to make a difference and have a positive impact for senior members in our community? If the answer is yes, then this is the opportunity for you!

We have a team of amazing volunteers who bring meals to homebound seniors in our community Monday thru Friday, delivering over 4000 meals each week. Our Meals on Wheels clients struggle to cook for themselves for a variety of reasons: some lost a loved one who did the cooking, some suffer from physical limitations, some face cognitive decline, others struggle to leave the house to get groceries for cooking.  Whatever the reason, we are there to make sure they have healthy meals.

We are looking for Sub Drivers to fill in when Regular Drivers are on vacation, have an appointment, or are out sick, with the opportunity for a recurring once-a -week route delivery when one arises, if desired. It does require having your own vehicle for transporting meals, with mileage reimbursement available.  

If you are interested in becoming a driver, we would love to have you join us at our next Meals on Wheels Orientation, which is mandatory before being able to deliver meals. (Date TBD) 

Most routes leave our center between 7:45am and 11:00 am Monday-Friday. (No weekend routes) 

To become a volunteer driver: 

1. We ask volunteers to participate in an orientation (approx. 1.5 hours) to learn about being a driver and how to handle various situations.  

 2. We ask volunteers to fill out a Volunteer Application so that we can run a background check (required by DSHS). Feel free to come by the Bellingham Senior Activity Center and pick up an application, or apply online at:  www.whatcomcoa.org  (Click on "VOLUNTEER" in the upper right corner of the homepage, and then scroll about halfway down the page to access the beginning of the application)

3)  We will verify Driver's License and Auto Insurance and make a copy of both at the Meals on Wheels Orientation.

4) Before delivering a route, we ask drivers to go on a ride-along with one of our experienced drivers so it is a smooth transition for our participants and our drivers. 

We would be happy to answer any questions you have and would love for you to join this amazing team of volunteers who are making a huge difference in our community.  

This is a GREAT opportunity for a teen to ride-along with a parent to deliver meals while the parent drives.

Questions?

Please contact:

Amy Wharton

Administrative Volunteer Coordinator

Whatcom Council on Aging

Email: awharton@whatcomcoa.org

Phone:  360-733-4030 x1024

Come Join Our Amazing Volunteer Team!

The Coffee Bar Helper entails serving coffee, tea, sodas, and pre-packaged snacks to our members at the Bellingham Senior Activity Center. This volunteer position is responsible for the set-up or breakdown of the Coffee Bar (depending on which shift you are volunteering for), stocking supplies, wiping tables with a sanitized towel at the beginning of each shift, in between Coffee Bar customers, and at the end of each shift, washing coffee pots, and cleaning up the coffee station at the end of each shift. It is a fairly slow-paced coffee bar, with no making of espresso drinks-just brewing pump pots of coffee...definitely not a Starbucks. This position includes a combination of sitting and standing, with a chair/stool provided. The shift duration is 3 - 3 1/2 hours in length. It is also a wonderful opportunity to make new connections and build lasting friendships!

If you are interested in volunteering for this position, please feel free to come by the Bellingham Senior Activity Center to pick up an application, or apply online at: www.whatcomcoa.org

Bellingham At Home is a grassroots, volunteer-powered, non-profit membership organization helping people sustain positive futures as they grow older. We provide both practical assistance and a caring community to support members in feeling more secure and confident while living in their homes as long as possible.

Volunteers are the heart of our village. Volunteers provide "good neighbor" types of assistance such as transportation, health and wellness programs, home maintenance, social and educational activities. There are also opportunities to work in our office located at the Bellingham Senior Activity Center and participate in committees for Volunteers, Publicity and Website Management.

Come Join Our Amazing Volunteer Team! 

We are looking for volunteers each day who can help us wrap silverware for our daily senior lunches.  High School Students are welcome (Age 14+).  A parent permission slip is required.  (Students age 11-13 okay with an adult if the child is able to stay focused and able to follow instructions.)

This volunteer role includes wrapping silverware with a napkin and a paper tab. Requires fine motor skills and attention to detail.  It is a great way to help the seniors in our community. Our entire Meals on Wheels program is powered by volunteers like you!  So every volunteer is part of an amazing program that gives back to our community. 

The Bellingham Senior Activity Center is a wonderful place for members of our community to come together for community meals, activities, classes and meeting new friends.  Our center gives our members a sense of community, which is especially important after so many older people have been feeling isolated during covid. 

If you are an adult and interested, please fill out a volunteer application and join our team.  (The volunteer application takes just a couple of minutes). Since we do work with a vulnerable population, we do ask that all volunteers provide a covid vaccine card and pass a simple background check.  If you are under the age of 18, no volunteer application is required. (Just a parent permission slip) 

https://whatcomcoa.org/volunteer-application/

 Thank you so much for considering volunteering at our wonderful center. We look forward to having you on our team.