BE A VOLUNTEER

All volunteers must agree to the policies and waivers within our Volunteer Handbook, have access to an email account and be able to access our online volunteer software.

Volunteers must be 14 years of age or older to volunteer independently. Volunteers 14-17 years old must fill out a paper application that is signed by a parent/guardian in addition to setting up an online account. The Parent/Guardian form will also serve as a valid background check for minors until their 18th birthday. Volunteers 18+ only need to complete the online application form.

Currently, we are requiring that all volunteers pass a background check and Food Handler Training in order to participate in volunteer activities.

There may be additional requirements or restrictions based upon the Activities requested. For example, volunteers must have a background check performed and a valid driver’s license if you would like to provide a ride for a client.

We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected under the laws of the United States. We are actively and consciously making efforts through grants and actions to be inclusive and inviting of all populations including but not limited to black volunteers and foreign language speakers.

During the COVID-19 pandemic additional precautions, cleaning and preventative measures should be taken, including wearing a mask. There also may be restrictions on homemade meals during this time, and the meal delivery activity could be restricted to store bought, prepared food, take out or delivery from restaurants or restaurant gift cards. Please check out the activity description if you are signing up!

In general, almost anything goes! Unless COVID-19 restrictions, allergies, dislikes, or food restrictions are mentioned in the description, there are no rules on what you make or don’t make. Remember the containers you deliver the food in will not be returned to you. Some people might make a home-cooked entree with sides and dessert, while others send a pizza delivery. You decide! Grab takeout from a local restaurant or have it delivered, pick up prepared meals at a deli or grocery store, or make everything from scratch. It’s up to you. You might choose to just include a main dish (baked chicken, lasagna or soup), or you might want to throw in a salad, fresh bread and cookies for dessert. It’s entirely up to what you want to do! Drop if off warm, or include heating instructions. Anything works! Once you have prepared the meal, you typically will drop it off to a cooler outside the client’s home during a specified time frame. You generally should not ring the doorbell or interact with the recipient, a lot of times it may be a quiet time for families. Your Chapter Leader will let you know if there are additional delivery instructions. You are required to use proper Food Handling techniques for cleanliness and contamination in preparation and delivery.

For the safety of our clients and volunteers we are not currently offering volunteer supplied rides, we are however, still providing some ride assistance to clients through donations and grant support. If you are interested in helping with rides to our clients in temporary crisis, please consider donating Uber, Lyft or taxi gift cards to your local chapter.

Typically, when you sign up for a ride, you will be given a pick up and/or drop off time. In some cases, you will exchange cell phone numbers with a client so that you can confirm pickup/drop off times with the client or with a doctor’s office (if picking up after an appointment). The client will likely be waiting for you. You may or may not need to go to the door. Neighbor Brigade volunteers are not legally permitted to perform medical assistance or physically lift clients, but you can help carry or load any extra devices or material into or out of your car. Some rides are split up into separate drop off and pick up tasks and you may only decide to help with one leg of the ride, while other tasks will include both drop off and pickup. Make sure you know what you signed up for, as well as how long it will take you to get to and from the destination. You should know in advance and make sure your car is safe and clean enough to fit the recipient and anything they may have with them (wheelchair, walker, crutches, additional person). Due to COVID-19 restrictions we might not be offering rides and may have additional requirements.

Please note we might not be offering dog walks due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Often times there is a description of what might be needed for a dog walk, but sometimes clients and dogs are just happy to get the dog out of the house. Generally, you will show up at the client’s home. The dog(s) should be ready and the client will meet you at the door with the leash, poop bags, and any other information. You may want to find out if the dog gets along with other dogs, will pull on the leash if there is a squirrel or other distraction, how to dispose of a poop bag, as well as a recommended walking route if you don’t know the area. We find most dogs we help are well adjusted and well-behaved pets. Often times volunteers are given treats to help bond with the dog, you will want to ask before bringing your own treats in case the dog has food sensitivities. You will likely walk the dog for 10-20 minutes.

In most scenarios you will have to sign up for the activity before knowing the address to protect our client privacy or there may be other sensitive private information involved. If this is the case, and you have already signed up for the activity:

Log in to your volunteer profile via web browser (http://volunteer.neighborbrigade.org) or the My Impact app and click on the Schedule tab from the Menu.

• On the web browser, hover over or click on the i/information button and you should see the full text of the Activity description, including any additional information just for volunteers who have signed up to help.

• On the app, click on the Activity name. Any additional information for volunteers who have signed up is listed at the bottom of the description.
  

If you have problems, please contact your Chapter Leader or support@neighborbrigade.org.

In order to minimize spam filter conflicts, reminder emails are not the default. You will need to opt-in to reminders. If you opt-in, you will receive reminders on the weekend, one and two weeks before the activity that you’ve signed up for. (So, if you sign up on Monday for an activity on Friday, you will not receive an automatic email reminder!)

