A minimum of 25 hours of Christian Service is expected each year, freshman through senior year. Numerous opportunities for service volunteers are available at all times on and off campus. 

What counts as Christian Service?

Service must be something that benefits others:
This is the fundamental goal of service: to help others.

It must be something you are not required to do for someone else or some other program:
Responsibilities for student government or Boy Scouts or your requirement for Confirmation do not count.

You cannot get paid or be given credit in any way for the activity.

The organization may not benefit monetarily from your service.

Parents are not permitted to supervise or sign off student hours.

5 Steps to get you started:

Step #1  Find a non-profit organization where you would like to volunteer:
Pre-approved sites and opportunity ideas can be found in the Mission Center, on BDTV and on the school website under Life at Bishop.

Step #2  Pick up a Christian Service Contract (community service form) from the Mission Center or front office or the school website:
If the site you have chosen is not on the pre-approved list you must check with Ms. Carr. If it is on the list, fill out your part of the form and then have the agency fill out their part. (COMPLETELY – dates and everything!)

Step #3  Do your service…with great love!

Step #4  Turn in your COMPLETED service contract to the basket in the front office within 3 weeks of service activity.

Step #5  Repeat above steps until you’ve reached 25 or more hours by the May deadline.

Upcoming Community Service Opportunities 

***Christian Service Opportunities***

Page Youth Center on Tuesdays, starting April 10th through May 22nd.  Volunteers are needed to support players with special needs for the Basketball Buddies at the Page Youth Center from 3:30 - 5pm.  Come dressed and ready to play any week that you can.  Contact Retta Slay @ 805/452-9039 if you have questions.

Peer Buddies  - volunteers are needed.   Volunteers will be trained in how to support their buddy while learning how to teach social skills and experiencing an amazing stimulating camp! 

Summer's Dates:

• Week 1: July 9th-13th
• Week 2: July 16th-20th
• Week 3: July 23rd-27th
• Week 4: July 30th-August 3rd
• Week 5: August 6th-10th
• Week 6: August 13th-17th

Link to the online application for Peer Buddies: http://peerbuddies.com/Inclusion_Camp_Peer_Buddy_Application.html

Summer Volunteering with Cottage Health. Applicants must be 14 years old and above. See additional information here.  Due to limited spaces, the sooner you apply the more opportunities available to you www.cottagehealth.org/volunteer. For more information Connie Castillo-Walsh; Volunteer Coordinator | Cottage Health. Office: (805) 569-7357. Email: ccastill@sbch.org  

St. Raphael Little Souls Sunday School offers classes for 3, 4, 5/6 year old children during the 9:30am Sunday Masses October -May (except for holidays). We offer volunteer hours to high school students who help in the classroom during this time. If you are interested in volunteering in our program, please contact Cecilia Marks.

Santa Barbara Zoo Volunteer Opportunities
Ever wonder how volunteering at the Santa Barbara Zoo makes a difference? View https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUIMT5tsZuA
to see how our volunteers earn community service hours, gain work experience, and meet new friends all while Saving Animals From Extinction! For more details of zoo opportunities visit https://www.sbzoo.org/more/volunteer/#teens

Nonprofit Resource Network is a way to connect with your community, world organizations, break into the nonprofit world, and make your community a better place. Here’s how this resource is relevant to you: it connects people in Santa Barbara who care about making the world a better place. How does it do that? In many ways, but in your case, through the Volunteer Connect page. Through this page, organizations post their volunteer needs. Simply go to https://nprnsb.org/volunteer-connect/ to register as a volunteer.

The Santa Barbara Central Library seeks volunteers for Youth Services' Homework Help program for children in Kindergarten through 6th grade. Teens interested in this program will need to attend a training to prepare for this opportunity. The training will take place at the Santa Barbara Central Library, located at 40 E. Anapamu St.
Volunteers are needed to:

• Assist with children's reading and/or homework
• Commit to volunteer 2 - 4 hours a week
• Sign up for a shift between 3:30 - 6:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, or 2:30 - 6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays. Three different locations are available to volunteer in (Central Library, Eastside, and Carpinteria Library).
• Teens will need to be at least a sophomore in high school, maintain a B GPA or above, and provide a letter of recommendation from teacher.
• Volunteers 18 and older will need to complete a background check/livescan (free contingent on completing 10 hours of service in our community) and a TB test through Partners in Education Adults - Give back to the community and enrich your life! Teens - Earn community service hours and enhance college applications!

