AEGiS-BAYW: Stepping up to the plate: Boston's GLBT organizations offer volunteer opportunities that go far beyond the tedium of stuffing envelopes and data entry.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Stepping up to the plate: Boston's GLBT organizations offer volunteer opportunities that go far beyond the tedium of stuffing envelopes and data entry.

Bay Windows - March 24, 2005
Ethan Jacobs, ejacobs@baywindows.com.

The AIDS Action Committee has a variety of different volunteer opportunities. Those who have shopped at AIDS Action's Boomerangs resale stores in Jamaica Plain and Alston might try spending time working the other side of the counter as a volunteer store clerk. For those who want a more personal connection to their volunteer work, the "check-in" program has volunteers call AIDS Action clients on a regular basis to provide support and talk to them about their day-to-day situation. The calls serve as an important social outlet for clients without family or loved ones in their daily lives.

In addition to hotline workers, Gay Men's Domestic Violence Project (GMDVP) needs volunteers to provide safe homes for survivors of domestic violence. GMDVP keeps the identities of their volunteers strictly confidential, and even staff members not directly involved with the safe homes project do not know their identities. Call 617.354.6056 or visit www.gmdvp.org.

The Network/La Red needs hotline operators, safe homes providers, and volunteer advocates. For the artistically inclined The Network is recruiting artists to create a 'zine featuring comics about domestic violence to use as an education tool. Call 617.695.0877 or visit www.thenetworklared.com.

Boston Alliance of Gay and Lesbian Youth (BAGLY) needs adult advisors, but they also have event-specific needs for people looking for less of a regular commitment. One opportunity that might prompt high school flashbacks is chaperoning BAGLY's prom May 21. BAGLY needs 100 to 150 adults to supervise an estimated crowd of 1600 kids. Call 617.227.4313 or visit www.bagly.org.

Boston GLASS Community Center needs talented adults who could run art and creative writing classes as well as provide GED tutoring and everything in between. For those with a passion for food, GLASS also needs adults to prepare the meals offered to the kids attending GLASS's evening events and programs. Call 617.266.3349 or visit www.bostonglass.org for more information.

Waltham House needs adult mentors to partner with their young residents. Call 617.927.0648 or visit www.thehome.org.

As warm weather approaches MassEquality will need people to do outreach at events all across the state, ranging from fairs to outdoor concerts to festivals. Call volunteer coordinator Amy Mello at 617.878.2300 or visit www.massequality.org.

There's still time to join Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defender's hotline training, which runs April 4, 7, and 9. Call Bruce Bell at 617.426.1350 or visit www.glad.org.

SpeakOut's volunteer training for prospective speakers is also coming up, running from April 9-10. Call 617.450.9776 or visit www.speakoutboston.org.

The History Project needs volunteers to help with a project studying Boston's response to the AIDS crisis. One part of that project involves videotaping interviews with some of the key players involved in organizing the response to the epidemic, and the History Project is looking for people to conduct and film those interviews. Call 617.266.7733 or visit www.thehistoryproject.org.

The Bisexual Resource Center needs volunteers to help in all areas of the organization. For those who enjoy planning events, one immediate need is for people to coordinate a spring dance. Call volunteer coordinator Sheeri Kritzer at 857.205.9786 or visit www.biresource.org.

For those interested in hotline work, Fenway Community Health runs a GLBT Helpline, which serves people of all ages, and a Peer Listening Line, which serves and is staffed by youth. Both lines provide callers with resources around HIV/AIDS, coming out, and other issues. Call program coordinator Lyssa Steponaitis at 617.927.6242 or e-mail her at lsteponaitis@fenwayhealth.org.

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