Category: Volunteer Opportunities in Pittsburgh

Volunteer Here: 2024 Albright Thanksgiving Eve Dinner
If you have been a long-time reader of IheartPGH, you know that this is one cause I support each year.

The Albright Thanksgiving Eve dinner is a free community meal that was first organized by a Boy Scout Troop that met at the Albright United Methodist Church in Bloomfield. Members of the Albright congregation and members of the community have kept this tradition going and 2024 is the 50th Anniversary of the Thanksgiving Eve Dinner.

2024 Thanksgiving Eve Dinner Details
- ️ Date: Wednesday, November 27, 2024
- ⏰ Time: 5:30 PM
- Location: First United Methodist Church Social Hall 5401 Centre Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15232 (Enter above the Pittsburgh Toy Lending Library)
- All are welcome to attend!
- The dinner is completely free. Just show up.
Volunteer Information

Looking for a place to volunteer? Come join us!

We need help with cooking, serving, dishes, and lots more. Families are welcome to volunteer.

Check out the 2024 Albright Thanksgiving Eve Dinner FAQ for more info.

Want to help? Fill our the Friends of Albright Volunteer form.

Donate!

You can help support the Thanksgiving Eve dinner by making a contribution to the Friends of Albright GoFundMe page. (I am one of the founders of Friends of Albright. Friends of Albright is a project of New Sun Rising, and all donations made to Friends of Albright through the GoFundMe page are tax deductible.)

Help me reach the goal of 50 donors!

I have set a personal goal of getting 50 different people to donate to the GoFundMe campaign in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the meal. If you would be willing to donate $5 or $10 (or more!) that would be great!
November 21, 2024
Help Serve A Free Thanksgiving-Eve Dinner

Thanksgiving, well Thanksgiving-Eve, has become my favorite holiday of the year. I’ve posted about this a few times over the years, so I will try to summarize…

In 2012, I was asked via a Facebook post from a friend to volunteer to serve food at a free Thanksgiving dinner. I had no idea when I walked into the kitchen, that I was walking into much more than a dinner.

In 2014, this is what I posted to Facebook after volunteering at the Thanksgiving-Eve dinner:

There are so many amazing people in this city that are Pittsburghers. Sometimes I am lucky enough to get to spend some a few moments with those people. Tonight, I helped a friend clean up from the community dinner that has been organized at the Albright United Methodist Church since the 1970s. The volunteers were led by a man that is 75 and has worked at Ritters for over 40 years. Earlier this year, he left Ritters and now works at Dennys. Today he cooked 9 turkeys and all of the fixings. Tomorrow he will feed 35 people at his house, then go to work at Dennys at 5pm. I have helped with the clean up for this dinner for the past 4 years and never had the chance to hear this story. I’ll gladly wash the pots and pans, and mop the floor any night of the week if I get to spend time with Pittsburghers like this.

On top of that, another kind Pittsburgher saw my post on Reddit about volunteering a the dinner and showed up to volunteer with out having heard of me or my blog. He had taken a quiz on Facebook and learned that today was his 10,000th day alive. To celebrate that, he spent the evening helping a few strangers.

That is just a little slice of Pittsburgh for you.

This year is the 45th Annual Albright Thanksgiving-Eve dinner. It is a free meal, cooked and served by volunteers. The guest are neighbors from across the city – some are hungry, some are lonely, some are there to take home some turkey to eat on Thanksgiving.

Help make the 45th Annual Albright Thanksgiving-Eve Dinner a success

1. Spread the word! Please invite your friends, neighbors, community groups and anyone else in Pittsburgh who needs some food & fellowship to attend. Here is a Facebook event you can share.

2. Donate $10. I’ve set a goal of getting 45 people to contribute to the GoFundMe in honor of this being the 45th annual meal. Click here to donate to the GoFundMe page (Friends of Albright is a project of New Sun Rising). We’ve just crossed the half-way mark and it would be great to get 20 more donors before next week!

3. Volunteer. This meal is 100% volunteers from the cooking to the cleaning. I’m incredibly proud that thanks to volunteers we are now able to use real plates and silverware and have significantly reduced the amount of trash that we produced when the meal was served on paper plates. Sign up to volunteer here.