To sign up for the training please reply to this email or call the Karla Centeno, Program Coordinator at 805-564-5681 and provide your name, email address and phone number.

Non-Profit Organizations in the Santa Barbara Area

Students are not limited to serving from this list only. These are merely suggestions:

• American Heart Association – 805-963-8862 or https://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/
• American Red Cross – 805-687-1331 or http://www.redcross.org/local/california/central-california/local-chapters/pacific-coast
• Autism Society of America – 805-560-3762 or info@asasb.org
• Assistance League of Santa Barbara – 805-898-1967 or http://www.assistanceleaguesb.com/
• Catholic Charities of Santa Barbara – 805-965-7045 or https://catholiccharitiesusa.org/get-involved
• Boys and Girls Club of Santa Barbara – 805-962-2382 or http://www.boysgirls.org/
• BUNS – 805-683-0521 or buns@silcom.com
• CALM (Child Abuse Listening and Mediation) – 805-739-9102 or http://calm4kids.org/
• Carpinteria Boys and Girls Club – 805-684-4718 or carpmembership@unitedbg.org
• DAWG (Dog Adoption & Welfare Group) – 805-681-0561 or https://www.sbdawg.org/volunteer/
• Direct Relief International – 805-964-4767 or https://www.directrelief.org/
• Food Bank of Santa Barbara – 805-967-5741 or http://foodbanksbc.org/
• Girls Inc. of Santa Barbara – 805-963-4757 or http://girlsincsb.org/
• Goleta Boys and Girls Club – 805-967-5399 or https://www.bgca.org/
• Habitat for Humanity – 805-692-2226 or https://www.habitat.org/
• HEARTS Therapeutic Equestrian Center – 805-964-1519 or www.heartsriding.org/volunteer
• Jewish Federation of Santa Barbara – 805-957-1115 or https://www.jewishsantabarbara.org/
• Make-a-Wish Foundation – 805-676-94474 or info@tri-counties.wish.org
• MDA (Muscular Dystrophy Association) – 805-560-7651 or santabarbara@mdausa.org
• Nature Track – 805-886-2047 or http://www.naturetrack.org
• Peer Buddies – 805-620-7337 http://www.peerbuddies.com/Home.html
• Santa Barbara Safety Town – 805-252-7998 or http://www.sbsafetytown.org/
• Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital – 805-569-7357 or auxiliary@sbch.org
• Santa Barbara Dream Foundation –805-564-2131 or http://www.dreamfoundation.org/generation-dream
• Santa Barbara Family YMCA – 805-687-7727 sb.info@ciymca.org
• Santa Barbara Humane Society – 805-964-4777 or https://www.sbhumanesociety.org/give/volunteers/
• Santa Barbara Police Explorers Program – 805-897-2407 or explorers@sbpd.com
• Santa Barbara Public Library System Homework Help – 805-964-7878 or http://www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/lib/getinvolved/volunteer.asp
• Santa Barbara Rescue Mission – 805 966-1316 or http://www.sbrm.org/about-sbrm/volunteer
• Santa Barbara YMCA – 805-687-7727 or http://www.ymca.net/volunteer/
• Santa Barbara Zoo – 805-962-5339 or volunteer@sbzoo.org
• Special Olympics – 805-884-1516 or https://www.sosc.org/santabarbara
• St. Vincent’s Family Strengthening Program 805-722-5195 or sbrown@sv-sb.org
• Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation – 805-962-7466 or https://www.teddybearcancerfoundation.org/volunteer
• Teen Court of Santa Barbara – 805-730-7575
• Transition House – 805-966-9668 or https://transitionhouse.com/
•  Unity Shoppe – 805-965-4122 or info@unityshoppe.org
• Your local parish/church /synagogue…

Total Christian service hours to be completed by the end of each school year:

• Freshmen – 25 (or more)                 
• Sophomores – 50 (or more) 
• Juniors – 75 (or more)
• Seniors – 100 (or more)

 Have questions or need help?

Have questions or need support? Please contact Dean of Students, Ms. Carr