A lot of people don't know about Our House, but what the staff does is amazing. Our House is a…read moreplace where homeless families can get childcare for their children as they go and seek jobs, housing and other basic needs to get themselves back on their feet again. I volunteered last summer. The first time I went, I read to some 3 and 4 year olds. I almost cried when one of the kids asked me if I lived in a house. When I said yes, her eyes lit up and she said, "Really? I want to live in one, too." If I could have put all of those kids and their families into an apartment that day, I would have. Our House always needs volunteers AND donations, so help them out however you can.

I donated clothes and money to them today and I was touched by the environment and their…read morepurpose/goals. I walked in and everyone was really nice and very appreciative. The kids were happy and that was such a delight. If you read this, please make a donation. No donation is too small and little drops of water will turn into a pond. Also, volunteer if you have the time. God bless you!

I am by no means a thrifter. Thrift shops have a weird smell and I'm way too impatient to sort…read morethrough them. Which is ironic because I have no problem spending 48 hours in a Banana Republic outlet. Not to mention Dillards but I digress.. Granny wanted to go to The Goodwill so we did. It's a fairly new location right off of Flat Shoals Pkwy, in the plaza with Family Dollar. There's parking galore and the store is huge! There's bad music playing (like in most stores) and it's brightly lit. Items range from toys to clothes to furniture. New inventory arrives every fifteen minutes so as you can imagine, there's a lot of stuff! The store is very organized but in a weird, savant sort of way. Shirts are sorted by type (t-shirt, blouse, uniform) and color (pink, rose, fuscia), but not by size. The denim section is just as crazy. They have rows and rows of jeans that aren't sorted by size. We were looking for petites. There's no petite section :(. But the selection is vast, the fitting rooms are clean, there are cool shopping carts and some pretty good sales if you can figure them out. Tiny plastic tabs are attached to each item. If you get a certain color tag (and the color changes weekly) you get a percentage off! I thought the prices were a little high. But my brother (a card-carrying member of Thrifters Anonymous) explained that Goodwill Industries is non-profit. Items are more than they would be at a Value Village because 83% of their revenue is spent on programs. The Goodwill helped over 300,000 people find jobs last year so you're shopping for a cause. A random sample of prices: Slippers $3 Ties $3 Women's pants $5.75 Women's blouses $5.75 Shoes $6 Women's jeans $7.47 Overpriced piece of gym equipment $350 Yes, there are a lot of questionable items. But if you take your time, I'm sure you will find some diamonds in the rough. Happy treasure hunting!

Always clean and organized. I founnd the prettiest last mInute Calvin Klein dress in here and got…read moreit for about $6 bucks at $150 retail!

The entrance area was clean and inviting, and the unit itself was clean. I like that I don't have…read moreto keep up with a key and PIN code to get in and out, the app is really convenient. Mikoya, the assistant manager, was super helpful as well.

I so love this place and the security. They make sure you are ok and if you have any problems they…read moretry to fix it right away. Great choice to make.

Nobody gives back to the community more than Freewishes. Tia, Mrs J and everyone else involved are…read morewonderful. This is one of the few charities I feel are genuine.

From the owner: Our nonprofit organization works with assisting seniors and families who are facing emerging issues…read morewith their health due to lack of an adequate amount of nutritional foods & supplies. Our goals and objectives are developed to ensure the mission’s goals are carried out and measured effectively. Our purpose is to enrich the lives of the people in our community. We shall make sure our objectives are aligned with S.M.A.R.T (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time)

I love the Pre-K program. My son teacher's are the best. Ms.Ivey & Mrs. Mills are fantastic. Thank…read moreyou ladies so much for looking after my son.

I never thought to "rate" a volunteering center until I saw a list of the best places to volunteer,…read morebut it is definitely important. I have been here several times both for school credit and for interest. It was funny how the first time I went here, it was shortly before I started nursing school and I was exposed to so many different types of medical equipment and I was thinking "I am going to be working with all these things?" Years later, I can quickly tell the difference between different types of equipment, or at least sometimes I can give a basic category. The staff here is awesome and I love the way they are set up online. I have always left here feeling like I contributed to a global movement and it helps that I work in healthcare. My only complaint once was that after emailing the volunteer coordinator about a potential friend joining, they said they were "past the limit" when many people didn't show up that day and from my experiences with planning volunteer events, 100% of the people who sign up never come. Also, I think they can do a little better job of orienting new people. Even after having volunteered here a couple of times, there were days where I had no direction and was confused as to what I was suppose to be doing and did extra work for 20 minutes before I realized what I was suppose to be doing. I could have used those 20 minutes for productivity.

Medshare is a non profit humanitarian aid organization. I volunteered with a bunch of coworkers on…read moreour annual day of service. This was my third year. I believe the work they do is phenomenal. Medshare collects and distributes medical supplies and biomedical equipment and training to underserved communities in need around the world; 97 countries to date. It's hard to critique such a place. They are literally saving lives! As a volunteer who was on the afternoon shift (1pm-4pm), there was significant time wasted and not used to actually pack supplies. They told our group to arrive 15 minutes early before the shift started, which we did. However, orientation didn't start until 1:15. They showed a 5 minute video explaining what they do and who they help. Then introductions of the staff and a tour of the large facility. Not sure exactly how long that took but easily 30 minutes. For us repeat volunteers not time well spent. Then around 3:30pm the staff told us to finish our final boxes and clean up our area. After a brief wrap up speech and tally of boxes packed for our shift, we were out the door at 3:50pm. We probably got 90 minutes of hands on work. Would love to do more.