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Volunteering is a great way to fulfill community service requirements for school, strengthen your resume, and give back to your community.

However, some students have difficulties finding a volunteer opportunity that they are excited about.

Need some inspiration to do good deeds? Read on for a list of over 400 community service ideas for teens.

Why Should You Do Community Service?

There are a lot of reasons why high school students choose to do community service projects. Some students have to do them – more and more schools are requiring community service activities as a prerequisite for graduation. Others, however, choose to volunteer because they want to get a better understanding of the world around them,  develop skill sets, and become more empathetic people who are involved in the world.

Volunteering can help you become an active and caring citizen who wants to make a difference in the world. When working closely with other people who are in difficult situations, you can learn to empathize with others and develop good instincts for social justice.

Community service can also give you opportunities to take what you've learned in the classroom and apply it to real-world situations. You can experience things that were previously outside of your comfort zone and learn how to improve problems that communities face.

Community service is also a great way to learn many of the “intangibles” that you will need later in life, such as taking initiative, developing a sense of responsibility, learning to be a leader, and developing critical thinking skills.

The skills and personal development that you can gain through community service activities are also the kinds of things that are important for college applications. Colleges are always interested in students who are going to make a difference and change the world in one way or another. By showing them that you have already been actively involved in making a difference, they will be more likely to see you as the kind of person who will continue to do so.

How to Use This List of Community Service Ideas

1. Think about your interests. What kinds of activities are most interesting to you? Do you have a specific talent that you would like to be able to use? Is there a cause you are particularly passionate about? A certain group of people you would like to work with? This list is broken into different categories so you can easily find an idea that relates to what you are most interested in.

2. Determine the amount of time you are able to commit. Some of the projects on this list are one-time activities. Others are long-term projects that require a lot of initiative and planning. How much time can you realistically contribute? Make sure that whatever you choose to do is something that you can finish!

3. Think about the kind of impact you would like to have in your community. Do you want to start a new annual event? Do you need something with quantifiable numbers for your college application? Or are you most concerned about helping people in a more personal and intangible way? Consider what kind of legacy you are hoping for.

4. If you don’t see anything on this list that interests you, keep an eye out for other community service opportunities. There are some great websites, like volunteermatch.org and idealist.com, which can connect you with local activities. Also, talk to friends, neighbors, and community leaders to see if there are other ways to get involved.

5. Have fun, and remember to learn from your volunteering experience!

General Volunteering Ideas

•  Volunteer to do marketing for a non-profit by using your social media skills
•  Volunteer to take photos for a non-profit organization
• Organize a thank-you event for volunteers in the community
• Help write grant proposals for a non-profit
• Help do research for a non-profit
• Volunteer to help at a charity auction
• Donate a piece of your own work or a talent to a charity auction
• Write an e-newsletter for a non-profit
• Help find financial sponsors for a non-profit event
•  Volunteer as a programming intern for a non-profit
• Volunteer to be a translator (at the doctor’s office, etc.) for someone who cannot speak or         understand English well
• Run a competition for local kids and teens to see who can log the most community service hours in a month
• Organize a campaign to promote tolerance
• Volunteer to do digital design work for a non-profit
• Create a website for a non-profit

School Volunteering Ideas

• Become a peer tutor
• Join a community service club, such as the Key Club or the Sparrow Club, and participate in volunteer projects
• Help a teacher decorate his or her classroom
• Volunteer to be a teacher’s aide
• Donate leftover food from the school cafeteria to a food bank
• Help organize a school awards ceremony to recognize student achievements
• Plan a lunch event for students to get to know each other outside of their normal groups
• Organize meetings for new students to make sure they feel welcome
• Plan for a police officer to give a presentation on safety
• Start an anti-smoking or drinking campaign to raise awareness at your school
• Collect used computers and donate them to students who don’t have their own computers
• Teach an IT class so students can learn how to fix old computers
• Make flash cards for students to study from
• Plan for a health care professional to give a presentation to the school on good health practices during flu season
• Give back to your teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week
• Have a book drive to give to a local school that does not have a library
• Organize an aluminum can drive and recycle the cans. Donate the proceeds
• Organize a buddy system in your school, so that older students can mentor younger students
• Start a club to raise awareness of another culture
• Help out students who are learning English as a second language
• Create a school newsletter that showcases the activities and achievements of different students
• Become a peer counselor
• Have a school supply drive for students in need
• Help make your school’s yearbook
• Organize a canned food drive
• Organize for students to walk to school in safe groups from their neighborhoods
• Make a list of volunteer activities that students can participate in
• Help keep the equipment on the playground in top shape! Get volunteers to paint benches, etc.
• Teach a class in Spanish or another foreign language

