Many people have the desire to lend a helping hand, but struggle to find the right volunteer opportunities, especially when they are a part of a marginalized community where safety is a real issue. How many times in your life have you felt the urge to take action in your community and “do something” about the hardships that you have witnessed, experienced, or both? Maybe you felt overwhelmed trying to find the right volunteer opportunity, or maybe you felt like the only LGBTQ+ person in the room. 

We have all needed the help and support of our community at one time or another; who among us hasn’t felt alone, isolated, overwhelmed, and/ or powerless to make the change we NEED to see in our community? For Pride Northwest, building and lifting up community lies at the heart of what Pride means and is intended to do. Pride was never intended to be an "event for event' sake" without also taking action. It was (and is) a call to visibility, a public statement of our presence and power in numbers. Pride is a call to action and a vehicle for forward progress and momentum for ALL of our community!

Pride Northwest is taking a step toward empowering our LGBTQ+ community to get involved and to take action, through PRIDE DAYS OF SERVICE! Pride Northwest is building a model of Pride that honors its origins while also looking forward by putting Pride into action. Of acting and taking action in ways that build community and strengthen bonds, and empowering action for change. We are organizing ongoing opportunities for our volunteers and community members to volunteer throughout the year, helping local organizations and community groups dedicated to making our home a place where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. 

Join us in spending a few hours each month to give back to our community! Our first opportunities are coming up in January and February, where we will be volunteering with the Oregon Food Bank. To sign up or to learn more about Pride Days of Service, please contact Megan Reno at info@pridenw.org. 

#gayitforward