There are many opportunities to help those in need this holiday season and beyond. If you want to volunteer to assist those in the community who are most in need of aid and assistance, the following local organizations are looking for volunteers and donations.
Local Community Fridges
One of the best ways to support neighbors in need is to donate to your local community fridge. Community fridges can be easily located using the community fridges map. When donating, it is important to follow the rules of the community fridge.
The following is a list of the community fridges in and around Bushwick. Be sure to check the hours of operation of each fridge, which are all detailed in the map mentioned above.
- Bake Shop Fridge located inside at 995 Flushing Ave.
- Caracoal Bushwick Fridge located at 190 Knickerbocker Ave.
- Farm to People Community Fridge located at 1100 Flushing Ave.
- Paperboy Love Gallery Fridge located at 1254 Myrtle Ave.
- The Living Gallery Fridge located at 1094 Broadway.
- Evergreen Pantry Locker located at 562 Evergreen Ave.
- Bushwick Community Fridge located at 1643 Broadway.
- Ridgewood Tenants Union/Kings Juice Bar Fridge located at 955 Seneca Ave.
- Woodbine – Hungry Monk Food Pantry located at 585 Woodward Ave.
- Fenix Community Fridge located at 586 Seneca Ave.
- Cooper Park Houses Fridge located at 76 Kingsland Ave.
New York Cares Coat Drive
New York Cares’ annual coat drive provides homeless and low-income families with warm clothing to wear. Donate gently used coats of all sizes or even start your own drive in your building or school. Collection sites are located around the city in transportation hubs, police stations and participating stores. Check the New York Cares website for a complete list of drop off locations. Donations of $25 are also accepted, which provide coats and meals to those in need.
Many Bushwick locations are participating in the New York Cares Coat Drive, including:
- Metro World Child at 11 Harman St. Men’s, women’s and children coats are needed. Coats can be dropped off Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Solid Rock Baptist Church at 120 Tompkins Ave. Coats for men, women, children and infants are needed. Drop off times are Monday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon.
- PS 299 K Thomas Warren Field school at 88 Woodbine St. Coats for children, infants, women and men are needed at this location. Drop off time is from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Coalition for Hispanic Family Services at 231 Palmetto St. Coats are needed for men, women, children and infants at this location. Drop off time is 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Bushwick Ayuda Mutua
Bushwick Ayuda Mutua (BAM) is a local mutual aid group that was born at the beginning of the pandemic to provide food and other resources and supplies to those in the community. BAM’s modo is “neighbors supporting neighbors.” It is 100 percent volunteer run and community funded.
To help those in need, BAM is constantly running programs, including monthly essential goods distributions. And this holiday season, BAM is also accepting furniture donations.
The best way to stay up-to-date with BAM’s volunteering opportunities is by following BAM’s Instagram. But BAM is always in need of volunteers. To apply, those interested should fill out this form.
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army offers many programs for various groups in need of support. The easiest way to support others in need is to make donations to the Salvation Army’s thrift stores by scheduling a pickup or dropping the items off. The Salvation Army accepts items in good condition, including clothes, books, household items, furniture, electronics, appliances and more. The Bushwick location can be found at 1151 Bushwick Ave.
The Salvation Army of Bushwick is also currently seeking volunteers to act as soup kitchen servers, a food pantry assistant, a soup kitchen cook and more to aid with easing the struggle of holiday meals.
El Puente Leadership Center at Bushwick
The El Puente Leadership Center at Bushwick is a community organization that focuses on leadership development, arts for social change and academic enrichment for youth ages 13 to 21. All year, El Puente runs programs, such as food and clothing drives and educational programs, that help people in need. The organization always does a good job at sharing information on its Instagram page.
For a comprehensive list of local organizations that are always in need of volunteers, read this article.
If you have an addition to this article that you’d like us to consider, please email the editor at [email protected].
Featured image courtesy of Fenix Community Fridge’s Instagram page.
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