VOLUNTEER WITH LIFT: Empower Families to Access Justice

LIFT invites volunteers of all ages and disciplines to participate in its mission to promote access to justice for children and families. We are deeply grateful to our current and past volunteers for contributing to the success and sustainability of our programs.

Who are LIFT’s volunteers? LIFT’s volunteers have a wide range of educational, professional, and personal experiences, but they share a common vision: to improve the experiences of New Yorkers involved in the complex court system. LIFT’s current and past roster of volunteers and interns includes retired professionals, paralegals, law students and recent law school graduates, undergraduate college students, high school students, and lawyers.

Current volunteer opportunities at LIFT:

Special Project: Help LIFT Take Its Next Step in Becoming a "Green" Office!
Legal Volunteer Opportunities
Development & Communications Volunteer Opportunities

>> Special Project: Help LIFT Take Its Next Step in Becoming a "Green" Office!

LIFT seeks a team of volunteers to help with a special project that will take a giant leap forward in our ongoing initiative to become a “green” office.  This team of volunteers will help convert paper files to digital format, assist with the creation of systems for organizing the digital files, and ensure proper archiving of old files.

Scheduling is flexible. Work can be conducted anytime Monday through Friday between 9am and 5pm. The project will begin as soon as possible, on-site at LIFT’s Central Office in lower Manhattan.  This is an unpaid volunteer position.

Ideal volunteers will posses:

• Outstanding organization skills and attention to detail
• Comfort with computers, scanners, and other office technology
• A commitment to helping ensure accurate and timely completion of the project

This is a great opportunity for anyone who wants to provide desperately-needed help to an impactful nonprofit organization. LIFT offers a pleasant work environment and is close to public transportation.

The impact of your volunteer time will be immense – we hope you will apply today!  Interested volunteers should email a letter of interest with "Archiving Volunteer" in the subject line to ljohanson@liftonline.org.

>> Legal Volunteer Opportunities

>> Answer Questions on LIFT’s Family Law Information Telephone and Email Hotlines: Get trained in one particular area of family law to develop an expertise and be able to answer questions on that topic. Ideal candidates for this opportunity are law students, recent law school or college graduates, and retired lawyers.

Where: LIFT’s Central Office, 350 Broadway, Suite 501, or answer Email Hotline questions from your home or office.
Hours of Operation: 9:00am – 5:00pm
Minimum Time Commitment: 2 hours per week. We ask law students to volunteer for a complete semester.

>> Help Families Navigate the NYC Family Courts: Work side-by-side with LIFT staff at our Family Court-based Sites to answer questions and address concerns regarding Court procedure and family law matters, and hand out our Legal Resource Guides. Ideal candidates for this opportunity are law students, recent law school or college graduates, and retired lawyers.

Where: Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, or Staten Island Family Courthouses
Hours of Operation: 9:00am – 5:00pm
Minimum Time Commitment: 4 hours per week. We ask law students to volunteer for a complete semester.

>> Development & Communications Volunteer Opportunities

>> Document Translation: Help non-English speakers navigate the court system by translating LIFT’s Legal Resource Guides into languages other than English.

Skills Required: Fluency in Arabic, Chinese, French, Haitian-Creole, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Tagalog, Urdu, or Yiddish.
Where: Flexible
Hours: Flexible
Minimum Time Commitment: 1 hour per week

>> Development and Communications: Provide administrative support while learning about the inner workings of a robust nonprofit development and communications team. Activities may include assistance with special event planning, communications or fundraising campaigns, or multi-media projects.

Skills Required: Outstanding computer skills (Internet and Microsoft programs, knowledge of Salesforce, Dreamweaver, and/or Photoshop a plus), attention to detail, and excellent research and administrative skills.
Where: LIFT's Central Office
Hours: Flexible
Minimum Time Commitment: 4 hour per week

Extensive training is provided to all LIFT volunteers

For more information or to apply for a position, please send a resume and letter of interest to volunteer@LIFTonline.org.