Volunteer Opportunities for Houston Teens
A nonprofit that, with thousands of sponsors and volunteers, helps build homes for low-income Houstonians. Future homeowners contribute “sweat equity” and complete home maintenance and financial training to buy homes with zero interest mortgages.
Assist with home construction or help at ReStore, Habitat’s donation-based retail store.
16 or older to work on the build site, and at least 18 to use power tools and to participate in roof work.
A nonprofit that is “dedicated to, and working towards, ending cruelty, abuse, and the overpopulation of animals while providing the highest quality of life to those in our care.” Programs include pet adoptions, humane education, cruelty investigations, and a low-cost spay/neuter and wellness clinic.
Collect needed items, such as animal food and treats, grooming items, and cleaning supplies.
18, but youth under age 18 are invited to collect and donate needed items.
A program in which teen volunteers provide supplemental services in the hospital, while gaining personal satisfaction, personality development, maturity, and an understanding of various potential health careers.
Possible assignments include administrative tasks, patient support, and hospitality.
15, with a maximum age of 18. Applicants under 18 must have parental consent.
One of the most popular museums in the U.S., housing the Burke Baker Planetarium, the Wortham Giant Screen Theatre, and the Cockrell Butterfly Center, as well as a variety of traveling and permanent exhibits.
Assist with week-long science summer camps or participate in the Moran EcoTeen summer program. Please contact the Museum for COVID-related updates.
High school and university students who will be at least 16 by June 3 may apply to the teaching assistant program. The application deadline for the teaching assistant program is at the end of March, and the EcoTeen application deadline is in January.
A no-kill rescue organization that creates programs to save animals most at risk of euthanasia. Its goal is to “prevent animals from entering a shelter, and for those that do, get them out alive.”
Help care for adoptable cats at various local PetSmart stores, help with adoption events, collect needed items. Please contact Pets Alive for COVID-related updates.
14. Volunteers ages 14-17 must be supervised by a parent or legal guardian and may not volunteer in the dog area for liability reasons.
A Central Library complex and 40 branch locations, “providing a network of materials, services, and programs to Houston’s diverse neighborhoods.”
Share library information, work with children, help organize materials, help at book sales or other events, or help with special projects. Please contact the Library for COVID-related updates.
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Houston’s first and largest animal protection organization and shelter, offering a comprehensive array of animal adoption, shelter, rescue, rehabilitation, and other programs.
Volunteers may work directly with animals or in other areas; they must commit to serve for 8 hours a month for 6 months. The shelter also has a wish list of needed items.
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A nonprofit organization housing more than 6,000 animals, attracting more than 2 million guests a year and “fostering appreciation, knowledge, and care for the natural world.”
Help with children’s summer camps, educate visitors while serving as a volunteer Naturalist, or perform other tasks. Please contact the Zoo for COVID-related updates.
13, with a maximum age of 17. (18-year-olds may volunteer in the adult program.)
An Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston program that delivers pet food to the disabled adults and homebound elderly clients that Meals on Wheels serves, so they do not feel compelled to share their limited food and resources with their pets.
Collect, organize, or repackage pet food donations, or deliver pet food to needy homebound seniors. Please contact Interfaith Ministries for COVID-related updates.
17 to volunteer independently. Children aged 6-16 may volunteer with parental supervision on-site (at the IM offices); no minimum age to volunteer with a parent off-site. Youth under the age of 17 must have a parental consent form signed by an adult who has attended orientation and additional trainings. Volunteers aged 17 years or older must attend orientation.
An Interfaith Ministries program that matches volunteers with homebound clients to help with chores and tasks that the clients may be unable to do on their own.
Lawn care such as mowing and weeding, laundry, kitchen help, and more. Volunteers choose the services they want to provide. Please contact Interfaith Ministries for COVID-related updates.
17, to volunteer independently. No minimum age to volunteer off-site (at food pantry or a client’s home) with a parent.
In celebration of the Islamic holiday of Eid, every year IM gives welcome baskets containing basic housewares and toiletries to newly-arrived refugee families.
100 volunteers are needed to assemble the welcome kits in two one-hour shifts. Children can make cards to include in the baskets. Please contact Interfaith Ministries for COVID-related updates.
None
The largest Meals on Wheels program in Texas, serving about 4,000 homebound seniors and persons with disabilities each day. Clients are unable to prepare their own meals and have no one else to help with their daily nutrition, making their meal delivery absolutely essential.
Assemble breakfast bags, help with meal delivery, work in the warehouse, make greeting cards, and other projects. Please contact Interfaith Ministries for COVID-related updates.
17 to volunteer independently. Children aged 6-16 may volunteer with parental supervision on-site (at the IM offices); no minimum age to volunteer with a parent off-site. Parental consent required for volunteers 17 or younger.
A non-profit social service agency that serves Houston’s Jewish community and the general SW Houston community, “strengthening family life, laying the foundation for self-sufficiency, and improving both the social and economic conditions of our clients.”
Help create Shabbat boxes, nosh bags, and holiday gifts for Jewish hospital patients; provide needed items for homebound/needy clients; or perform for seniors. Please contact JFS for COVID-related updates.
No minimum age for most projects; volunteers must be 12 for some projects.
A 100% volunteer, non-profit canine rescue organization “committed to rescuing and rehoming shelter dogs in and around the City of Houston, regardless of their breed or their circumstance.”
