Here is a summary of some of our current volunteer opportunities. Contact us for more information:
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-“Jackie's Attic”: Jackie's Attic is a “set your own price” thrift store located at 210 5th Ave South in Virginia. It is open every weekday 10am to 5pm. Currently Jackie's Attic is looking for volunteers to help manage the store during hours, stock the shelves and clean after hours. We are also looking to expand to weekend hours if volunteers become available.
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-Managing Inventory: We receive a lot of donations -clothes, furniture, household goods, etc. Some of the donations are shelved and distributed at the thrift store. Larger donations, however, are stored at “SOT” headquarters, 217 Chestnut. We are in need of volunteers to assist in the following ways:
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-Sort clothing: Every year, thousands of bags of clothes pass through our storage. We are looking for people to go through these bags.
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-Organize inventory: Our “warehouse” has many boxes/piles of unprocessed donations. We are need of people willing and able to categorize and display our items in storage so that they can be easily distributed to those in need.
-Sell inventory: While much of our items are distributed to those in need for little to no cost, some of our more valuable items can be sold to fund our mission. We are looking for people who are able to conduct private or online sales/auctions in order to contribute to the funding of our work.
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-Repair inventory: We often receive bikes, dressers or other items in need of repairs. We are always looking for people with the time and skills to help fix things for us to distribute.
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-Distribute inventory: We do not want to just “throw stuff” to people in need. Ideally, all inventory can be distributed by someone who has a relationship with those in need and will be able to provide ongoing support and accountability.
-Renovations: We are currently renovating our headquarters in order to optimize and increase the services that we may provide. This work includes repairing our floor, painting, building, shelving, hauling items to the dumpsters, cleaning, etc. We keep a list of current tasks at our facility, but anyone interest in helping in this capacity is usually encouraged to do whatever they see needs to be done.
-Gardening: For several years, we have used a local lot to operate a community garden. We are always interested in individuals willing to help manage this garden and oversee the collection and distribution of produce. We also have the space at our headquarters for an indoor herb garden or mushroom farm, or to do some outdoor or rooftop gardening if anyone is interested in facilitating a project like this.
-Presentation: The window display and exterior of both our thrift store and our headquarters requires ongoing attention.
-Coordination: We have a lot of work that needs to be done (picking things up, dropping things off, helping people move, hauling stuff to the dump, cleaning, building, organizing, etc.). We also have several volunteers with varying degrees of skill. Some have limited physical abilities, some have mental health concerns, some are on community service, some are skilled laborers. We are looking for industrious people with administrative abilities to supervise and direct our volunteers.
-Marketing and research: In order to be as useful as possible, we have to know what unmet needs exist in our community. As well, the community has to know what needs we are able to meet. While much of this advertising and education has taken place organically through years of service, we are certainly open to improving communications through formal campaigns.
-Fund raising: The primary source of income for “Someone Ought To” comes from thrift store sales. While the funds raised through “Jackie's Attic” are enough to pay our bills, we could do more if we had more money. If someone had an interest in exploring other streams of revenue through fund-raising or grant writing, this could be a good way to help finance the work that we do.
-Other: Maybe you have a vision for something that you think “someone ought to” do and you just need the space and funds. Let us know!
-Joining our “on call” team: Frequently we run into someone who has an emergency need for transportation, mowing their lawn, babysitting, help lifting something heavy. We are always looking for numbers that can be texted in the event that we need additional immediate assistance.