November 21, 2019
Thanksgiving Events for a Good Cause – Cycling, Yoga & More
With Thanksgiving just one week away, one of the questions that pops up around this time of year is “where can I volunteer to help serve a holiday meal?” In addition to volunteering, here are some Thanksgiving events around Pittsburgh that support great local causes. Know of other events that should be on the list? Please share in the comments below.

Pedal for the Pantry 2018 – Food drive bike ride/race

Sat. 11/17 – for those who like to bike in the cold

This one caught my eye on Facebook because of the image posted on the Facebook event. Pedal around Pittsburgh picking up items for a Thanksgiving dinner and drop those items off at the Wilkinsburg Food Pantry, earn points and win awesome prizes. Check out the Facebook page for some of the very nice prizes including swag from BikePgh and a bike that was donated by Golden Triangle Bike Rental.
- Saturday, November 17, 2018
- The race starts at 2 pm, afterparty at 5 pm
- Register online here. More details here.
44th Annual Thanksgiving Eve Community Meal – Volunteers & Donations Needed

Wed. 11/21: for anyone who can lend a hand or donate a few dollars

This one is near and dear to my heart. A friend who grew up helping with these dinners asked me to help out a few years ago. I showed up late, which ended up being helpful because they needed someone to take over on the dishwashing. (Life lesson – it is never too late to show up to volunteer). This meal started as an Eagle Scout project – offer up a free, home-cooked Thanksgiving meal. Last year over 100 volunteers showed up and helped to cook and serve dinner for 200 people. It is a beautiful thing when neighbors come together to share a meal. Every little bit helps if you want to volunteer for an hour that is great. If you can donate $10 that is helpful too. Last year 64 people made a donation to the GoFundMe page, I’m hoping we can beat that number this year.
- Wednesday, November 21, 2018
- Volunteer – anytime after 10 am
- Dinner 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
- Location: First United Methodist Church Social Hall, the entrance is on Centre Ave above the Toy Lending Library, across from Panera.
- Volunteer Sign Up here – http://bit.ly/2OHsFHv
- Donations can be made on the GoFundMe page here – http://bit.ly/2OHszQ9
YMCA Turkey Trot

Thur. 11/22: for runners/walkers who want to burn a few calories and support the YMCA
- Thursday, November 22, 2018
- 8:00 am – 1-mile walk
- 8:30 am – 5k and 5-mile race
- The races start at PNC Park
Giving Thanks – Thanksgiving Day Yoga + Live Music to Benefit 412 Food Rescue

Thur 11/22: for anyone who needs some gentle yoga before a big meal

100% of the proceeds from this class will be donated to 412 Food Rescue. This gentle yoga class will be accompanied by live guitar music.
- Thursday, November 22, 2018
- 9:00 am
- BYS Yoga Collective, 1113 E Carson Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15203
- See the Facebook event for details
November 16, 2018
Thanksgiving-Eve Volunteers Needed To Serve Community Meal
This is one of my favorite posts to write every year. Six or seven years ago, an old friend posted on Facebook that volunteers were needed to help cook and serve a Thanksgiving-Eve meal. I showed up and helped to wash some dishes and I have gone back to volunteer every year. You can read my Facebook post from November 26, 2014, it is probably the best summary of my experience.

The congregation of Albright has been hosting this free meal for 42 years. It is a big old Thanksgiving dinner, turkey, stuffing, and all of fixing. The meal is prepared by volunteers and served to anyone who needs a hot meal and some fellowship. It is hard to summarize in a few sentences, but it just all works. Neighbors come together every year to make sure that other neighbors have something to eat. When there are enough leftovers, most people leave with a take-out box of something to eat the next day.

There are 3 ways you can help make sure this years Thanksgiving-eve dinner is a success.

