Volunteer or Donate
VA Boston Healthcare System depends on the goodwill of our valued donors and supports. You can make a difference when you help us serve our Veterans.
Volunteer or Donate
The VA Boston Healthcare System in Massachusetts is a vital organization that brings greatly needed programs and services to tens of thousands of Veterans. Volunteer contributions help supplement these services and make their hospital stay more enjoyable. VA Boston Healthcare System depends on the goodwill of our benefactors and volunteers, who wish to give something back to America's heroes.
Adult Volunteer Program
This is a great opportunity to join our team to "serve those who have served." Volunteers can perform a number of services. In order to provide you with the best volunteer experience, Voluntary Service will coordinate placement in an area that is compatible for you from the volunteer opportunity list. Please be aware that all areas do not accept volunteers. Upon your questionnaire being accepted, potential volunteers must be pre-screened with staff prior to orientation. Please note that our process time for potential volunteers can take up to 4 weeks.
Adult Volunteer Requirements
- Be cleared by Occupational Health to volunteer. Occupational Health requires the following from all volunteers.
- A copy of your immunizations
- A VA provided TB test, or one conducted in the past 12 months
- Annual Flu shot from the past 12 months
- A background check performed by our Personal Security Office. Background checks require:
- Two forms of acceptable ID (Real ID required as of May 2025)
- Have your Photo and Fingerprints taken
- Complete all required VA Volunteer Training.
Adult Volunteer Onboarding Process
Complete Our Volunteer Interest Form
Send us your availability and interests via our volunteer interest form or contact us directly.
Review Our Open Volunteer Positions
Once received, you will be contacted by a member of our voluntary specialist team who will provide a list of available volunteer positions.
Select Volunteer Position & Meet With Volunteer Supervisor
Let us know what position(s) interest you and we will get in contact with the appropriate volunteer supervisor to setup a brief call to go over the volunteer position and answer any question you might have regarding the position.
Complete Our Volunteer Application
We will send you our digital volunteer application package with the needed paperwork for your VA Occupational Health clearance & background check
(We do have paper versions of the package upon request)
Make Your VA Occ. Health & Background Check Appointments
Setup your fingerprint appointment for your background check and VA Occupational Health screening with our Occupation Health Department & Personal Security Office.
(We recommend making your Occupational Health and fingerprint appointment for the same day.)
Occ. Health & Background Check Clearance
We will notify you and your volunteer supervisor once you have been cleared to volunteer by Occupational Health and Personal Security.
Schedule Your First Day
Meet with your Volunteer Supervisor to schedule your first day of volunteering and make an appointment with Personal Security to pick up your VA ID.
(We recommend scheduling your appointment for your first day volunteering).
First Day Volunteering
- Pickup VA ID from Personal and Security (PIV) Office
- Stop by the police station with a copy of your license and registration for a parking decal for your vehicle
- Meet with your Volunteer Supervisor for your first day.
Youth Volunteer Program
Thank you for your interest in volunteering at the Boston VA Healthcare System. Student volunteers over the age of 14 and under the age of 18, must have written parental or guardian approval to participate in the volunteer program, and must have written authorization for diagnostic and emergency treatment if injured while volunteering. NOTE: Post-secondary students I.E Trade schools or Technical Schools are not to be considered volunteers while receiving academic credit under a formal affiliation agreement. Please be aware that all areas do not accept student volunteers. Limited positions are available for the Teen Volunteer Program.
Upon your questionnaire being accepted, potential volunteers must be pre-screened with staff prior to orientation. Please note that our process time for potential volunteers can take up to 4 weeks.
Youth Volunteer Requirements
- Parent or Guardians consent to volunteer
- Complete all required VA Volunteer Training
Youth Volunteer Onboarding Process
Complete Our Volunteer Interest Form
Send us your availability and interests via our volunteer interest form or contact us directly.
Review Our Open Volunteer Positions
Once received, you will be contacted by a member of our voluntary specialist team who will provide a list of available volunteer positions.
Select Volunteer Position & Meet With Volunteer Supervisor
Let us know what position(s) interest you and we will get in contact with the appropriate volunteer supervisor to setup a brief call to go over the volunteer position and answer any question you might have regarding the position.
Complete Our Volunteer Application
We will send you our digital volunteer application for you and your parent or guardian to complete.
(We do have a paper versions upon request).
Schedule Your First Day
Once your application is complete, meet with your Volunteer Supervisor to schedule your first day of volunteering.
First Day Volunteering
- Pickup VA Student Volunteer ID from the Center for Development & Civic Engagement Office
- Meet with your Volunteer Supervisor for your first day.
- If you are being dropped off, make sure to setup a pickup location and time or if you are driving yourself stop by the police station with a copy of your license and registration for a parking decal for your vehicle
Donating to VA Boston
We sincerely thank you for your interest in donating to VA Boston Healthcare System. This is a great opportunity to support those who have served. 100% of the donations we receive go towards the support of our Veterans and their families.
To arrange for acceptance of your donations, please email vhabhscdce@va.gov.
How to Help
We accept both monetary and in-kind donations which allow us to support a myriad of programs including adaptive sports, recreation therapy, hospice, clothing rooms and many others. You can find further information on our programs here: Programs We Support. instructions on how to donate:
One Time Financial Donation
You can make a one-time donation via our online donation portal at VA New England Donation site or by mail.
How to Donate Online
- Go to the VA New England Donation site
- Press Continue to the Form
- Select VA Boston Healthcare System
- Fill out the form and follow instructions
Please be aware that our online donation portal has a minimum donation value of five dollars.
