Community Service
06
Mobilizing Community Service Playbook
Your guide to building volunteering programs to reconnect cities and communities.
Playbook release March 11th
Preview Webinar March 10th, 9 am PT
Community Service Connects Us
Majority of Americans Don’t Regularly Volunteer
Only 26% of people regularly volunteer.
I regularly engage in community service or activities that help others in my community.
Who Is Engaging?
Higher-income and white households are more likely to regularly engage in community service based on our 2026 national survey.
Connection Via Service
Develop service programs that focus on connection as an outcome (block parties, social clubs, etc.).
Build meaningful conversation and reflection into every event.
Add social events into service projects (e.g., meals after a project).
Create ongoing engagement to build repeated contact and trust.
Be intentional, especially when there are power dynamics that need to be considered.
Measuring Impact
Self: Skills built, new relationships formed, motivation to engage, new habits adopted
Team: Bonds deepened, trust built, skills revealed in each other
Community: Trust between volunteers and those served, relationships formed, barriers crossed, new habits adopted
Society: Generalized trust increased, networks built, cultural norms shifted toward connection
Register for the Webinar
Join us at 9am PT on March 10th for exclusive webinar on the results of our national study on volunteering and the impact on social connection.
Preview Webinar Highlights
Results of our 2026 national survey about the role of community service in building connection and trust.
The case for making “connection” a cause and how to measure the impact so we can close the $500 billion connection service gap.
Case study on how Workday is creating corporate volunteering programs to focus on building social connection.
Aaron Hurst
From community service, to pro bono work, to board service, Aaron has driven movements to increase the impact of volunteering around the world over the last 25 years. He is the Author of “Powered by Pro Bono” and “The Purpose Economy”.
Caitlin Safradin
The Director of Operations and Special Projects at the Workday Foundation, Caitlin is partnering with the US Chamber of Connection to pilot a volunteer model focused on strengthening social connection.
Carolyn Thayer-Azoff
The US Chamber of Connection’s Director of Strategic Partnerships and the co-founder of the Volunteering Reconnected movement, Carolyn works with leaders to integrate social connection into their programs.
Partner with the Us
For Cities
Bring the Chamber of Connection to Your City
Launch a local Chamber of Connection to help newcomers and longtime residents build trust, belonging, and shared ownership — using the Six Points of Connection and shared national infrastructure.
For Employers
Turn Employee Volunteering into Community Impact
Engage employees as trained Welcome Committee volunteers — helping reconnect neighborhoods while supporting wellbeing, retention, and local impact through our national program.
For Everyone
Become a Welcome Committee Volunteer
Join neighbors in your community to welcome newcomers, host gatherings, and help rebuild connection where you live — one relationship at a time.
Resources for Your Local Chamber of Connection
Here are vetted volunteer platforms that you can use to build social connection infrastructure in your city or town. Contact us to recommend national resources for us to share.
We’ve partnered with University of California Berkeley to curate a list of articles for you to dive deeper into the science of connection via community service.
FEATURED
ADDITIONAL ARTICLES
Learn More About the Six Points of Connection
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42% of people have a neighbor they can count on in an emergency.
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35% of people belong to a community with whom they share values and experiences.
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28% of people get together with friends and relatives at least twice per week.
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26% of people regularly visit a place outside home and work where other people naturally gather and build informal social ties.
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30% of people belong to a community who do activities together.
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26% of adults regularly give their time, skills, or effort to support a local nonprofit, school, neighbor, or cause.
Our first annual report reveals where everyday social connection is breaking down — and introduces a practical, data-backed blueprint for rebuilding social bonds, trust, and belonging across communities.
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