Holiday or Special Occasion Volunteering Ideas

• Host an Easter Egg Hunt for local disadvantaged children
• Distribute pamphlets for kids on how to stay safe at Halloween
• Help plan a cultural awareness day for a holiday
• Plan a tea for mothers on Mothers’ Day
• Help a senior citizens home with spring cleaning
• Organize a “gift” center before holidays by taking donations of gifts from volunteers and allowing low-income families to purchase the gifts for low prices (or for free)
• Donate a meal for a needy family at Thanksgiving
• Bake Christmas cookies for someone who would appreciate them
• Make a pamphlet about food safety for the holiday season
• Plan a healthy event for National Nutrition Month in March
• Clean up a trail on National Trail Day
• Participate in Make A Difference Day in October
• Homemade Bread Day is November 17th – bake a loaf of bread and donate it to a food bank or a member of your community
• On your birthday, instead of gifts, ask people to donate to a charity
• Create May Day baskets for senior citizens
• Plan a thank you reception for fathers on Fathers’ Day
• Participate in Global Youth Service Day in April
• Send Valentine’s cards to veterans or active duty soldiers
• After Halloween, collect used costumes from neighborhood children to donate to a shelter or to foster children for next year
• Help decorate a community Christmas tree
• Donate a Christmas tree or other holiday decorations to a homeless shelter
• Make a list of safety tips for Halloween trick-or-treaters
• Plan a Memorial Day remembrance ceremony
• Ring the bell for the Salvation Army to collect donations
• Donate Halloween candy to a charity
• Adopt a family at Christmas and buy gifts and toys for them

Church Volunteering Ideas

• Take part in a church food drive
• Create a drive or collection to supply items on your church’s wish list
• Take part in a drive to benefit emergency shelters by collecting travel-sized shampoo, soaps, and other hygiene items
• Become a mentor for a younger member of the church community
• Help out with the landscaping near the church
• Volunteer your sewing skills to make sure that the various fabric items (seat covers, garments, table runners, etc.) in your church are not frayed or ripped
• Volunteer at church food fundraisers, such as pancake breakfasts
• Join a church volunteer organization, such as the Knights of Columbus
• Join a visitation team to visit sick members of the church who cannot come to mass and other events
• Become a peer counselor in your church
• Help run audio equipment and make sure that your church’s electronics are up to date and working
• Volunteer as a musician
• Volunteer as a dancer or actor for special productions, such as a Christmas pageant
• Volunteer to watch young members of the church during events
• Volunteer to teach a class to young members of the church
• Offer to help clean up, remove debris and decorations from seating areas and walkways after events
• Make baked goods for sale or to donate at events
• Brew and deliver coffee to events – some churches go through as much as 90 gallons of coffee every weekend
• Join a high school ministry team
• Help lead a kid’s choir
• Use your photography skills to take pictures of events
• Help out with marketing by using your graphic design skills
• Volunteer for or organize an Operation Christmas Child group

Public Safety Volunteering Ideas

• Work with the fire department to teach classes on fire safety to local schools
• Raise money through a biking event and use the money to raise awareness on bike safety
• Raise money to promote awareness of wearing seat belts
• Help your school organize a drug and alcohol-free event for after prom
• Host a drug-free pledge event at your school
• Teach a class on drug awareness and prevention
• Create a campaign to raise awareness about common toxins
• Create an awareness campaign to teach kids how to stay safe at home
• Make sure railroad crossings have clearly marked signs
• Volunteer at your local police station
• Raise money to have community fire hydrants re-painted
• Spread awareness of a cause or issue on social media
• Create a flyer about public safety and distribute it to schools
• Get a lifeguard certification and volunteer at a local pool
• Teach children how to fix their bicycles and make sure they are safe
• Help the Red Cross maintain supplies and equipment for their Home Fire Preparedness Campaign
• Volunteer at a local health clinic