Volunteers getting ready to serve the annual Thanksgiving-Eve dinner
1. Sign up for a volunteer shift! Volunteers are needed Wednesday to cook and serve the meal. All are welcome to help. This dinner is a massive undertaking, the Albright congregation has it down to a science and with volunteer help, the entire meal comes together and dinner is served.Sign up to help here: https://goo.gl/forms/kiWBAxOllSjclKvx1.Volunteers will be needed all day on Wednesday. Children who are accompanied by a parent are welcome to help.
2. Make a Donation. Contributions can be made on 2017 Albright Thanksgiving Dinner GoFundMe page. Last year 24 people donated to the cause.I’ve set a personal goal of having 50 different people donate to this year’s dinner, which is double the number of donors from last year. As of today, 40 people have made a donation to the dinner. We have raised enough money to cover the basic costs, but it would be great to raise a little bit more so we can make sure we have enough food for anyone who shows up. (Donations are made to New Sun Rising which serves as the fiscal sponsor for Friends of Albright).
3. Spread the word. Please invite your friends to help and attend the dinner. You can share this Facebook event page and the posted included below.
2017 Albright Thanksgiving-Eve Dinner

Wednesday, November 22, 2017
5:30-7:00
Dinner starts at 5:30
The dinner will be held in the First United Methodist Church Social Hall
Facebook event link
November 16, 2017
Learn about great Pittsburgh Places to Volunteer at the Help or High Water Party
This is one of those events that highlights some of the best of Pittsburgh. Hosted by Pittsburgh Cares, a non-profit organization that matches people who want to volunteer with organizations that need volunteers, this party is a chance to find out more about where you can volunteer your time. Pittsburgh Cares is a great organization and they are bring together over 35 other amazing organizations for a big awesome volunteer party at the Union Project. (The Union Project is a perfect spot for a Pittsburgh volunteer fair because most of the remodeling of the building was done by, you guessed it, volunteers.)

If you are looking to get more involved in your community, meet some other civic minded folks or just find out more about what these organizations do everyday, stop by the Union Project on Thursday night for Help or High Water II.

Help or High Water II: A Volunteer Fair

Thursday, September 21, 2017
6-10pm
The Union Project

Here are the details from the Help or High Water II: A Volunteer Fair (and a birthday party!) Facebook Event:

The first “Help or High Water” event in January was such a success — hundreds of volunteers, dozens of nonprofit agencies in attendance — that Pittsburgh Cares is organizing another to help us commemorate our 25th year of serving the Pittsburgh region.

In other words, happy birthday to us!

We’re celebrating with food trucks, beer from Full Pint Brewing, wine from J&D Cellars, Maggie’s Farm Rum, Red Star Kombucha, celebrity bartenders, and more. Bring your friends, bring your wallets (suggested $5 at the door), and bring your willingness to improve your community by supporting one (or more) of Pittsburgh’s many worthy charities and service agencies.

While you’re here, get to know a bit more about the evening’s beneficiary, Pittsburgh Cares, which works to advance a culture of volunteerism and civic engagement in the region. Pittsburgh Cares matches non-profits with volunteers of all ages, and organizes one-time and recurring volunteer activities.

This volunteer fair is open to all ages, all abilities, anyone and everyone who wants to get active and give back, but is unsure where to start. Come out to the Union Project on Sept. 21, have a drink, and start building a more vibrant city by meeting amazing people from:
1. 412 Food Rescue @412FoodRescue
2. ACLU of Pennsylvania @aclupa
3. All for All
4. Amachi Pittsburgh
5. Assemble
6. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh
7. Bike Pittsburgh
8. Book’Em (Pittsburgh’s Books To Prisoners)
9. Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
10. Casa San Jose
11. CeaseFirePA
12. Community Human Services Corporation
13. Coro Pittsburgh
14. Dress for Success Pittsburgh
15. Engineers Without Borders Pittsburgh Professional Chapter
16. Focus On Renewal
17. GASP
18. GLCC of Pittsburgh
19. Girls Rock! Pittsburgh
20. Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council – GPLC
21. Homeless Children’s Education Fund
22. Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Pittsburgh-Refugee & Immigrant Services
23. Just Harvest
24. Keys Service Corps AmeriCorps
25. Lawrenceville United
26. Mattress Factory – Museum of Contemporary Art
27. Northern Area Multi-Service Center – Landmark Home Health-Refugee Resettlement
28. One Pennsylvania
29. PennFuture
30. Pennsylvania Resources Council
31. Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse
32. PULSE – Pittsburgh Urban Leadership Service Experience
33. PPWP–Planned Parenthood of Western PA
34. Proud Haven
35. Wesley Family Services-In Service of Seniors
36. YNPN Pittsburgh
September 20, 2017