Community Volunteer & Service

Learn about the different community programs UJ works with and how to get involved.

Community Volunteer Programs

Volunteering is a great way to give back to your community, serve others, and see if you have interest in a specific career. University of Jamestown works with more than 20 community volunteer programs including working with animals, basic human needs, elderly, kids, youth and many more! If you want to get involved, we can help.

Volunteer Opportunities

Children/Youth

Anne Carlsen is a non-profit organization that has been providing supports and services for 75 years to individuals in North Dakota with developmental disability or delay.

Anne Carlsen has opportunities for college students to work with the residents in the educational sector in the classroom, helping students learn and giving individual hands on attention to each unique student or even go on outings on weekends. There are also opportunities to serve in the office and help in the chapel area setting up for chapel and participating in services.

Michele.Well@annecenter.org
701-252-3850 (main line)
701-952-5196

AWANA is an interdenominational ministry held at Victory Lutheran Church. We have some kids that are unchurched and others that are a regular part of a church. AWANA teaches kids the word of God through books study, game time, and large group story time.

Child safety course required.
woodley@uj.edu
Mike Woodley
701-368-9434

The Arts Center is located in the heart of downtown, the main building features an exhibition gallery, performance stage, classroom, office, artist-in-residence apartment and studio. The Art Park, a beautiful garden and green space, was added in 2008. The Hansen Arts Studio, our adjacent building, houses a ceramics studio and adult classroom space. The Arts Center is a spot for local artists to share their talents as well as a performance and exhibition location for artists from around the world to show their talents to the Jamestown community.

Opportunities to serve include: Second Saturday Program (10:30 am – noon) which entails working with the children as they tackle art projects and learn about the elements of art and principles of design; office work (distribute flyers, label, etc. assist artists with Arts After School at the Arts Center or at Youth for Christ; and events where volunteers are needed (take tickets, set up, clean up, park cars, community theatre, etc.). Once you establish a relationship with the Arts Center, other opportunities may present themselves.

esjeppson@jamestownarts.com
Sally Jeppson: 701-251-2496

Salvation Army is a Christian non – denominational church and has a game room where they have daily activities with the youth of Jamestown: reading, board games, video games, art projects, etc.

Application & background check required.
Tim_Nauta@usc.salvationarmy.org
Terri_Nauta@usc.salvationarmy.org
701-252-0290
701-251-9142

United Presbyterian Church’s ministry and mission is “Sharing Christ’s Love Through Service.” This service entails tutoring refugee families on Tuesdays from 4-5pm at our church. They are in need of volunteers to help tutor and also someone to take on a leadership role in this program. They would accept up to 5 people to assist. The children range in age from 3-9. They try to offer a one-on-one or a small group tutoring setup, with no more than two students per adult.

dhornung@daktel.com
Deb Hornung
701-320-4089

Youth For Christ reaches young people everywhere, working together with the local church and other like-minded partners to raise up lifelong followers of Jesus who lead by their godliness in lifestyle, devotion to prayer and the Word of God, passion for sharing the love of Christ and commitment to social involvement.

Youth for Christ is an explicit Christian organization that is looking for committed Christians to help with their afterschool program and events that they put on. This is a great opportunity to hang out with kids from middle to high school and play video games, watch TV, play pool, ping pong, carpet ball or just hang out and have conversations. There would also be times for volunteers to share one’s faith with the students through worship and bible studies in the evening.

Must complete an application, background check and training. Seeking long-term volunteers only.
youth4x@hotmail.com
Troy Gunderson
701-252-5501

Basic Needs

The community action food pantry is our local food pantry that serves the surrounding needs of families who cannot make ends meet. They are open four days a week. They are also starting a weekend food campaign that includes handing out a backpack full of food and snacks to grade school kids who may not have anything to eat over the weekend.

Volunteers help put together food baskets for families, unload trucks that come in with drop offs and help organize the food into shelves that allow them to assemble baskets faster. There is need of people packing the backpacks and distributing them on Friday afternoons at the school.

Foodpantry@Cap6.com

Easter Seals Goodwill ND, Inc. is an organization that supports children, adults, and families to have equal opportunities to live, learn, work, and play in their communities. Their mission is fulfilled through the collection and sale of donated goods in the communities and the smaller surrounding communities where they are received. The revenue generated from their stores is used to help fund programs that support children, adults and families with disabilities, provide job training, employment placement services for people who have disabilities, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges.

Volunteers are needed on the store floor to clean up, organize racks of donations, run the cash register and even make sure the clothing is labeled correctly and in the right clothing rack. On the delivery side of things volunteers are needed to help with the incoming deliveries and help sort all the different items that come in. Others may help clean up the donations and prep them for the floor. This would include price tagging, washing certain objects and coordinating what goes where and when.

jmstgw@esgwnd.org
701-253-7301

In loving response to Christ, the Servant, the Orphan Grain Train movement encourages and enables God’s people to share personal and material resources in bringing Christ’s name and character to needy people both far and near. Sometimes that character expresses itself as a word well spoken, sometimes as a bandage well applied, and sometimes as a child well fed.

