Featured Highlights

Bowl to Give Back 2013

Join us on Tuesday, June 11, 2013, for Bowl to Give Back, our annual fundraiser that supports the vital, year-round social service programs of Volunteers of America-Greater New York. It is also the kick-off for Operation Backpack, our back-to-school drive benefiting children who are homeless in NYC. Learn more...

Operation Backpack 2013

Join Operation Backpack 2013! Thousands of children in New York City's homeless and domestic violence shelters need school supplies for the upcoming school year. Click here to learn more about Operation Backpack and how you can help!

Home Depot Partners with Volunteers of America to Support Veterans

Thanks to a $175,000 grant from the Home Depot Foundation, our East 119th St Veterans Residence looks wonderful, both inside and out. Learn more about this budding corporate partnership and our East 119th Street Veterans Residence here.

Paige Davis Interview on Fox's Street Talk

Volunteers of America-Greater New York Board Member and TV Personality, Paige Davis, speaks of the importance of volunteerism on Fox’s Good Day Street Talk. See her interview here.

a New York Winter's Eve 2012

a New York Winter's Eve took place at The Plaza Grand Ballroom on Monday, December 10, 2012. An evening of delectable dining and exciting live and silent auctions, our annual gala raises funds to benefit tens of thousands of our neighbors in need. Click to learn more.

Sidewalk Santa® Parade

The annual Sidewalk Santa® Parade took place on Friday, November 23, in New York City. Funds go directly to our Holiday Food Voucher program, which provides our neighbors in need - frail older adults, low-income families, and those living with serious medical illness -- an opportunity to shop for and prepare a special holiday meal at home.

Gifts to Help Those in Need

Shop our Spirit of Giving Catalog this holiday season and purchase a gift that gives back to those less fortunate. Browse our gifts.

How You Can Help: Hurricane Sandy

Many of our programs in the Greater New York area were impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Thanks to the resilience and hard work of our staff, our clients are safe, but the physical damage remains. Find out how you can help.

Remembering 9/11, Celebrating Our Veterans

On September 11, 2012, Volunteers of America joined forces with other organizations and 300 volunteers to paint one of our veterans' residences, assemble hygiene kits and write letters to those currently serving in the armed forces. US Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, and other public officials showed their support.

Operation Backpack 2012: A tremendous success!

Thousands of children in New York City's homeless and domestic violence shelters need school supplies for the upcoming school year. This year, Operation Backpack collected and filled more than 13,500 backpacks, which have been distributed to 150 shelters. You can still donate online! Click for other ways to help or view photos.

Hear from DHS Commissioner Seth Diamond

The New York City Department of Homeless Services Commissioner, Seth Diamond, spoke at Volunteers of America-Greater New York Operation Backpack breakfast. Click to hear his speech.

Volunteers of America Receives The Home Depot Foundation Grant to Help Homeless Veterans

The Home Depot Foundation announces $175,000 grant to Volunteers of America-Greater New York to help homeless veterans in NYC: funds part $1.37 million in grants for Volunteers of America homeless veterans programs nationwide

Bowl to Give Back 2012: Thank you.

Bowl to Give Back 2012 took place on June 13 at Bowlmor Lanes. The fundraiser kicked off this year's Operation Backpack, a drive to collect new, filled backpacks for NYC's homeless kids, as well as raise funds for other Volunteers of America vital social service programs. We thank our generous sponsors, who made Bowl to Give Back 2012 a success!

Volunteers of America in the News

As the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of quality, affordable housing for low and moderate-income households, Volunteers of America plays an important role on the national stage. Our newsworthy efforts on behalf of some of the most vulnerable members of society have made Volunteers of America a respected voice in the national dialogue about social services, especially during these challenging economic times.

They can't do it alone!

As they have since 1902, Volunteers of America's Sidewalk Santas are ringing bells by their chimneys on city streets, collecting funds for our Holiday Food Voucher program. Won't you consider donating online, to help feed your neighbors in need during the holidays?

16th Annual Winter Gala at the Plaza Hotel

Nearly 500 guests gathered in the Grand Ballroom at The Plaza on December 7, for Volunteers of America-Greater New York's most important fund raising event of the year: the 16th annual gala, a New York Winter's Eve. The sold-out gala broke all previous records, with an impressive total of $920,000 raised to benefit tens of thousands of our neighbors in need.

Brightening Birthdays

Birthday parties are a part of a normal, happy childhood. Brightening Birthdays is a Volunteers of America family strengthening program that brings the happiness of family celebrations to homeless children. This is one of the many ways we strive to bring normalcy into the unsettled lives of children who are homeless and give them these very essential childhood moments they might otherwise be denied. The Brightening Birthday parties are held onsite in our family and domestic violence shelters.

Operation Backpack and Paige Davis on CBS New York!

Paige Davis was recently interviewed about her involvement with Operation Backpack, and how you can help. The drive runs from June 27 to July 24. Be sure to drop off new backpacks and/or supplies at any convenient Duane Reade location.

Former Ziegfeld Girl and Husband Leave a Lasting Legacy

The legacy of the late Marion Beard Hutner and her husband Bernie Hutner will long be remembered through the lives of those that their generosity touched, none more so than the over 40,000 men, women and children that Volunteers of America – Greater New York serves each year.

Resources for This Section

  • Sidewalk Santa® Parade
    The annual Sidewalk Santa® Parade took place on Friday, November 23, in New York City. Funds go directly to our Holiday Food Voucher program, which provides our neighbors in need - frail older adults, low-income families, and those living with serious medical illness -- an opportunity to shop for and prepare a special holiday meal at home.
  • Gifts to Help Those in Need
    Shop our Spirit of Giving Catalog this holiday season and purchase a gift that gives back to those less fortunate. Browse our gifts.
  • Remembering 9/11, Celebrating Our Veterans
    On September 11, 2012, Volunteers of America joined forces with other organizations and 300 volunteers to paint one of our veterans' residences, assemble hygiene kits and write letters to those currently serving in the armed forces. US Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, and other public officials showed their support.
  • Granderson's Foundation Helps Operation Backpack
    Grand Kids Foundation, founded by New York Yankees center fielder Curtis Granderson, brought together the three-time All Star and 150 college students to pack more than 250 new backpacks to support Operation Backpack.
  • 16th Annual Winter Gala at the Plaza Hotel
    Nearly 500 guests gathered in the Grand Ballroom at The Plaza on December 7, for Volunteers of America-Greater New York's most important fund raising event of the year: the 16th annual gala, a New York Winter's Eve. The sold-out gala broke all previous records, with an impressive total of $920,000 raised to benefit tens of thousands of our neighbors in need.