Volunteering on the US Gulf Coast

Want to give a little this holiday season? Families on the US Gulf Coast, displaced by Hurricane Katrina, need help now. Brandon Marsalis, honorary relief effort co-chair with fellow New Orleans Harry Connick, Jr., told Habitat for Humanity, “When the world's attention turns way from this disaster, there will be tens of thousands of New Orleaneans without a place to live."

You don't need any special construction skills to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity, although being able to pound nails is a plus. You'll be working side by side with volunteer team members and the partner family; partners contribute hundreds of hours of sweat equity toward their new home. In many cases, the rest of the community also pitches in. Read up on volunteering with Habitat for Humanity.