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Charity Volunteers

Volunteers don't necessarily have the time, they just have the heart
~Elizabeth Andrew

We appreciate our volunteers and rely on
you to help us continue our mission!

Giving ECF the gift of time is a great way to get involved
and help at ECF! We are always looking for a variety of support at all four Regional Centers. Simply click on the town below that is closest to you to contact the Regional Director.
Midland Park, Wall, Woodbury Heights and Clark

Have another idea or general inquiry? info@emmanuelcancer.org

Volunteers Packing Food

Food Pantry 

 Includes assisting in the Regional Centers’ food pantries (stocking shelves, packing groceries for families, etc.) and making food deliveries to families

Administrative

Includes light typing, data entry, filing, answering phones, internet research, bi-lingual writing and other translation services for Spanish-speaking clients

Office Work
Volunteers with presents for sick children

Material Assistance

coordinating food and toy drives in your community, working a booth at our annual holiday party, creating birthday bags, helping with the regional Holiday Wish Lists, etc.

Events

Organize a Dress Down Day, concert, raffle, or another creative fundraiser in your community. Our Regional Directors have lots of ideas, or suggest one of your own.

Outdoor Wedding Table

Run a Food Drive

Help us feed our families! Our Food Pantry shelves need to be filled and continually replenished.  Have a food drive for us at your home, place of work, school, local community organization or supermarket.

Food Donation

Host or Plan a Fundraising Event

Every year families and organizations hold fundraising events of all kinds to raise money for ECF. These can be athletic events, holiday vendor bazaars, garage sales, small get-togethers with friends, moms-night-outs…anything you can dream up!

Cocktail Event

Adopt a Family During the Holidays

During the holiday season every ECF family member writes a “wish list” of gifts, and ECF volunteers can adopt a family and fulfill their wishes.

Happy family

Be an Ambassador for ECF

Volunteers can also serve as spokespeople, introducing ECF to schools, churches, civic/community groups and corporate/business leaders. They can make presentations at service organizations and rotary clubs, help us with corporate connections and bring our brochures to their local pediatrician’s office, library or school to let families in need know that we are a resource for them.

Lecture

Kids Helping Kids

Kids are never too young to learn about philanthropy. Here are some ways to help kids with cancer in your area:

  • Have a yard sale. Sell the toys and clothing you no longer need. Do this with the neighboring kids for even more fun!

  • Collect donations at your birthday party. Many kids have plenty already, and have chosen to ask those who are attending their birthday parties to make a contribution to ECF instead of bringing a gift.

  • Open a lemonade stand. It’s a time-tested business that never goes out of style!

  • Be creative! There are lots more ways to help!

Diverse Kindergarten

Know a Child with Cancer?

Here are some ideas on how to help.

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Often, when we learn that a friend, family member, or neighbor has a child who has been diagnosed with cancer, we don’t know what to say or how to begin to help. This list, compiled from experience and from suggestions given by Julia Reichert, director of A Lion In the House, offers 10 ways that you can help.(Please also remember that cancer treatments can span a long stretch of time–even years–so extend

your hand to help as often as you are able! And, don’t forget to let them know about the Emmanuel Cancer Foundation. We are here to help.)

1. Lend a hand with household chores: Offer to rake the leaves or weed the garden, take the car to the shop, pick up groceries, take a pet to the vet, etc. Families often don’t have time to take care of their chores, and having a trustworthy friend help out can be an incredible relief.

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2. Volunteer to cook a meal: Even better, offer to make a bunch of meals that can be frozen and heated up quickly in a microwave or oven as needed. Find out what the patient and his/her family really like to eat. Also remember that chemotherapy can cause painful mouth sores, so in that case try to make a couple meals that are not acidic.

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3. Arrange for limo vouchers or taxi vouchers (Great solution for co-workers, church/synagogue members, other group members):Whether a family has to commute two hours or 20 minutes to the hospital, an on-call limo service or taxi vouchers can help alleviate the added problem and often high cost of parking a car for several hours in a hospital parking lot.

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4. Offer to babysit: Caregivers need a break, so offer to sit with the child and read, watch a movie, or keep them company while they sleep at the hospital or at home. Also, parents may need babysitters for siblings while their child is at the hospital or clinic receiving treatment.

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5. (For teachers) Arrange to send notes/drawings home: Receiving mail from classmates and friends can really brighten a child’s day and warm up a stark hotel room. One homeroom teacher arranged to have paper and markers in the front of the classrooms, so that the child’s friends could write a card for her at any time. The child received a batch of cards from her friends every week, and it always cheered her up!

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6. Ideas for gifts:

  • Extra pairs of soft pajamas (flannel or cotton are good for air-conditioned hospitals); button-up fronts and low pockets make it easier to deal with IV lines and spontaneous doctor exams.

  • Slipper socks.

  • A special, soft blanket or squishy pillow (the blankets and pillows at the hospital aren’t the most comfortable).

  • Activity or storybooks: there’s a lot of hurry up and wait on treatment days or while the patient is hospitalized. Find out what the child likes to read and do for fun.

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7. Appoint a spokesperson: Families are often bombarded by calls to check up on the child’s condition. Work with the family to appoint a spokesperson to be the go-to-person for information and updates.

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8. Siblings need attention, too: When the sick child is confined to the house, offer to take the other siblings on a walk, window-shopping, or to the movies. Find out what the siblings like to do. Don’t pry with questions about the family, but be ready to listen and reassure.

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9. Listen and Be Sensitive: Don’t wear the parents out with questions. Don’t bring up tough questions unless the parents/caregivers offer to go there. If a parent has lost a child, don’t say “Well, she/he is in a better place now.” or “I know how you feel.” Most parents feel that there is no better place for their child than with his/her family, and unless you really have lost a child yourself, you can’t possibly understand.

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10. Stay in touch! Don’t avoid the family because you don’t know what to say or do. If you’re nervous, send a card! If you want to help and don’t know what to do, ask someone who is close to the family.

There are many other fundraising ideas! We are always impressed by the creative ways our volunteers raise money to support our mission each year:

  • Restaurant or fast food gift certificate collection

  • Coin drive at schools or offices.

  • Ticket collection for movies, sporting events, plays, amusement parks, museums, etc.

  • Surgical supply store gift certificates collection

  • Area hospital parking coupons collection

  • Hair cut gift certificates collection

  • Gasoline or oil change vouchers collection

  • New snow suit drive

  • New sneaker or gift certificate drive

  • Back pack and school supplies drive

  • Create letters for the holidays (Santa, Elves, Easter bunny)

  • Collect gently used electronics (gaming systems, video games, ipod/ipads) for children stuck at home

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