If you use an online calendar on your phone or computer you can add individual activities from your schedule tab, or you can set up and subscribe to a calendar feed in your profile. Depending on your calendar settings, it can automatically fill, update and send you reminders (i.e. google calendar, outlook calendar, or iCal).

To set up your subscriptions:

1. Log in to your volunteer profile at http://volunteer.neighborbrigade.org or on the My Impact app.

2. On the website, click on the My Profile/Contacts tab on the upper right side, and scroll down. You’ll see the Subscriptions section on the right side including setting up a calendar feed. On the app, you can subscribe to the reminder emails by going to the Schedule tab of the menu and scrolling down.
   

Please note, you will not receive an automated confirmation when you sign up for an activity. Check your schedule tab to confirm your signup!

Unfortunately, you don’t! Sorry! We are hoping to have that feature added into the software. If meal delivery to the same family continues for a few months or is frequent (many nights per week), you can work with your chapter leader to set up a recommendation schedule to avoid some overlap (i.e. Mondays are chicken, Wednesdays are beef/pork/fish, and Fridays are vegetarian). We get comments that chicken parm, Shepard’s pie and macaroni and cheese, are the most frequently repeated home cooked meals (and also some of the favorites!) and pizza delivery if you want to try something different.

Above all (considering any dietary restrictions, sensitivities, or preferences listed), you should just make what you want! Anything works. Our client’s are so lucky to have the meal and grateful for what you share.

You can see any of the listed Activities by logging in and looking at the Opportunities tab. Some activities you might not be able to see if you don’t have updated qualifications in our system, if the shifts have already been filled by other volunteers or depending on how you are viewing the schedule.

1. Log in at http://volunteer.neighborbrigade.orgor in the My Impact app.

2. To make sure your Qualifications are up to date go to My Profile -> Qualifications towards the top right of the screen and update and save the appropriate settings. Please note that you will likely be required to have a valid background check performed annually by our organization in order to volunteer. We are also currently requiring that volunteers have agreed to our handbook and completes COVID-19 Preparedness Training and Food Handler Training found under My Profile -> Training.

3. Click on the Opportunities -> Opportunities List in the menu.

4. There is a filter box at the top of the Opportunities List page, you may need to adjust your filters if you aren’t seeing Activities that you are qualified for. For example, the Filters may be hiding Activities that have already been filled. Make sure the box next to “Only include activities that have openings available” is unchecked.

5. Click on the Activity name. You’ll be brought to the Activity description and signup page.

6. Read/scroll beyond the description and you’ll see the available schedule at the bottom of the page.

7. Click on the Sign Up button to the right of the date and time shift(s) you are interested in signing up for in the web version or click on the checkbox next to the shift and click the “Signup for Selected” button on the bottom of the shifts in the app to sign up. If there is no Sign Up button of the bottom of the Activity Description, the shifts are likely already filled.

8. You may or may not see a small quick signup confirmation on your screen after signing up. You can find any shift you have signed up for your Schedule tab. (Note: You will not receive an email confirmation of your signup.)

1. Log in to your volunteer profile at http://volunteer.neighborbrigade.org or on the My Impact app.

2. You might see some scheduled Activities right away under your Upcoming Tasks section on your home screen.

3. Click on the Schedule tab in the menu bar.

4. You’ll be able to see the Activities that you are signed up for. You can click on or hover over the i/information box to read the description or remove yourself from the Activity on the website version, or click on the activity first to see the description or remove yourself from the activity in the app version. Contact support@neighborbrigade.org if you are having problems.

Thank you for having been a volunteer! We understand circumstances in life or location change and appreciate you keeping your account up to date, even if it means having to say goodbye! Once you resign, you will no longer be able to sign up for activities or log hours through Neighbor Brigade. However, you can sign back up using the same profile in the future if your circumstances allow.

1. Login to http://volunteer.neighborbrigade.org

2. Under the My Profile tab on the right side, click on Organizations.

3. You should see a button to resign from your chapter.
   

Please note that you still may have to unsubscribe from Neighbor Brigade organization emails. Also please note we may retain some of your data for our history of client services and liability records.

Contact support@neighborbrigade.org if you have any questions or problems or to resign from your chapter for you.

Your privacy and security are important to us and to our software partners. Most of your information (contact information, demographics, sign up data) is kept private and only accessible to Neighbor Brigade staff and Chapter Leaders. We do not share, sell or distribute our volunteer or donor information. You will generally be notified first, but on some occasions name and minimal contact information may be shared between Neighbor Brigade and a client you are serving if you have signed up to help that client. Some client information will be shared with volunteers and will generally have approval.

You are able to opt in to your name being shown in the scheduling software for other volunteers to see. Some Chapter Leaders thank and welcome volunteers by name within chapter communications and social media.

Your optional demographic data is compiled without name attached and used for grant writing, funding and annual report purposes. We do not sell or share your contact information and work hard to ensure the safety of your online identity, schedule, contact information and any other personal data within our system and with our software partners.

In the event that we will use your name, likeness, comments or story for market, public relations or on social media, we will verify that you have agreed to our marketing waiver and generally ask your permission.