Volunteering is the cornerstone to the greatness that enables many charitable and other organizations to be able to do their work, both in epicness and complexity.
Feeding thousands of people across the globe takes a lot of hands, but volunteering whether locally or abroad should never be thought of as free labor – it’s a very valuable gift you give.
Building innovative resources for communities is complicated and takes a variety of otherwise expensive skills. Volunteering is a pure sadaqah that all young Muslims can do – giving directly by their hands.
Where can you volunteer? A lot of places! Let’s look at some Islamic organizations where you can volunteer locally, nationally, abroad and even online.
Is volunteering locally best for you?
Truly, there are so many opportunities that it can be hard to choose! It’s likely that smaller organizations near you don’t even have the resources to have a fancy website with their needs and volunteer opportunities neatly posted.
Talk to the employees or current volunteers at your local mosque or Islamic organizations about what existing opportunities they have for you or what positions they can create with you.
National Islamic organizations
Most of these organizations offer both local and national services:
– Muslim Outreach and Volunteer Enterprises
Arizona, USA
Connects Muslims with other organizations for social engagement.
– Islamic Social Services of South Jersey (ISSSJ)
New Jersey, USA
Runs a variety of their own needs-based services as well as connecting people to external needed resources.
– Muslim Volunteer for New York
New York, USA
Engages Muslim-Americans along with the community at-large in a variety of grass-root efforts to give back to our City and its residents. Key focuses: Health & Wellness, Education, Environment, and Hunger and Poverty Elimination.
https://www.facebook.com/mv4ny/
– Muslim Community Network
New York, USA
Dedicated to using civic education and leadership development to shape the public narrative about what it means to be Muslim in America, MCN hosts a variety of opportunities for volunteers and is the premier Muslim organization in interfaith dialogue.
http://mcnny.org/volunteer-opportunities/
– Texas Muslim Women’s Foundation
Texas, USA
Seeking to instill a spirit of leadership among Muslim youth, volunteers donate more than 800 hours of community service annually.
– UMRelief
Washington DC and Texas
Locally and internationally provides livelihood and disaster relief and recovery services to the underserved, specializing in the Health, WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) and Child Protection sectors.
https://umrelief.org/volunteer/
"You will not enter paradise until you have faith. And you will not complete your faith until you love one another." -Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
Posted by Islamic Relief USA on Tuesday, 14 May 2019
– Islamic Family & Social Services Association (IFSSA)
Edmonton, Canada
Through a holistic approach to community well-being., IFSSA serves the Edmonton community through a halal food bank, family violence counselling, a youth program, refugee support, and much more.
– Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations (FEMYSO)
Belgium, Europe
FEMYSO enables co-operation between Muslim youth from all the different countries and cultures within Europe.
– Muslim Aid
United Kingdom
Founded in November 1985, as a response to the famine in Africa, Muslim Aid first began to establish its vision of helping humanity by distributing emergency aid to those affected by famine and conflict. They now offer a wide range of services (you can volunteer with) locally, nationally and abroad.
– Muslim Hands
United Kingdom
3,000 volunteers across the UK have worked with Muslim Hands in various capacities from organising events to taking on one of our exciting challenges right through to supporting our social media and admin teams.
https://muslimhands.org.uk/get-involved/volunteer
Posted by UMR on Tuesday, 18 June 2019
Working with larger organizations and abroad
Islamic organizations redistribute millions of charitable dollars and services annually around the globe. They are often the best organized to work with and offer incredible opportunities to both help people in need and travel abroad, helping their volunteers to better know the world and themselves. If you can seize such an opportunity – why not!?
– Islamic Help
Through their “Mission Possible” Islamic help’s volunteers go abroad, visiting projects in the field to help people directly on the ground. Being such a large organization, they are able to provide a range of volunteering opportunities and experiences based on volunteers’ interests, desires and skills.
https://www.islamichelp.org.uk/get-involved/volunteer/
– Islamic Relief
International citizen service organizes fully-funded volunteer opportunities overseas in Africa, Asia or Latin America.
https://www.islamicreliefcanada.org/get-involved/volunteer/
– Ummah Welfare Trust
A UK-based charity with a 100% donations policy, UWT aims to alleviate poverty and suffering across the world.
https://uwt.org/about-us/donations/
Bradford Walk for the Children of War event on Saturday 26th May, at Lister Park.
Posted by Muslim Hands on Wednesday, 30 May 2018
You can volunteer online too!
Many organizations need help with various services that are done online, especially the marketing and social media engagement. Again, this is another situation where it is likely best to reach out to your favorite organizations and directly volunteer your services.
One organization that regularly recruits help is:
– The Muslim Youth Helpline (MYH)
An award winning registered charity which provides pioneering faith and culturally sensitive services to Muslim youth in the UK.
Ultimately, wherever you choose to give your time and efforts, know that you will get far more out of it than you give. Volunteering is good for you.