Family and Friends Volunteering Ideas

• Host a Youth For Understanding student in your house
• Host an exchange student
• Have a garage sale and donate the proceeds to a charity
• Volunteer to walk younger children home from school
• Start an after-school group for young students to spend time together before their parents pick them up
• Organize a child development workshop
• Volunteer at an immunization clinic
• Take a group of neighborhood kids to the playground
• Donate toys to the local day care
• Plan an outing for an elderly neighbor who lives alone
• Use your spare bedroom to house someone who has lost their home in a natural disaster
• Create a forum to parents and teens to discuss concerns openly in a positive environment
• Take a grandparent out for the day
• Create an informational brochure about tips for new parents
• Be ready to drive an expecting mother to a hospital
• Create a web forum for teens to ask questions about safe dating and relationship practices
• Help an elderly family member improve the safety in his or her house, such as by installing railings in the bathtub
• Organize volunteers in your neighborhood to check in on ill, elderly neighbors so they are not neglected
• Donate diapers to a needy family with a baby
• Offer to babysit for your parents or a neighbor

Community Volunteering Ideas

• Help a local nursery look after young children
• Set up and run a concession stand for a non-profit theater group
• Help immigrants study for their citizenship exams
• Volunteer at a local charity thrift shop – jobs include sorting, stocking, labeling, and running a cash register
• Help teach children about future potential careers
• Host a refugee family and collect donations that will help them settle into their new lives
• Volunteer at a local museum
• Become a Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts volunteer/coach
• Work with children who have suffered abuse
• Volunteer at a battered women’s shelter
• Volunteer at a local carnival or event. You can hand out publicity material, watch younger kids, or do an activity like painting faces
• Teach lessons at a local community center in something that you are talented in – such as a sport, art, music, etc
• Plan an ethnic awareness day
• Form a childcare group or free babysitters’ club for parents who need help
• Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity to build a home for a family in need
• Contact a local celebrity for an autographed item, then sell it and donate the money to charity
• Donate stuffed animals to a shelter
• Collect and repair used bicycles and use them to create a community fund for kids to use
• Start a local food bank if your community doesn’t have one
• Help decorate the main parts of your town for community events and holidays
• Collect cosmetics and donate them to a women’s shelter
• Teach a sewing class so people can learn to repair their own clothes
• Paint a mural
• Advocate to local government officials for important causes
• Organize a community band
• Do a used reading glasses drive and donate them to a charity
• Donate used clothes for foster children
• Organize a community choir
• Raise funds for a public walking trail
• Re-paint signs that have faded
• Volunteer at your local library
• Research historical sites in your area. Working with your local tourism board, make a brochure for visitors to use
• Set up a book exchange
• Raise money for new play structures to be added to your local park
• Petition for the creation of a dog park
• Raise money to have plaques or signs posted on places of interest in your town
• Help people in your community register to vote
• Create a community web site
• Petition your local government to make sure that all public facilities are easily accessible to all people
• Clean up trash after a community event.
• Raise money for a town statue or monument
• Help plan a celebratory parade
• Set up an event to welcome new people to your neighborhood
• Send care packages to soldiers (Operation Shoebox)
• Become a tour guide for a local organization
• Raise money for a cause at a 24-hour dance party
• Make maps of the local area for tourists to use
• Visit a sick member of the community
• Organize a carnival to show community spirit
• Organize a book drive for foster children

Crisis Volunteering Ideas

• Become a volunteer firefighter
• Arrange donations for a group that has recently become homeless or lost property due to a natural disaster
• Participate in or organize a blood drive
• Participate in or organize a food drive
• Volunteer with the Red Cross as a kitchen/feeding worker. Feed people in need after a crisis.
• Become a Red Cross Ambassador – help with reception and hospitality for volunteers
• Do community outreach for the Red Cross. Hand out flyers, etc.
• Take part in a Red Cross national youth preparedness program
• Join a CitiIMPACT team to respond to a local disaster
• Coordinate records for the Red Cross
• Help the Red Cross maintain and make minor repairs to their vehicles by doing things like checking lights, tire pressure, battery, and adding fluids
• Host a CPR class for people to become CPR certified

