Volunteer at The Children’s Hospital

From teenagers to great grandparents, from homemakers to professional athletes, The Children's Hospital volunteers encompass all walks of life and all income levels, each volunteer with something unique to offer. Our diverse group of volunteers has one thing in common, however, the desire to help sick children and their families. The Children's Hospital is fortunate to have hundreds of dedicated volunteers who work regularly, from several hours a year to several hours a week, to provide better care for the children of The Children’s Hospital. Learn how to become a volunteer.

The Association of Volunteers

The volunteers at The Children’s Hospital are all part of a group called The Children’s Hospital Association of Volunteers (AoV). The AoV coordinates placements for volunteers and ensures that complete orientation and training is provided to all volunteers. Our volunteer’s skills and interests are all so appreciated and we try to place everyone in a role that suits them and our needs. The examples below are just some of the ways that our volunteers contribute:

• Volunteers spend time with our patients by holding, comforting, playing with them and making them laugh.
• Volunteers bring specially-screened dogs to provide animal-assisted therapy for the Prescription Pet Program.
• Specially trained volunteers serve as Patient Representatives, acting as a liaison between the patient, the family and the hospital staff. Patient Representatives can ease tensions and solve potential problems before they become major issues of concern and also make sure families have all the resources available to them they need.
• Many groups of volunteers do not spend time directly with our patients, but perform more administrative duties, which can be just as important to the day-to-day operations of The Children’s Hospital.
• Teenagers between 13 and 18 years of age participate in the Junior Volunteer Program. They support the Hospital by working in a number of departments as well as supporting fundraising activities.
• Volunteers also assist in fundraising for by staffing The Children’s Hospital Gift Shop and La Cache.
• Chapter Volunteers in the community are very active in fundraising events throughout the year that help to fund special equipment, facilities and programs for the patients of The Children’s Hospital.