Volunteer in the Adoption Center on weekends (walk dogs and help potential adopters find their perfect match), or collect needed items. Please contact K-9 Angels for COVID-related updates.
16. A parent’s or guardian’s signature is required for 16-17 year old volunteers.
The city’s leading organization focused on litter reduction, beautification, and recycling education; it provides resources and education to inspire individuals and Houston communities toward greater environmental stewardship.
Help with clean-up, planting, and other beautification projects organized by Keep Houston Beautiful or partner organizations.
All ages are welcome unless a particular project specifies otherwise. Adult supervision is required for all volunteers under 18 years of age.
A nonprofit that works to “end childhood hunger” by delivering free, fresh, healthy meals, year-round Monday through Friday, to the doorsteps of hungry preschool-aged children who live within the charity’s delivery areas.
Volunteers can help prepare meals, collect needed items, decorate lunch bags, and help with special events. Please contact Kids’ Meals for COVID-related updates.
Minimum age to volunteer: 8, for kitchen volunteers. Volunteers under age 8 can help by decorating lunch sacks with crayons, markers, and stickers.
A 51-acre example of one of the most endangered ecosystems, the tallgrass prairie. Surrounded by housing, it was scheduled to be developed but was saved in 2014. It is now a protected preserve.
The Prairie hosts work days twice a month, when volunteers help remove invasive species and do other habitat restoration work.
16, to volunteer independently. Volunteers age 12 and up are welcome when accompanied by a responsible adult. All volunteers should bring a printed and signed volunteer waiver.
Through its partnership with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Houston Food Bank receives more than 400,000 jars of fresh peanut butter each year from the LDS Peanut Butter Cannery. The Food Bank is responsible for supplying volunteers and paying for the peanuts used.
Volunteers help produce 3,960 jars of peanut butter in each 4-hour shift. Tasks include sorting the nuts, checking lids on jars, operating the label machine, and packing jars in boxes. Please contact the Cannery for COVID-related updates.
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This Lions Club program collects used prescription eyeglasses and reading glasses. Volunteers at their recycling centers clean the glasses, sort them by prescription strength, and package them. The recycled glasses are distributed to nonprofits that provide vision screening and assistance to people in need, mainly in developing countries.
Volunteers are invited to collect used eyeglasses to donate. Usually this is done by placing collection boxes at local businesses, schools, optical shops, libraries, places of worship, city administrative centers, or eye care professionals.
All ages are welcome to collect eyeglasses.
A program run by Magnificat Houses, a Christian assistance ministry, that serves 200-400 nutritious, home-cooked lunches per day, six days a week (Tuesday-Sunday), to downtown Houston’s needy.
Assist Loaves & Fishes’ cooks as they prepare the food, help serve the meal, chat with diners, and help clean up. Contact Loaves & Fishes for COVID-related updates.
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A nonprofit home for a broad spectrum of Houston’s arts organizations, and an accessible destination that brings Houstonians together to enjoy art and enliven the surrounding neighborhood.
Serve as a volunteer usher, handling tickets and assisting guests.
Students in high school and above may volunteer.
The largest children’s festival in the U.S., which raises money for Child Advocates and the abused and neglected children it serves. Usually held in spring.
Collect tickets, greet guests, provide information, sell beverages, check in volunteers, and more.
16. Youth aged 13-15 may volunteer with a parent or guardian.
One of the world’s most respected centers devoted exclusively to cancer patient care, research, education, and prevention.
Assist for 4 weeks in the summer, helping in various positions including refreshment carts, patient navigation, and clinic assistant. Program currently closed; check program website for COVID-related updates.
Students must be between the ages of 14 (by June 1) and 18 to be considered.
A nonprofit that “strives to bridge the healthcare gap by procuring medical, dental, and surgical supplies and equipment for redistribution to qualified organizations and medical missions“, primarily in the developing world.
Sort and package donated medical supplies in preparation for shipment to medical professionals helping those in need in developing countries. Please contact Medical Bridges for COVID-related updates.
15, and adult chaperones are required for volunteers age 15-18: one adult per every three teen volunteers. No exceptions made.
A nonprofit that “helps people bounce back from a crisis and care for their families.” Volunteer and paid caseworkers help MAM clients address their immediate needs with an array of emergency services, then help find long-term solutions to underlying issues that will continue to threaten families’ long-term stability.
Assist customers, sort and price donations, and help in other ways at MAM’s popular resale store. Please contact MAM for COVID-related updates.
13; youth aged 13-15 must be accompanied by an adult while volunteering. Students under the age of 18 need written parental permission to volunteer.
MH-TMC is one of the nation’s busiest Level I trauma centers and the primary teaching hospital for McGovern Medical School at UTHealth.
The 7–week program allows teen volunteers to assist in various areas of the hospital. Program currently on hold; please visit the Teen Program website for COVID-related updates.
15, with a maximum age of 17.
A nonprofit organization that works to preserve, protect, and enhance Memorial Park for the enjoyment of all Houstonians, today and tomorrow.
Projects range from working outside beautifying landscaped areas, picking up trash, rehabilitating natural surface trails, working on park conservation efforts, and supporting fundraising events. Memorial Park volunteer activities have been postponed until further notice. Please check the park’s volunteer page for COVID-related updates.
Volunteers aged 12-15 are welcome with a chaperone 21 years of age or older. There must be at least one adult per ten youth. Volunteers 16 years old and up may be allowed to volunteer without a chaperone at Conservancy events; email volunteer@
