Have you always wondered about volunteering with San Mateo County Libraries, opens a new window?
Well, look no further, we have many volunteer opportunities at a library near you. Read below for all the different types of volunteering positions we offer!
Volunteer With Us
Adults and teens aged 14 and up are welcome to volunteer with us. Our volunteer positions have a minimum commitment of 6 months or 1 semester.
To ensure our libraries are safe for all members of the community, we conduct a background check of all volunteers age 16 and older. Background checks are done at no cost to the volunteer. Results are kept confidential and typically take 3-6 weeks.
Library Helper 📚
Curious about our collection and how we have book displays or holds? As a library helper, some duties include pulling customer-requested materials, placing incoming materials on our pick-up shelves, pulling expired materials from our pick-up shelves, adding shiny and bright books to displays to catch the eye and weeding pre-selected materials from our collection.
Youth & Family Programming 🎨
Experience and explore along with children and their families at craft programs and STEAM activities. You may also inspire young learners while offering homework help or supporting with storytime.
Adult Programming 📖
Join our staff with helping to facilitate our many free programs like book clubs, author talks, wellness activities and more. Volunteers also help with creating a welcoming space by setting up and/or cleaning up programs.
Adult Literacy Tutor ✏️
Volunteer to help an adult improve their reading and writing. No previous teaching experience or educational background is required. We provide all the training and materials necessary to become a successful, high-impact volunteer. The commitment is for 2 hours per week for at least 6 months. Tutors meet with learners in-person at our libraries or online.
Makerspace🧵
Get hands-on experience with library patrons to access the full array of technology and crafting opportunities available to them. No previous tech experience is required, training on makerspace technology will be provided.
Love sewing and helping others learn? The Millbrae Library has an exciting opening for the sewing volunteer position to support our drop-in Open Sewing program. Volunteers help create a welcoming, creative space where community members can use library sewing machines and work on personal projects. If you have basic sewing skills, enjoy working with people of all ages and backgrounds and want to share your enthusiasm for making, we'd love to have you join us. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect with the community, support lifelong learning and help our sewing program thrive.
Stories from our Maker Volunteers
Frank, who runs the Appliance Repair in Brisbane, always hands a patron who comes in with a broken item the screwdriver and emphasizes "We are fixing this TOGETHER." Often, the fix isn’t complicated, maybe just simple cleaning or soldering a loose wire. And the patrons leave not only with a working appliance but also with confidence and a new skill.
A patron came into the Brisbane makerspace with a piece of fabric she bought in Madagascar, never having used a sewing machine before. She wanted to make a drawstring skirt. After some brainstorming, she and the volunteer tutor practiced sewing techniques by making a simple bag from the library's spare fabric stash. Once ready, she started on the skirt which now was going to have pockets and an elastic waistband. While she finished it over the next weeks, other visitors to the makerspace saw the progress and encouraged her. The patron was happy with the skirt and the new skills she learned. The volunteer shared the experience was "such a joy to help her learn this skill and to be a part of the community assisting each other."
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