New Volunteers
Volunteer Information
Our Address: 16 Brent Drive, Hudson
Our Mission:
Fresh Start Furniture Bank helps restore hope, dignity, and stability in our community by recycling donated furniture and housewares for free to people in need.
About Fresh Start:
Fresh Start is a volunteer-based non-profit that collects donations of furniture and home goods from the public and distributes them for free, to people in need. To receive furniture, clients must obtain a referral from a social service agency. Clients then have 30 days to come in and select their furniture and housewares. Clients can have up to 2 visits and must take all items selected during a visit.
Our Clients:
Every one of our clients has a story and we may never know how they ended up in need. They could be escaping domestic violence, moving out of a shelter, in recovery from physical or mental illness, Veterans, refugees, immigrants, recovering from addiction, or working low-wage jobs.
Our clients generally have a lot going on in their lives, so our volunteers need to be patient and calm making sure that every interaction is treated with dignity and respect.
Our Volunteers:
Along with our Donors, our Volunteers are our biggest asset. If you have a special talent that you would like to share, please let us know!
Store Hours:
Monday 8:45-12
- Store catch-up day - No client appointments or donations accepted
Tuesdays and Thursdays 8:45-12
- Donations of housewares and linens are accepted.
- Client appointments are at 9:15 and 10:15.
Saturdays Donations: 8:15-10:30
- All donations on the “what we take” list are accepted.
Saturday Clients: 9:15-12:30
- Client appointments are at 9:30 and 10:30.
What to Wear:
Please dress comfortably and in layers. Temperatures vary quite a bit in different parts of the building. Be prepared to walk outdoors: you may need a warm coat, hat, gloves, or a raincoat. Keep in mind that you may get dirty. No open-toed shoes. Once you volunteer at Fresh Start 3 times, you will receive a green Fresh Start shirt! If you would like a second T-shirt, the cost is $10.
Where to Park:
Volunteers should park after the entrance on the left side. Parking spots close to the entrance are for clients and donors.
When you Arrive for a Shift:
Please plan to arrive 10-15 minutes before the shift.
- Check in at the front desk.
- Hang coats on a rack in the front office or sorting area.
- If a problem should arise during a shift, please speak to Sue, Geoff, Bob, or the front desk volunteer.
Volunteers’ Donations:
Donations from volunteers have the same rules as any donors and will be inspected.
To Sign Up for a Volunteer Shift or to Cancel:
- Go to the FSFB Website: FreshStartFurnitureBank.org
- Click on Volunteers
- Scroll down to the bottom of the page to Current Volunteers, click here to logon
- Login / type in your email address and your password, default password is fsfb. Click Submit.
- Click on Volunteer Scheduling
- Select Available radio button for the date(s) you want to sign up.
- A job list appears, based on your training, and “Click here to sign up”.
- You’ll receive an email of the job role immediately & a reminder one day prior to that date.
- To cancel, select Unavailable radio button or in your reminder email, click “I am NOT available” link.
Please feel free to take pictures but ask permission first of any clients or donors.
We use #FreshStartFurnitureBank when tagging photos.
We also post to Instagram.
Please join our private Facebook Fresh Start Furniture Bank Volunteer group!
Questions: Email: volunteers@freshstartfurniturebank.org