Orphan Grain Train is a 501c3 Nonprofit Christian volunteer network that shares personal and material resources with needy people in America and around the world. Grain Train volunteers gather donations of clothing, medical supplies, food, Christian literature, and other aid to meet real needs. The Orphan Grain Train movement is a loving response to Jesus Christ’s example as a servant and His love for us.

OGT works as a group to pack and sort through donated items to give away to people in need. There are a variety of tasks for a variety of skills- some heavy lifting involved if you choose.

Sue Corwin: 701-320-3259

Volunteer Advocates help answer crisis calls in the evening and on the weekends. The advocates role is to listen, offer support and information, and assist in meeting the immediate needs of victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking.

Dana: 701-251-2300

Salvation Army have a small food pantry which needs constant organizing and stocking of food donations. One of the larger areas of need is the store located on the West business loop. They are always getting in donations and working to clean the store and turn over the donations in order that the new donations can be displayed.

Application & background check required.
Tim_Nauta@usc.salvationarmy.org
Terri_Nauta@usc.salvationarmy.org
701-252-0290
701-251-9142

Senior Adults

Ave Maria Village is a provider of long-term care and short-term rehabilitation services in southeast North Dakota. We are a not-for-profit, faith-based skilled care provider, sponsored by the Sisters of Mary of the Presentation. Ave Maria Village serves individuals of all faiths. We have 100 licensed skilled beds, ten of which are in private transitional care suites, specifically for patients who come to us for short-term therapy and/or recovery.

Volunteer opportunities are available at avemariavillage.org

jan.barnes@smphs.org
701-252-5660

Edgewood is a senior adult living facility, featuring assisted living and memory care services. Spend one on one time with residents; reading to them, going on walks, doing a puzzle, playing a card game. Assist with the facilitation of large games and small parties for residents.

An application is required.
Sarah Coleman: 701-952-8750

Eventide is a faith-based, non-profit senior healthcare organization. They provide a full range of lifestyle and service options, including independent and assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing care and transitional care. Students may assist residence with activities. They can also offer their musical gifts.

Nancy Steckler
nsteckler@eventide.org
701-252-5881

Rock of Ages is a basic care facility for the elderly and has three nursing homes which differ in activities.

Volunteers could join in the games during the afternoon and evening hours, one could play the video game consoles with the individual residents, or even join them on outings such as helping them shop, eat out, or even go fishing with them at the reservoir. There are also ways to get involved in the chapel services at each place or work closely with the chaplains on their visitations.

roainc@daktel.com
701-252-9292

VARIOUS

The National Buffalo Museum is a 6000 square foot facility housed in a rustic log building at the Frontier Village in Jamestown, North Dakota. Museum exhibits focus primarily on the history of bison in the plains culture, but displays include Plains Indian artifacts; a wide variety of artwork; the 19th century firearms used by bison hunters; remains of prehistoric bison; and a children’s room featuring wildlife of North Dakota.

director@buffalomuseum.com
701-252-8648

This animal shelter is a no kill shelter. They work closely with the local law enforcement and pick up strays and drop-offs and house them. All the animals are given their shots and looked over at the vet office before they can even come into the shelter. From there the pets stay until adoption by local community members for a small adoption fee.

Students can find themselves helping out with the dogs or cats, from playing and grooming them to taking them on walks and cleaning out cages. They also have daily maintenance that needs to get done and are very flexible on schedules.

jamesriverhumanesociety@hotmail.com
701-252-0747
Sheila (Cat Manager): 701-367-6913
Kris (Dog Manager): 701-269-2803

Jamestown Regional Medical Center is a regional medical facility providing inpatient and outpatient services to over 55,000 people in the south central region of North Dakota. Between JRMC, Sanford Health Jamestown and Essentia Health Jamestown, the community is served by 19 local physicians and a variety of visiting specialists. JRMC provides a 24-hour emergency department and level IV trauma center, surgical services, orthopedics, family birthplace, radiology, rehabilitation services and many other support services.

Information desk attendant: greet people and answer phones or help with making charts and filing or admission desk volunteer from 6:00 – 8:00 a.m. There is also a gift Shoppe that one can be a part of and help run the cash register and help guests find things that they may need. There is Caring Touch Program that allows students to be trained in hospital visitation and then he or she is allowed to go around to different patient’s rooms and visit with them and be a source of encouragement and comfort them while they are in the hospital.

Application Required – jrmcnd.com

Mary.Engels@jrmcnd.com
701-952-4809

Jamestown Volunteer Center has connections with numerous nonprofit organizations in the area. There are short-term and long-term volunteer opportunities.

Deborrah.Lee@ndsu.edu
701-952-9684

Need additional support?

Our team is ready to help. Please reach out with any questions.

Heidi Larson

  • Director of Career Services and Experiential Education
  • Associate Professor