Agency: Epilepsy Foundation of Kansas & Western Missouri

Address: 6550 Troost Ave. Suite B, Kansas City, Mo., 64131

Contact: Giovanna Proctor, (913) 661-5465.

Epilepsy Foundation of Kansas & Western Missouri needs volunteers for its 12th annual Camp Shing for children ages 6-17. The camp is scheduled for June 10-12 in Linwood. A background working with kids or young adults may be helpful but is not required. Special skills such as music, group recreational activities or crafts also are helpful. A criminal and child abuse background check is conducted on all volunteers, and all volunteers will receive training. Volunteers stay in cabins, so there is very little that is needed other than clothes. Meals are provided.

Immediate volunteer needs

This year’s Read Across America after-school reading event needs volunteers on Wednesday. Read Across America annually engages adults in encouraging children to read by sharing storybooks together. The program is sponsored by the Lawrence school district’s after-school programs, Boys and Girls Club and the Roger Hill Volunteer Center. For more information or to sign up, contact Mary Thompson at 865-5030.

• Independence Inc. seeks volunteer readers for people who are blind. Volunteer readers are matched to a person with vision impairment for a weekly visit to read mail and other documents. For more information about these volunteer opportunities, call coordinator Susan Mikesic at 841-0333.
• The Lawrence Workforce Center needs a volunteer with Web authoring experience, specifically with experience utilizing Dreamweaver 6 or Dreamweaver MX software, in order to help familiarize the staff with the program and other Web-publishing skills. Additional volunteer time may be necessary to assist the staff in ongoing Web site maintenance and updating.

Anyone interested should contact Cheryl White at the Workforce Center, 840-9675.

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Douglas County needs more volunteers to become mentors for the more than 124 children on their waiting list. Each volunteer is matched with a youth and asked to spend three to four hours a week together for at least a year. The organization also is having the Bowl for Kids’ Sake fund-raising event on Friday and Saturday, and volunteers also are needed to help with the event. For more information about these volunteer opportunities, call the agency at 843-7359 or visit www.mentoringmagic.org.