Environmental Volunteering Ideas

• Volunteer to clean up your local park
• Plant flowers in public areas (with permission)
• Petition your local utility company to create energy conservation programs
• Campaign to improve lighting in public buildings so energy isn’t wasted
• Teach about the benefits that insects have on the environment
• Create an informational pamphlet about the correct use of pesticides
• Bring local honey to schools to start a discussion about the importance of bees
• Take photos of the natural beauty in your area, and use them to advocate for better environmental practices
• Raise bees so they have a safe place to live
• Clean up a local river, pond, or lake
• Set up a casual carpool in your local area for commuters. This will help reduce air pollution
• Organize a community-wide cleanup event
• Clean and re-paint signs on a local trail
• Get your class raise money to adopt an acre of the rainforest
• Raise money to re-plant trees in a local forest
• Create a brochure to inform neighbors about how to keep their homes energy efficient.
• Do you have an endangered species nearby? Lobby your local government to make a protected habitat.
• Adopt a highway and keep it clean
• Start a community butterfly garden
• Raise awareness of the environmental harm of disposable shopping bags. Lobby for a bag tax
• Raise money to have local streams, creeks, lakes, and rivers tested for water safety
• Lobby your local government to switch over to using recycled office materials
• Plant a tree in a public place for others to enjoy
• Organize a community recycling center
• Organize monthly e-recycling events
• Start a community action group for people interested in protecting the environment
• Get a Green Peace speaker to come to your school
• Adopt a park and organize cleaning events to keep it nice for the public to use
• Plant a community vegetable patch
• Pick up trash around your neighborhood
• Make a recycling awareness campaign
• Set up a web site for neighbors to easily exchange and share fruit they grow in their yards
• Campaign against the dumping of hazardous materials
• Clean up a local beach

Animal Volunteering Ideas

• Help out at an animal shelter adoption event
• Walk dogs from an animal shelter
• Do a pet food drive and donate the proceeds to a local animal charity or animal shelter
• Volunteer with the ASPCA
• Volunteer at a charity dog show
• Raise awareness about flea control
• Walk a disabled neighbor’s pet
• Raise money for protective gear for police dogs
• Raise money to put waste disposal bags around town
• Give a presentation about dog care
• Sponsor an obedience class
• Train a service dog
• Raise money for an animal charity
• Set up an animal therapy area where people can come spend time with animals and potentially adopt them
• Raise awareness about ticks and other local dangers to pets
• Volunteer at your local zoo
• Make comfortable dog beds
• Offer to do a load of laundry (or more) for an animal shelter
• Host a pet food and supplies drive and donate the proceeds to an animal shelter
• Adopt a zoo animal and raise money to ensure its welfare
• Volunteer to do social media for an animal shelter
• Take photos of shelter animals so they can be advertised for adoption
• Help set up booths for an adoption event
• Volunteer to transport animals to vet appointments
• Help handle dogs and cats at shelter events
• Collect old towels from local hotels and donate them to an animal shelter
• Set up public bird feeders
• If your pet is healthy, take them to a pet blood bank to donate blood
• Foster a dog or cat
• Create a brochure about the importance of spaying and neutering animals to control unsustainable population growth
• Take your pet to visit sick people in a hospital

