Volunteer on Your Terms.
Never on Your Own.
The Buddy System is how volunteering with us stays flexible, private, and human — team up on big yards, hand off a visit when life happens, and keep your personal contact info completely out of it.
Built directly from feedback by volunteers like you, for volunteers like you. It lives inside your existing volunteer dashboard — nothing new to download.
Already a volunteer? Log in — it’s waiting in your dashboard →
Why We Built It
We asked our volunteers what made helping harder than it should be. Then we fixed it.
🤝 No-Pressure Support
Life happens — a work conflict, a sore back, a family weekend. Hand a visit back with two taps and we take it from there. The homeowner is updated automatically, no explanation needed from you, and the request returns to the volunteer pool. Zero guilt is the whole point.
💪 Bring a Buddy
Some yards are a two-person job. From any confirmed visit, invite up to four nearby volunteers — you’ll see who’s close, their rating, and their experience. They accept with one click and you coordinate in a team chat built into the job. Many hands, one afternoon.
🛡️ Privacy, Protected
Your personal phone number stays yours. Calls and texts with homeowners route through a masked number, and team coordination happens in the dashboard chat — which closes itself 24 hours after the job is done. Help freely, without handing out your contact info.
From “I’ll Take It” to “We’ve Got It”
Claim a visit like always
Nothing changes about finding work. Browse requests near you in your dashboard, propose times, and confirm with the homeowner — same flow you already know.
Open your Home Team hub
Every confirmed visit gets a Home Team page: the job details, your team, a built-in chat, and every action in one place — propose a new time, invite help, mark complete, or hand it back.
Invite a buddy if you want one
Big yard? Tap Invite Volunteers and pick from nearby helpers — you’ll see distance, rating, and jobs completed. They get an email, accept with one click, and join your team chat. Invitations expire on their own, so nobody is left waiting.
Finish — fully or partially
Done? Photos, hours, and you’re out. Got halfway? Slide how far you got and note what remains — the rest returns to the pool with your handoff notes attached, so the next volunteer picks up exactly where you left off.
Leave the yard better for the next volunteer
Optionally tag hazards (buried cables, sprinkler heads, steep slopes), recommend tools, and leave a private note about the visit. Homeowners never see these notes — they exist to protect whoever shows up next.
Set Your Social Vibe
Some volunteers love a porch conversation. Some want to mow, wave, and go. Both are wonderful — and now both are respected. In your profile, choose how you prefer to work, and homeowners see it before anything is scheduled:
- Focus Mode — headphones on, minimal conversation, all about the work
- Brief Meet & Greet — a quick hello, then to the yard
- Community Connector — open to conversation and connection
You can also choose text vs. call for coordination, and whether you’re comfortable being featured in our volunteer spotlights — public recognition is always your choice, never assumed.
📣 What homeowners agree to
Fairness goes both ways. Before a homeowner can book a volunteer’s time, they confirm a short set of courtesies — respect your time, keep communication on the platform, and no side-job requests beyond the posted visit. It takes them ten seconds, once, and it sets the right expectations for every visit after.
Full details live on our Expectations of Service page.
How You’ll Hear From Us
📬 Email first
Buddy invitations, schedule changes, and team-chat activity arrive by email — and chat notices are capped so your inbox never gets flooded.
💬 Texts only if you say so
Want texts instead? Turn on SMS in your notification preferences. We only text volunteers who’ve opted in — full stop.
🔕 No app badges, no noise
There are no push notifications to manage or mute. Open your dashboard when it suits you; everything important is also in your email.
Buddy System Questions, Answered Honestly
Do I have to join a team?
What actually happens when I cancel a visit?
Who sees my notes and ratings about a visit?
Does the homeowner get my phone number?
Can I invite a specific friend who isn’t a volunteer yet?
Where do I find all this?
One yard is a kindness. A team is a movement.
Join thousands of volunteers helping older adults, veterans, and neighbors keep their homes — and their dignity.
