Make a difference with a creative project that directly impacts lives in our community. Contact Volunteer Services to create your own project as an individual or with a group. DIY volunteer ideas make for great b’nai mitzvah projects. For the most up-to-date needs of JFS and those we serve, please contact Volunteer Services at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.

Contact us at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.

Thanks to our dedicated volunteers and community partners, our annual High Holidays Food Drive (held on Sunday, September 26, 2021) raised more than 620 bags of food! These donations will directly benefit our Polack Food Bank. We appreciate everyone who stepped up this year and made our food drive feel like a true community event, despite its smaller-than-usual size and reimagined format. Interested in supporting the food bank year-round? We encourage you to consider hosting your own mini food drive with your family and friends. Please contact volunteer@jfsseatle.org to learn more about this DIY opportunity.

Contact us at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.

Sponsor Circles (also called “community sponsorship”) are groups of at least five individuals who come together to directly support the resettlement of newly arrived Afghans.

For information on how to form a Sponsor Circle or how best to support the Afghan refugees you’re sponsoring, contact HIAS or Sponsor Circles.

For local assistance with a range of needs you may encounter as a Sponsor Circle, please refer to the list below:

Connecting to local Afghan communities:
Afghan American Community of WA 
Afghan Health Initiative
Muslim Association of Puget Sound – American Muslim Empowerment Network (MAPS-AMEN)

Interpretation and language services:
Tarjimly (free and premium service options available)
Universal Language Service
Telelanguage

Legal services:
Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP)
Human Rights First Afghan legal assistance request form

If you would like to support Afghan refugees through volunteer opportunities with JFS or are not yet ready to form your own Sponsor Circle, please follow the links below to get started.

Contact us at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.

Volunteers harvest produce and weed garden beds as needed. This opportunity is best for ages 8 or older—please consider your child’s ability to wear a mask and gloves for the entire two hours in varying weather conditions before signing up.

Contact us at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.

Please contact volunteer@jfsseattle.org for more details about each of these projects.

• Sponsor an apartment set up: procure all of the essential household items needed to help welcome newly arrived refugees into their new homes. Items include: pots and pans, utensils, bedding and hygiene items. We ask that these items be new for the health and safety of our new neighbors. Groups are also welcome to assist with moving in and setting up an apartment.
• Procure furniture donations: procure large, gently used furniture items such as couches, dining tables and chairs for newly arrived refugees and store them until the resettlement team is ready to move them into an apartment.
• Host an in-kind drive: create and run your own in-kind drive in your community to support our new neighbors. Sample drives include: coats, kid toys, diapers and wipes and feminine hygiene items. We ask that these items be new for the health and safety of our community members.
• Create a non-perishable food box for a family of four: create and donate a food box of items culturally specific to newly arriving refugee families.
• Make “welcome cards”: Letters or cards are appreciated with positive, warm messages. These will be left for families once an apartment is set up for them, providing a colorful welcome from the community.

Contact us at volunteer@jfsseattle.org or (206) 861-3155.