Hungry and Homeless Volunteering Ideas

• Join a CitiIMPACT Meal MANIA group to prepare and distribute meals to hungry people
• Run a resume writing workshop to help people return to work
• Organize a drive for scarves, coats, hats, and mittens, and donate them to a homeless shelter
• Make sandwiches, cookies, cake, or other items for a local food bank/soup kitchen
• Tutor a child living in a homeless shelter
• Organize a drive for scarves, coats, hats, and mittens, and donate them to a homeless shelter
• Become a youth mentor for a child in need
• Help an adult learn to read and write
• Put together a team to make repairs at a homeless shelter or women’s shelter
• Volunteer to work at a homeless shelter
• Plan for a healthcare professional to visit a local homeless shelter to give tips on how to stay healthy
•  Run a canned food drive and donate the proceeds to a food bank or homeless shelter
• Read a book to a child at a homeless shelter
• Teach a class on how to repair clothing
• Donate care packages to homeless shelters. They should include essential toiletries such as toothpaste, deodorant, soap, etc.
• Collect food that is on its “sell by” date from local grocery stores and donate it to a food bank
• Work with a local homeless shelter or thrift store to sort donations
• Collect blankets and donate them to a local homeless shelter
• Donate pajamas to a shelter
• Raise money for organizations that help build shelters for the homeless
• Create a reading center at your local homeless shelter
• Plan an art supply drive and donate the proceeds to a local shelter for kids to play with.
• Donate toys to a local shelter for kids to play with.
• Collect unwanted fruit from neighbors with fruit trees and donate it to a food bank
• Built flower boxes for Habitat for Humanity houses
• Teach computer skills to people at homeless shelters to help improve their chances of getting a job
• Cook a meal for a homeless shelter
• Pick up food at the end of the day from local bakeries and restaurants and donate it to a food bank

Senior Citizen Volunteering Ideas

• Join a Music & Memory program at a local senior home. Help seniors with cognitive functioning problems continue to engage in daily activities
• Help seniors keep in touch with loved ones by volunteering to send emails and helping out with technology
• Volunteer to read to senior citizens who have vision problems
• Bring cookies, ice cream or other sweets to a senior home
• Host a “senior prom” at a local senior home or nursing facility
• Listen to a senior citizen’s life stories and help preserve them in memoirs
• Coordinate activities at an assisted living center, such as Bingo Nights
• Mow the lawn for an elderly neighbor
• Help seniors plant a garden at a senior facility
• Get a senior citizen pen pal
• Write letters for a senior citizen who has limited mobility
• Find someone to do electrical repairs for a senior citizen’s home
• Make sure the seniors in your neighborhood have transportation to the doctor and to pick up prescription medications
• Make birthday cards for nursing home residents
• Wash a car for a senior citizen
• Host a dance class aimed at seniors to help keep them active
• Teach an elderly person how to effectively use the internet
• Become an advocate for seniors who don’t feel they can speak up for themselves in important matters, such as at the doctors’ office
• Hold a community event to honor the contributions made by long-time members of the community
• Help a senior with grocery shopping
• Make sure seniors have working smoke alarms in their homes
• Help hang curtains for a senior citizen
• Help a senior citizen paint their house
• Help a senior citizen with minor carpentry projects
• Fix or replace a broken appliance for a senior citizen
• Deliver food to senior citizens unable to leave their homes

Special Needs and Education Volunteering Ideas

• Volunteer to help train a Special Olympics athlete
• Learn American Sign Language and make an effort to talk to deaf members of the community
• Petition to have ramps added to buildings in your community
• Run a new toy drive and donate the proceeds to children who are in a hospital
• Put on a play for kids in a hospital
• Make sure that your school structure is disability-friendly
• Become a mentor for a special needs child
• Volunteer to tutor a child with developmental disabilities
• Make an awareness campaign about learning differences
• Become a volunteer at an organization that works with children with special needs
• Teach American Sign Language to someone else to improve communication with the deaf community
• Teach an art class to help kids with special needs express themselves
• Arrange a performance for special needs children
• Volunteer with Best Buddies
• Volunteer with The Friendship Circle
• Help a physically disabled neighbor clean up their house or yard

