Volunteer Events
Calling The Doers!

Because need knows no season, We provide year-round opportunities to join supply drives, fundraisers, and volunteer. The Thanksgiving Project in the fall and Day of Gratitude in the spring are United Way’s inclusive, community-centered invitation for our partners—donors, corporate partners, policy makers, community members, and government agencies —to increase resource accessibility in some of our most vulnerable communities.

The Thanksgiving Project

Together we can transform lives and build a more just world. One in five Massachusetts families with children have limited access to nutritious meals. Tens of thousands of families across our region struggle to put food on their table as they face ongoing economic challenges — including rising costs of food and household essentials. For 26 years, United Way of Massachusetts Bay has ensured that families have enough to eat through the holiday season. Last year, United Way’s Thanksgiving Project partnered with 19 communities, brought together over 700 volunteers and donors, and awarded $180,000 in Gratitude grants to community centered organizations to support 16,000 families in our region.

JOIN US IN 2026!


Industry Night


Friends & Family Day


Friends & Family Night


Emerging Leaders Night


Thanksgiving Project

In 2024, our Thanksgiving Project:

United

19 communities, 278 donors, and 714 volunteers

Distributed

104,000 pounds of food, $180,000 in grants, and 10,000 gift cards

Raised

$750,820+ in emergency assistance that went immediately back into the community

Supported

more than 16,000 families!
JOIN US NEXT YEAR!
JOIN US NEXT YEAR!
JOIN US NEXT YEAR!
JOIN US NEXT YEAR!

Industry Night

Join professionals for an evening of networking and hands-on volunteering! For questions.

Friends & Family Day

The Thanksgiving Project is a unique opportunity to volunteer with your loved ones during the holiday season. This is a 90-minute, family-friendly packing shift during Friends and Family Day, where we’ll be assembling bags of holiday food items to be distributed directly to families in Attleboro, Chelsea, Dorchester, Haverhill, Lawerence, Lowell, Lynn, Quincy, Roxbury, and Taunton.

Emerging Leaders Night

Hey young professionals - join over 150 of your peers for an evening of giving back! Network with other young professionals in Greater Boston while packing food to nourish families across our region.

Friends & Family Night

Grab your friends and family for a fun evening of service, packing meal bags for local families! Note: This is an exclusive event for our leadership donors.

Thanksgiving Project

Distribution sites in: Attleboro, Chelsea, Dorchester, Haverhill, Lawerence, Lowell, Lynn, Quincy, Roxbury, and Taunton Join us as we distribute 10,000 meal kits throughout our region just in time for the holidays!

Gratitude In Action

United Way

Blog
Nov 12 2025

United in Gratitude: Join Us in Fighting Hunger This Thanksgiving

Read

Blog
Jun 20 2025

Day of Gratitude 2025: Purpose in Practice and Collective Action

READ

Blog
Apr 1 2024

Your Handbook to Holistic Volunteerism  

READ

Blog
Nov 21 2024

The Gratitude Project Turns 25: Essential Needs, Compassion and Communit…

READ