Volunteer Options

Build friendships.
Earn experience.

At Herralink, we offer three ways to get involved, spend time with older adults and support your community. Whether you have one afternoon or an ongoing schedule, every visit gives you a chance to brighten someone’s day and build real relationships.

Become a volunteer

Goodwin House Bailey’s Crossroads Art Workshop

Choose the path that best fits you

Herralink offers three ways to serve. You can join one activity a month as a Guest Volunteer, volunteer regularly for one to 10 hours each month as a Short-Term Volunteer or become a Long-Term Volunteer and build ongoing connections through more frequent visits or Herralink’s signature 1:1 program. Each path gives you a flexible way to make memories with a new friend.

Herralink continues to grow across the country, giving more volunteers and older adults opportunities to connect through monthly activities, regular visits and the signature 1:1 program.

Guest volunteer

Perfect for volunteers who want to participate in one activity each month or try a new experience.

  • Sign up for one activity each month
  • No background check or training required

Short-term volunteer

Ideal for those looking to volunteer regularly with a flexible, part-time commitment.

  • Volunteer from 1 to 10 hours/month
  • Short phone screening
  • Background check for adults only
  • Volunteer orientation

Long-term volunteer

Designed for dedicated volunteers ready to commit more than 10 hours each month.

  • Volunteer more than 10 hours each month
  • Phone screening
  • Background check
  • Tuberculosis screening and test
  • Volunteer orientation

AMBASSADOR PROGRAM

From dedicated volunteer to community leader

The Herralink Ambassador Program trains experienced volunteers to serve as life enrichment aides and take on leadership roles within senior living communities.

Ambassadors support life enrichment teams by leading weekly programming and helping manage volunteers. In this leadership role, they help deliver programs that enrich the lives of older adults.

TYPES OF ACTIVITIES

Pick an activity. Make a new friend.

Herralink offers many ways to spend meaningful time with older adults, from arts and crafts, trivia, games and music to fitness activities and room visits. Some volunteers join a group program. Others choose one on one conversations and companionship.

With more than 50 activities available for volunteers, there are plenty of ways to show up, share your interests and make someone’s day feel a little sunnier. And that includes yours.

View activities

  • Through the 1:1 program and my time with my resident, I have learned many valuable lessons. I’ve learned that everyone has a story to tell and that those stories are worth listening to. My resident has shared with me fascinating tales from their past, which have given me a deeper appreciation for history and personal resilience.

    Twisha & Teresa

    Friends since March 2024

  • Herralink’s weekly HerraHelper visits have been a lifeline for many of our residents. These compassionate volunteers spend time with residents who may not receive regular visitors, offering companionship and kindness.

    Analucia Rojas

    Director of Recreation Therapy at Dulles Health and Rehab

  • Erica is the perfect candidate for Herralink. She came to the rehab center about a year ago after her second stroke. Her family is out of state, which limits how often they can visit. ‘I feel like I’m worth conversation. You know, sometimes it’s really, really depressing if you think about it long enough,’ said McCorry. ‘But they don’t give me time to feel depressed. And you know, it gives me something to look forward to on the weekends. It’s wonderful.

    Mahika & Erica

    Friends since December 2023

  • I know firsthand, as a teenager, how easily we can morph into whatever version of ourselves we need to be in order to feel accepted in certain friendships. But I’ve never felt that with the senior I visit. There’s no judgement between us. We just talk, and I always come away from our visits feeling like I’ve learned something. It may be a different kind of bond, but that’s what makes it so special.

    Kendall & CC

    Friends since October 2024

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SOCIAL MEDIA

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