Health and Disease/Disability Volunteering Ideas

• Work at an event like “Celebrate Every Breath” for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
• Sew blankets for premature babies at a local hospital
• Sponsor a local health fair to offer free blood pressure testing and vision and hearing tests
• Raise money to sponsor free skin cancer checks
• Get the local health department to set up an immunization clinic
• Volunteer at a health fair
• Donate blood
• Display information on common health issues and prevention in public areas, such as schools, libraries, senior centers, and shelters
• Make an informational handout about health services available to low-income residents
• Donate health magazines to homeless shelters
• Raise awareness about good dental health
• Assist in mealtime at a home for physically disabled individuals
• Raise awareness for lung cancer with an organization like LUNGevity
• Raise money to have athletes in your school tested for rare heart conditions
• Plan a performance (comedy, music, etc.) for children in a local hospital
• Build a playground for children with physical disabilities
• Raise money to support service dog training and availability in your community
• Play a game with a physically disabled person
• Participate in a charity race, such as Race for the Cure or Relay for Life
• Play an adaptive sport with a person with a physical disability
• Do a 5K run or walk with the Ronald McDonald House
• Help disabled adults learn how to swim
• Do a Swim for Multiple Sclerosis event
• Fundraise for lung cancer
• Make a community memorial for those who have died from cancer
• Organize an informational assembly at the local school to discuss nutrition
• Promote eating seasonal foods
• Print out cards with nutritional information and donate them to a senior center
• Volunteer at a women’s shelter and teach them about healthy food choices
• Donate fruit to schools so students have healthy snacks to eat
• Run a healthy recipe competition. Donate the proceeds to a health charity
• Promote locally grown, organic food

Art, Sport, and Other Hobbies Volunteering Ideas

• Become a summer or after-school camp counselor for younger kids
• Collect children’s games and donate them to an after school group, summer camp, or other group
• Coach a summer sports club
• Form a band with your friends and play at community events
• Help your community organize a youth marching band
• Host a fun run to raise money for a cause
• Sew dolls for children’s homes, shelters, charities, etc.
• Teach a child how to play a musical instrument
• Organize an instrument drive and give any collected instruments to kids who want to play but can’t afford to
• Teach a class on how to sing
• Get your community to donate old sports equipment and give it to the local community center so that kids can go there to play
• Create a community literary newsletter to allow members of the community to show off their talents
• Teach a dance class to kids
• Teach a summer class in something you are great at – art, science, etc.
• Teach kids how to swim
• Provide a free concessions stand a youth sport event
• If you love cooking, try getting together a group of people and make a recipe in large quantities. You can donate the food to a food bank or homeless shelter
• Organize a community dinner
• Use your writing skills to do marketing work for a local youth team
• Collect art supplies and donate them to a local school or community center
• Plan a community mural – get kids involved and teach them how to paint
• Help start a community youth theater
• Teach kids how to act
• Organize a marathon for a special cause
• Teach children wildlife safety and survival tactics

Crime Volunteering Ideas

• Participate in a violence prevention program
• Distribute flyers about a local crime problem to raise awareness
• Join a crime prevention organization
• Raise awareness of the harm of victim-blaming
• Help plan and create a victim support service
• Make a PSA about how to safeguard against a crime
• Organize a community self-defense workshop
• Organize a day for people to come together and clean up graffiti
• Produce an anti-violence play and anti-crime play for children
• Advertise crime hotlines
• Make a PSA about crisis help hotlines
• Donate books, toys, and personal items to a local juvenile detention center
• Make a crime clue box
• Start a neighborhood crime watch program

Volunteering Abroad Ideas

• Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity to build a home abroad
• Work in an elephant conserve in Thailand
• Do conservation work to help save seals in South Africa
• Do conservation work to help save dolphins in Kenya
• Do conservation work to help save brown bears in Romania
• Volunteer at a refugee center
• Work on an organic farm internationally
• Volunteer as an archaeologist
• Teach sports abroad
• Volunteer in an area that has been hit with a natural disaster
• Help teach basic health practices in developing countries
• Do conservation work to help save pandas in China
• Help rehabilitate African penguins
• Teach business English to someone with a business abroad
• Campaign against poaching
• Work on a farm in the Philippines
• Do conservation work to help save turtles in Costa Rica
• Start a project to empower girls in other countries
• Teach communities about AIDS and HIV
• Help out people with disabilities abroad
• Campaign for women’s rights abroad
• Speak out against social injustices
• Help teach victims of sex trafficking a marketable skill
• Do an internship in human rights
• Teach girls in developing countries how to make feminine hygiene products

What's Next?

Want to find your own community service project? Here are the 9 best places to do community service.

Not sure that community service is worth your time? Learn about some of the ways that community service can benefit you.

One of the best ways to benefit from community service is through scholarship. Check out our list of community service scholarships that you can win.