There are many opportunities for community members to bring their skills and talents to the nonprofit community in King County.  And so many individuals in our community are ready to step up and help out!   United Way of King County is pleased to share an exciting opportunity for individuals wanting to make an impact.   You can invest your time and talent as a volunteer consultant with the Volunteer Impact Program (VIP).  Help local organizations gain the tools to effectively tap the skills and talents…

The kitchen at Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission (UGM) serves roughly 27,000 meals every month to those in need. Each night for dinner, they see approximately 350 guests in their small cafeteria, located in downtown Seattle. That’s a whole lot of chopping and dicing for the three cooks on staff, tasked with preparing enough servings to go around.

After spending Day of Caring volunteering in the Kitchen at UGM, a group of Seattle area lawyers, led by volunteer Mari Horita, got to experience first-hand all the…

Today, I am moving on. After three years working in the Brand department at United Way of King County, I’m saying my farewells.

My first encounter with United Way of King County was in the late ’90s. I was working as a copywriter at Nordstrom, and the fall campaign season was kicking off.  There was an event called “Day of Caring,” and coworkers were signing up. The more I heard, the more I wanted to join in. It sounded like an amazing thing–and it…

As you may have heard, United Way of King County’s Day of Caring is the single largest day of volunteering in Washington State, and this year we anticipate over 10,000 people will spend the day volunteering with local organizations. That’s huge! Already, 9,000 people have signed up to volunteer all over King County, including groups from Microsoft, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, AT&T and many more. Use the search box on the map below to see where your favorite local company will…

When you live in a part of the world that only sees about 71 clear days per year, it’s hard to justify spending any more time inside than absolutely necessary during the summer months, even if it is for a good cause. Fortunately, there are numerous summertime volunteer opportunities that will allow you to get your daily dose of vitamin D while giving back to the community. Don’t forget the sunscreen!

Seattle Tilth: Promote organic gardening and support local food systems by volunteering at…

Congratulations to our colleagues at the King County Library System for being named the Gale/Library Journal 2011 Library of the Year, arguably the biggest honor in the library world. One of the busiest libraries in the U.S., KCLS serves more than 1.3 million King County residents each year, circulating more items than any other library system in the country. Some of the lucky recipients of KCLS services? The thousands of preschoolers who’ve been paired with adults who share books with them weekly through…

When Volunteer Reader Tammie Treibley enters the classroom, she loves hearing the children exclaim “Ms. Tammie is here!”

 Tammie starts with the book “Waddle!,” and asks the kids, “Can you waddle like a penguin? Can you hop like a frog?” Tammie explains that the children “love to act out the actions with the book”.  The book never fails to capture their attention.

 Another crowd pleaser is “I Stink,” a story about a trash collector truck.  Tammie highly recommends the Volunteer Reader experience for anyone who enjoys…

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Looking outside today, there’s no denying that spring is upon us (cheers and applause). I don’t know about you, but I’m itching to get outside and start digging in the dirt, planting my first veggies and soaking up the long awaited sounds and smells of spring. If you feel the same, or if you’re just looking for a way to help end hunger in our community, join us at Lettuce Link’s Marra Farm on April 12^th from 4-6 pm for a couple hours…

We’ve wrapped up Hunger Action Week, five days dedicated to raising awareness about hunger in our community.

So now what?

It’s time to take action. There are many ways you can get involved, and we’re sure that you can come up some creative ideas too. Here’s what Mary Shaw, one of our staff members at United Way of King County, said she chose to do.

“I thought I could get involved by doing a virtual hunger awareness lunch. OK, I guess I am not

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