For the City Times

United Way of Inner Wisconsin’s Volunteer Center promotes the volunteer needs of local non-profit organizations in both south Wood and Adams Counties on a weekly basis. Here is how you can get involved and volunteer for these great organizations.

Villa Pines Living Center-Morning Wake-Up Helper: The volunteer will help to provide simple morning exercise games for residents. Examples of these games could include tossing and catching a beach ball, playing with a parachute (inside, not in an airplane!), and more. Often the residents have so much fun with you that they don’t realize that they are exercising!

Bingo Assistant: We need a person to help call Bingo numbers for Bingo games. Two people can also volunteer together for this activity. One to help call the numbers, and one to help hand out the prizes. Bingo is a favorite game to play at Villa Pines. The games are held several times during the week, in the daytime and evening, so you can pick what time is best for you. Instruction is provided by staff to help make this an enjoyable activity for you and the residents of Villa Pines. This is a big social activity, and many people sit with their friends at their table and visit and laugh while playing the game.

Alzheimer’s Disease Fighter: Help in the fight against Alzheimer’s Disease by becoming a Music & Memory volunteer at Villa Pines Living Center. You will assist our residents to listen to their favorite music from years ago, by helping them to put on their head phones and turn on their music players.

Central Wisconsin Literacy Council- Translator: The Central Wisconsin Literacy Council works with adults of many nationalities and ethnicities. To better serve non-English speaking populations, we need to be able to better communicate with them so that we understand their needs so that our tutors are better able to assist the learners to achieve their language learning goals. CWLC needs translations of written materials (applications and brochures) as well as oral communication (messages left on the phone, first time client in-take). Translators may also be tutors, if they desire. Demand for translations may be low but your services could be vital to attract more clients to CWLC which could help our community by ultimately allowing non-native English speakers to better engage in the community.

English Tutors: CWLC utilizes volunteers to help adults improve their reading, writing and speaking skills in order to complete educational goals, to secure employment, and to remain independent and healthy. We ask volunteers to give at least one hour per week. However, tutors and clients schedule their own meeting schedules.No prior teaching experience is necessary. We provide training and materials. You may meet in our offices or another public setting. Having experience with learning a second language helps but is not required for working with clients who are learning English as their second language.

United Way of Inner Wisconsin’s Volunteer Center at 715-421-0390 or visit our website at www.volunteerinnerwisc.org.