Opportunities From: City of Bloomington Volunteer Network

Volunteer to be a Snow Buddy!

The City of Bloomington Council for Community Accessibility (CCA) is looking for volunteers to help with snow removal for those with disabilities and the elderly. Volunteers will be assigned to a Bloomington neighbor needing help for the 2024-2025 winter season and will commit to shoveling a path to their entryway each time it snows.

Thank you for your interest in signing up to be a Snow Buddy this winter! The program is open to assist Bloomington residents with disabilities or who are elderly and who need help keeping a path to their entryway free of snow during the winter months.

You will be assigned to a resident in Bloomington. We aim to connect you with a neighbor near to you geographically, unless you are willing to travel farther.

Depending on need, you may not be assigned to help someone immediately.

We ask that you clear your assigned resident’s path as soon as you are able, within 24 hours after the end of a snowfall. If you are unable to assist (due to illness or travel, for example), please let us know so that we can coordinate a replacement.

Snow Buddies are not expected to shovel driveways. Volunteers only commit to shoveling a path from the public sidewalk to the entrance of the home and to shoveling the portion of the public sidewalk that is the resident’s responsibility, if applicable. Anything else requested is up to your discretion.

If you have specialized snow-clearing tools, such as a truck with a plow attachment, and wish to be a superhero Snow Buddy clearing multiple houses or driveways, please let us know!

To apply, fill out the information in this Google form.

Contact ccaassist@bloomington.in.gov or 812-349-3478 with any questions.

What if you were in a wheelchair? How frustrated would you be not being able to get into a LOT of facilities, buildings, and businesses in Bloomington? All over town there are places that are accessible, but there are a lot more that aren’t. We need accessibility surveyors to address this need! Read on for more information. The Council for Community Accessibility (CCA) takes the carrot approach (as opposed to the stick) and awards decals to places that are accessible. We also work with businesses and organizations, like the College Mall and the Monroe County Community School Corporation, to help them identify the barriers and make suggestions on how to address them. But we need more surveyors to make that happen! Training is quick and easy and enables you to start helping make all of Bloomington accessible! Join us. More formal info below...

Join the Surveying Team! Volunteer with the City of Bloomington Council for Community Accessibility as an Accessibility Surveyor. Volunteers are needed to help survey various locations in Bloomington to determine their accessibility for people with disabilities. Training and mentoring is provided to volunteers. Upon receiving an assignment, surveyors may complete the survey on their own time and, if desired, with a partner, but we ask that at least one survey assignment a month is completed (and you can suggest places to survey, too). Be a part of making our Bloomington community accessible to ALL! The AccessAbility Decal Program is a project of the Council for Community Accessibility to recognize local businesses that are accessible to persons with disabilities. Qualifying businesses are presented with a decal to display on their storefront. To obtain an AccessAbility decal, a business must pass an accessibility screening that checks parking; path of travel; entrance; elevators, stairs and railings; common areas; restrooms; and customer service. The CCA administers these accessibility screenings free of charge with the assistance of trained volunteers. Read more about the project here: bloomington.in.gov/accessability