Summer Fun: Pay If Forward

Editor's note: This story is part of a 10-part series about how to keep your children busy during summer vacation. in the series.

The organizes events and fundraisers to help our community throughout the school year, but just because it's summer doesn't mean kids should take a break from charity.

Luckily, there are plenty of options for students and recent graduates to lend a hand while school's out, including:

• Volunteermatch.org pairs volunteers with organizations that need help their area.Visit volunteermatch.org for more information.
• Oakland County Parks offers a variety of volunteer opportunities throughout the summer in many of its recreation and environmental programs. Call 248-975-9717, e-mail boydr@oakgov.com or visit destinationoakland.com for more information.
• Greening of Detroit is seeking volunteers to help maintain community gardens throughout Metro Detroit. Call 313-237-8733 or visit greeningofdetroit.com for more information.
• Berkley-Huntington Woods Youth Assistance seeks volunteers throughout the year to work on camp scholarships, family education, the Mentors Plus program, youth recognition and fundraising. Call 248-837-8102 or visit bhwya.org for more information.
• The Berkley High School Alumni Society says its mission is "to connect graduates, teachers, staff, parents and community members while working together for a common cause – supporting Berkley High School." E-mail info@berkleyalumni.org or visit berkleyalumni.org for more information about how to get involved.
• International Experience is seeking host families for exchange students during the 2011-2012 school year beginning in August. Call 952-303-5473, visit www.​ie-usa.​com or e-mail usa@international-experience.net for more information.

If you would like to solicit volunteers, click here.