VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Because of you, wishes come true!

A wish is not about giving a child an item, trip, opportunity or otherwise. It’s about caring…and letting a child know that people are cheering for them. It’s about hope…that things will get better. It’s about life…and helping our wish kids and their families make the most of it!

Volunteers are the very special people who, through their contribution of time and their very unique talents, whether helping in the Wish House or directly granting wishes, help the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Arizona carry out its mission “to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy.”

VOLUNTEER POSITIONS

Be the change you wish to see!

Volunteers help grant wishes in many ways and are matched based on interest and ability. To assure your volunteer experience is as fulfilling as it can be, please consider your skills, motivation and the time you are willing to commit when you chose a volunteer opportunity.

Wish Granters
These volunteers are integral in fulfilling wishes by interviewing wish children and their families to determine the child’s favorite wish, completing necessary paperwork, and making the wish special and magical for the child. Volunteers work in teams to plan and fulfill each wish by obtaining gifts and donations. The team has the opportunity to make the wish as unique as each child.

This position requires dedication, flexibility, responsibility, compassion, creativity, imagination and excellent communication skills. Wish granting volunteers must also have reliable transportation and be at least 21 years of age. Wish granting requires a six-hour training session after the initial orientation and continuing education workshops provided by the Foundation.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation is especially in need of wish granting volunteers who speak Spanish as well as who are able to travel for wish visits to distant geographical areas in Southern and Northern Arizona.

Special Events
Volunteers who take part in our special events create a framework of magic through planning, organizing and implementing successful fundraising events. Events may be internal, those hosted by the Foundation, or external, hosted by others on behalf of the Foundation. Whether it is a golf tournament, a black tie gala or a rubber duck race, we need volunteers to help make the events safe and enjoyable. A special event volunteer might be asked to work an information booth, sell raffle tickets, provide registration assistance, or work in setting up and dismantling the event.

Office Volunteers
Join our office staff team to assist in answering the telephone, helping with mailings, inputting computer data or completing special office projects. Computer skills are helpful. Best suits volunteers with great customer service skills, an adaptable attitude and daytime availability.

Specialty Areas
We always have a need for some very specific talents:

• A wish child may have a wish that requires the skill of a landscaper, electrician, computer programmer, painter, or another special talent – ask us, you never know!
• We may hold a fundraiser requiring the skills of a photographer, videographer or D.J.
• If you are a Web designer, graphic designer or programmer and would like to work on our Web site or published materials, we would be happy to discuss this with you.
• In-kind donations are always appreciated.

Translators and Bilingual Volunteers
Bilingual individuals are always welcome additions to our volunteer base. Spanish-speaking volunteers can be especially helpful. These volunteers would work directly with the wish children and their families as wish granters or to assist others, strictly as a translator with Spanish-speaking families. Your assistance would be greatly appreciated!

Meet-and-Greet Volunteers
Welcome wish children and their families to Arizona for their wishes of a lifetime. Volunteers with flexible schedules provide an incredible service to the children by greeting them at the airport, assisting with car rentals, and providing information and directions to their hotel. Each meet-and-greet volunteer can enjoy the thrill of launching wishes and to know they are providing supportive assistance to the wish child and family through sharing their knowledge of the Make-A-Wish procedures, the airport and the surrounding area.

Storytellers
These volunteers have the aptitude or experience in writing stories. These are very special stories, the stories of the wish child’s wish and how it became a reality! The volunteer storyteller will contact the wish family and record the magic that happens when the volunteers work together to make this very special child’s wish come true. These stories will be a legacy for the wish family and the Foundation.

Smilemakers
These special volunteers bring smiles to the faces of children in hospitals receiving treatment. They blow up balloons, dress in costumes and do bedside visits in the children’s wards of local hospitals. Smilemakers also participate in parades and at holiday parties and fairs. Because these volunteers do hospital visits, they must be at least 18 years of age.

Wish Ambassadors
These volunteers truly act as ambassadors to the community, speaking to service organizations, employee groups, etc., to help increase the Foundation’s visibility in the community and to help recruit support for the Foundation in the form of volunteers and donations.

Thank you for your interest in becoming a Make-A-Wish volunteer and a member of a really special group of people!