How to Donate by Mail
Please be sure to include a note with instructions on how you would like your donation to be used.
For Check or Money Order
Payable to: VA Boston HCS
Memo: General Post Fund (GPF) number: Program GPF Number can be found here: Programs We Support
You can find our mailing address here: Contact Us
In-Kind Donation
We rely on in-kind donations to support many of our programs including our clothing room, Veteran libraries, toiletry items for our inpatient Veterans, and items for our morning coffee hours. You can find a list of needed items at at our online VA Boston Needs List
Donations are accepted to help provide our Veterans with comfort items to render their periods of hospitalization and outpatient treatment more pleasant.
Item donation drop-offs can be scheduled 24 hours in advance. It is requested that a drop-off time be scheduled for items, as we do not accept unattended donations. Please contact one of our local Center for Development & Civic Engagement office locations listed below, Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. to coordinate acceptance of your donation.
If you have any questions, please reach out to us anytime our contact information. Our Contact information can be found here: Contact Us
Books and Magazines
The VA Boston Healthcare System welcomes donations of hardbacks and paperbacks. These donations help enrich and improve our resources. We accept books as donations with the understanding that they may be added to the collection or distributed throughout the medical center campuses.
Programs We Support
Veterans General Welfare Accounts
Donations used at above mentioned Campuses are to assist Veterans and their families with general patient activities. These accounts also supports needs of inpatients including hygiene items, undergarments, socks, throw blankets, wheel chair bags, other necessities and the Veteran Coffee Cart Program (VCCP).
General Post Funds
- Brockton Campus (GPF 5201)
- Jamaica Plains campus (GPF 5002)
- West Roxbury campus (GPF 5101)
Adaptive Sports
Donations used to support special unique needs of our evidence based, Adaptive Sports programming. These modalities provide life-changing experiences for Disabled Veterans through adaptive sports.
General Post Fund
- Adaptive Sports (GPF 5028)
Blind Rehabilitation
Donations used to support special needs of Veterans receiving blind rehabilitation services.
General Post Fund
- Blind Rehabilitation (GPF 5103)
Creative Arts Festival
Donations used to support special needs of our Creative Arts program, which is a critical component of the rehabilitative treatment plans to help Veterans recover from and cope with physical and emotional disabilities.
General Post Fund
- Creative Arts Festival (GPF 5027)
Fisher House
Donations used to support the needs of our Boston based Fisher House.
General Post Fund
- Fisher House (GPF 5009)
Homeless Services
Donations used to support the needs of homeless Veterans and those at risk for homelessness.
General Post Fund
- Homeless Services (GPF 5068)
Recreation Therapy Program
Donations used to facilitate patient therapeutic activities for leisure education programs, such as admission to sporting events, movies, and providing lunch for Veterans while on community outings.
General Post Funds
- Brockton campus (GPF 5202)
- West Roxbury Campus (GPF 5102)
Hospice and Palliative Care
Donations used to support special needs of Veterans and their families in Hospice and Palliative Care.
General Post Fund
- Brockton Hospice (GPF 5075)
- West Roxbury Palliative Care (GPF 5208)
Spinal Cord Injury
Donations used to support the special needs of Veterans with spinal cord injuries at our Brockton SCI Unit.
General Post Fund
- Spinal Cord Injury (GPF 5287)
Vet Centers
Donations used to support the needs of Veterans served by Vet Center programs and services.
General Fund Post
- Boston Vet Center (GPF 5083)
- Brockton Vet Center (GPF 5084)
Local Center for Development & Civic Engagement offices of the VA Boston Healthcare System
Brockton VAMC Campus
ATTN: CDCE (135)
940 Belmont Street
Brockton, MA 02301
PH:
Fax:
West Roxbury VAMC Campus
ATTN: CDCE (135)
1400 VFW Parkway
West Roxbury, MA 02132
PH:
Fax:
Jamaica Plain VAMC Campus
ATTN: CDCE (135)
150 South Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02130-4817
PH:
Fax:
Email: vhabhscdce@va.gov to arrange for acceptance of your donations.
Please note:
VA accepting officials may decide to reject offers of gifts or donations of items for any reason including because there is no anticipated need for the items or the maintenance of the items would be out of proportion to their value. We are responsible for providing safe and clean donations. Items that do not meet these criteria will be refused.
The Internal Revenue Service has announced that under the Tax Code, donations to the Department of Veterans Affairs' General Post Fund for exclusively public purposes are deductible from federal income taxes in the manner and to the extent allowable. The announcement reflects the tax law provision which makes those donations deductible as "donations to the United States." A donation to support any of the Department's programs are deductible, whether the donor directs that the donated funds be used for a specific purpose or allows the Department to decide how the donated funds will be used..."
Frequently Asked Questions
Average time for onboarding is approximately 2 to 3 weeks for our adult volunteers. The required background checks and Occupational Health screen are the lengthiest portions of the onboarding process.
As Federal Healthcare Agency it is our duty to screen all individuals entering our facility and interacting with our Veterans, to ensure the health and safety of our Veterans and staff.
We have minimum volunteer age of 14.
To become a fully registered volunteer, we require a minimum of 90 days commitment.
If you would like the volunteer without this commitment, you may speak with our voluntary specialist team about occasional volunteer opportunities.
Even though all volunteer positions are uncompensated, it is still required that any VA volunteer have the right to work inside the United States to volunteer.
Yes, provided it is for a general volunteer requirement. We do ask you contact us to go over any specific requirements.
Not through our office. Shadowing agreements are handled by our Associated Chief of Staff for Research (ACOS-R) office.