For locals and visitors alike, Los Angeles offers a myriad of volunteer opportunities for anyone interested in donating not only their time but skills and abilities to a host of local organizations, from social services and food banks to cultural institutions and animal shelters. Since the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, nonprofits across L.A. have been in need of volunteers, perhaps now more than ever, so this is a great juncture to give back to the Woodland Hills community and volunteer your time – or even donate to a local charity in need.

As residents of Woodland Hills, we have lots of reasons to be thankful for living here, but we also have a responsibility to take care of our neighborhoods, whether it’s the people, animals, trees or beaches. If you’re looking for ways to give back, start your efforts by choosing from our list of some of the most enriching volunteer opportunities around town.

Operation Gratitude, headquartered at 9409 Owensmouth Avenue in Chatsworth, provides opportunities for the American people to express their gratitude and show our military and first responders that what they do matters, having sent a total of 3.5 million care packages containing carefully-chosen items meant to boost the morale and resilience of our service members since 2003. Today, Operation Gratitude sends up to 200,000 care packages per year, and the organization remains committed to growing that number to over one million per year by 2027. Get involved by volunteering at an event, volunteering with your own company, crafting a “handmade with love” item and more. 

Children’s Hunger Fund, headquartered at 13931 Balboa Boulevard in Sylmar, delivers hope to suffering children by equipping local churches for gospel-centered mercy ministry, and since 1995, one million meals have been distributed by the organization thanks to generous donations. In 2004, Children’s Hunger Fund shifted its food distribution to a branded box called a Food Pak, the contents of which were uniformly tailored to meet the nutrition needs of an individual family; today, the fund now serves in 30 countries including the U.S., totaling some 46,733 volunteer hours and reaching more and more families in need. If you live in the Los Angeles area, you can volunteer at one of the fund’s Distribution Centers.

Reading to Kids, situated at 1600 Sawtelle Boulevard Suite 210 in Los Angeles, is a grassroots organization dedicated to inspiring underserved children with a love of reading, thus enriching their lives and opportunities for success in the future. To this end, Reading to Kids gathered, on average, 554 children and 287 volunteers prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and 332 children/189 volunteers during and since the outbreak. At the monthly reading clubs, pairs of volunteers read aloud to small groups of children while their parents receive training on how to encourage their kids to read at home, while kids, parents, teachers and school libraries receive book donations at the conclusion of the reading clubs. These are important donations, make no mistake, as 60-percent of low-income homes do not have age-appropriate reading materials for children to engage with. Consider becoming a Reading to Kids Taskforce committee member, office intern, a school’s Site Operations Coordinator on the day of the reading clubs or a reader/mentor to the hundreds of participating elementary school children.

Pet Orphans of Southern California, located at 7720 Gloria Avenue in Van Nuys, has been promoting rescue, rehabilitation and responsible pet ownership since 1973, being a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to the advancement of companion animal welfare and to combatting overpopulation, abandonment and the need for euthanasia. Responsible for rescuing, rehabilitating and placing animals in loving forever homes for over 40 years, POSC provides broad community support through its Humane Education Program and diverse client services including medical/financial, spay/neuter protocols, training assistance and counseling to encourage responsible pet guardianship. Volunteer opportunities include becoming a dog/cat socializer, dog buddy/coach/junior trainer, adoption counselor, animal help assistant, intern and more.

Food Forward, headquartered at 7412 Fulton Avenue #3 in North Hollywood, fights hunger and prevents food waste by rescuing fresh surplus produce, connecting this abundance with people experiencing food insecurity – while inspiring others to do the same. In attempting to create a future wherein everyone has access to healthy produce, Food Forward is a nonprofit that’s been on a mission to fight hunger and reduce food waste since 2009, its dedicated team members and volunteers recovering fruits and vegetables that would have been wasted from backyard fruit trees, public orchards, farmers markets and the downtown Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market. One-hundred-percent of the produce recovered is sent to hunger relief agencies across eight California counties that include Los Angeles and Ventura, along with six adjacent states and tribal lands. Consider a volunteer position with Food Forward such as a pick leader or glean team leader. 

There’s a lot you can do to give back to your community, and Woodland Hills Magazine has been behind this charge from the very beginning. Whether you want to spend your time with the homeless, the children or the animals, there’s a way to give back to everyone.