Community Service

Our school motto Non Sibi Sed Aliis, not for self but for others, is at the heart of the Govs community.

For many students, the sense of fulfillment they earn from helping others and giving of themselves encourages them to remain civic-minded and community-oriented throughout their lives.

Students are required to complete 100 hours of community service in order to graduate. The options to do so are nearly endless: be a field coordinator at the Massachusetts Special Olympics Fall Soccer Tournament, walk dogs at an animal shelter, serve dinner at a food kitchen, wrap holiday gifts for kids, spend the afternoon shooting hoops with kids at the Salisbury Boys & Girls Club, or weed the garden beds at a playground.

Community Service Resources and Local Opportunities

EDUCATION

  • Pathways is an adult education provider in Lynn.

FOOD INSTABILITY

  • Our Neighbors Table is a food pantry in Amesbury, has opportunities to volunteer throughout the week.
  • The Newbury Food Pantry, in Newbury is a food pantry that often looks for volunteers on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
  • The Open Door in Gloucester has a number of different volunteer opportunities, from helping in their warehouse to food pantry to making meal deliveries.
  • Cor Unum Meal Center in Lawrence needs volunteers for each and every meal they serve, seven days a week.

To find a food pantry near you, click here.

HOMELESSNESS

  • Lazarus House is a shelter located in Lawrence. They are always looking for groups to help with dinner preparations.
  • Lifebridge Northshore offers a number of different services and shelters for people experiencing homelessness across the region. They have a few different locations with different ways to volunteer.

To find a shelter near you, click here.

ANIMAL CARE FACILITIES

  • Ipswich Animal Shelter is an animal shelter in Ipswich. Student volunteers over 18 can help with animal care. Student volunteers under 18 can help clean or assist with other needs.
  • Merrimack Feline Rescue Society is a cat shelter in Salisbury often in need of volunteers to help care for their kittens.
  • The Service Dog Project in Ipswich breeds and trains Great Danes to become certified service dogs for people with mobility difficulties. They are always looking for volunteers to help with various projects around their site to care for the dogs.

SERVING CHILDREN

  • The Community Giving Tree, which has sites in both Boxford and Lawrence, is an organization that helps provide low-income families in Northeast Massachusetts with recycled clothing, baby equipment, and other basic necessities.
  • Cradles to Crayons, with a site in Newton, MA, collects new and nearly new children’s clothing and supplies to distribute to children in need through social services partners.
  • The Windrush Farm offers a therapeutic riding program for children in need. Experience with horses is required to volunteer.

ONLINE OPPORTUNITIES

DONATIONS

Most of the local organizations listed above accept donations. If a student would like to organize a drive, please reach out to Director of Community Service Ryan Badecker.

Ozzie's Kids

For the past nineteen years, the Govs community–students, parents, staff, and faculty–has generously supported Ozzie's Kids, a program founded by deceased Officer Ozzie Hardy, to provide a holiday for children at risk. Each year of participation, we have improved our sponsorship, and last year the generosity of our community provided over 120 children in Haverhill with holiday gifts including a winter coat.

Special Olympics

Each year, Govs hosts the Massachusetts Special Olympics Fall Soccer Tournament. During the games, more than 1,000 athletes, representing more than 100 teams from across the state, gather to compete in a series of round-robin soccer matches. As hosts of the event, our students are responsible for arranging the opening ceremonies, running "Olympic Town," organizing public relations activities, registering athletes, feeding participants, and overseeing the competitions. Hundreds of students and faculty volunteer each year for this memorable event.