Opportunities From: Mesa County Libraries

This is a chance for garden volunteers to talk about plans and ideas for the coming month. It is a fun time and we would love to hear your thoughts. It will be in the Idea Lab, downstairs at Central Library.

The Fruita Storytime Assistant will support Fruita Branch Library staff in delivering engaging and developmentally appropriate Storytime programs that foster early literacy skills in young children. You will be greeting patrons and helping with setup/teardown. Storytime is on Wednesdays from 10-10:30am; you will be needed 10am-12pm. The age range is 3-5 years old.

Early literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning and success, and Storytime programs play a vital role in helping children develop language, listening, and social skills long before they enter school. By supporting these programs, volunteers help create a welcoming, enriching environment where children and their caregivers can bond over books, songs, and activities that encourage a love of reading from an early age.

Volunteers make a meaningful difference by contributing to children's cognitive development and preparing them for future academic achievement. Volunteers will NOT be reading to youth.

The Central Library is looking for a volunteer to assist with Preschool STEAM! This event is for Preschoolers 3-5 years old to join us to explore themes in science, technology, engineering, art, and math. We will read books, discover new things, and do hands-on activities, all while practicing our literacy and social skills.

As a volunteer you will be greeting patrons, helping with setup/teardown, and assisting staff as needed. STEAM takes place on Fridays from 9:30 -11:30 AM. 

Background check is required.

The Orchard Mesa Storytime Assistant will support Orchard Mesa Branch Library staff in delivering engaging and developmentally appropriate Storytime programs that foster early literacy skills in young children. You will be greeting patrons and helping with setup/teardown. Storytime is on Fridays from 10-10:30am; you will be needed 9:30am-11:30am. The age range is 3-5 years old.

Early literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning and success, and Storytime programs play a vital role in helping children develop language, listening, and social skills long before they enter school. By supporting these programs, volunteers help create a welcoming, enriching environment where children and their caregivers can bond over books, songs, and activities that encourage a love of reading from an early age.

Volunteers make a meaningful difference by contributing to children's cognitive development and preparing them for future academic achievement. Volunteers will NOT be reading to youth.

Join us for a day of color, creativity, and community as we paint a brand-new mural in the Discovery Garden! Whether you're a seasoned artist or just really good at painting-by-numbers, we want YOU on our mural team.

This is your chance to leave your mark on a community space while helping to beautify the garden for all to enjoy.

No art experience? No problem! We’ll provide all the supplies and guidance you need.

This is a volunteer opportunity for teens 14-18, and all participants must be current library volunteers.

Volunteer hours are available for credit

Wear clothes you don’t mind getting messy!

The Fruita Storytime Assistant will support Fruita Branch Library staff in delivering engaging and developmentally appropriate Storytime programs that foster early literacy skills in young children. You will be greeting patrons and helping with setup/teardown. Storytime is on Mondays from 10-10:30am; you will be needed 10am-12pm. The age range is 3-5 years old.

Early literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning and success, and Storytime programs play a vital role in helping children develop language, listening, and social skills long before they enter school. By supporting these programs, volunteers help create a welcoming, enriching environment where children and their caregivers can bond over books, songs, and activities that encourage a love of reading from an early age.

Volunteers make a meaningful difference by contributing to children's cognitive development and preparing them for future academic achievement. Volunteers will NOT be reading to youth.

Volunteer with the Friends of Mesa County Libraries Book Sale!

The Friends of Mesa County Libraries are gearing up for their big annual sale happening Wednesday, October 15 – Saturday, October 18 at the First Congregational Church in Grand Junction—and we need your help to make it a success!

This huge sale features thousands of books, DVDs, CDs, and more at unbeatable prices, and every purchase supports future library programs and projects.

We’re looking for friendly, enthusiastic volunteers to help with:

Setting up and organizing materials

Assisting shoppers

Packing up after the sale

Shifts are available Wednesday–Friday (9 AM–6 PM) and Saturday (9 AM–3 PM).

Whether you can give a couple of hours or a whole day, your time will make a big difference in bringing this community-loved event to life. Each volunteer gets one free book per shift. 

Join the Dog Ears Reading Buddy Program, where kids boost their confidence and reading skills by sharing stories with a certified therapy dog—like yours! We're looking for calm, friendly, certified therapy dogs and their enthusiastic handlers to bring joy, comfort, and a love of reading to young readers in a relaxed, judgment-free setting.

What You’ll Do:

This will be a day to come work on assorted tasks in the garden, especially breaking down sunflowers etc, incorporating them into the landscape, and wild-sowing native/ pollinator/ covercrop seeds to establish over winter. 

Culture Fest is a popular annual celebration of art and culture, showcasing a variety of entertainment and activities representing the cultural diversity of western Colorado.

The event is FREE to all!

Culture Fest will be on Saturday, November 8th  from 11am - 3:00pm at the Central Library.

Volunteers will help by greeting attendees at the door, providing directions to performances, answering questions about the event, assisting staff and country representatives as needed and helping with clean up after the event. 

Shifts will be available in 2 hour blocks from 9:30am - 4:00pm. Some shift flexibility is available. 

Tech Help Assistants support Mesa County Libraries’ mission to provide access to technology and learning opportunities for all. Volunteers help patrons build confidence with computers, smartphones, and tablets through one-on-one instruction. This is a hands-on opportunity to make a direct impact in helping community members learn essential digital skills.

Volunteer Orientations are mandatory before starting as a volunteer with Mesa County Libraries. They are offered several times throughout the year. You must complete your application, interview with the Volunteer Coordinator and complete necessary waivers before attending an orientation. 

We are seeking a detail-oriented and tech-savvy Yearbook Digitization Specialist to join our team.

In this role, you will be responsible for scanning, organizing, and digitizing historical yearbooks to preserve them for future generations.

This is a great opportunity for someone passionate about technology and archival work!

Join us in spreading holiday cheer by supporting families in need through the Giving Tree program! Volunteers assist with the 16 year long partnership between Mesa County Libraries and Catholic Outreach by organizing and managing donated gifts collected through the Giving Tree initiative, which helps approximately 160 individuals annually. Your support helps make the holiday season brighter for families in need by ensuring that gifts are carefully managed and delivered with care.

About the Program:
Recipients fill out gift applications with Catholic Outreach if they’ve needed financial assistance during the year. Trees with gift tags featuring recipients’ wishes are displayed at participating Mesa County Libraries locations, where community members select tags and donate gifts. Gifts are returned to MCL locations, wrapped during a volunteer wrapping event, and then delivered by Catholic Outreach to families.

The purpose of this position is to support the Friends of MCL by safely and efficiently loading, unloading and moving boxes inside the Book Depository. Funds raised by the Friends' book sales are distributed to a variety of MCL programs, events, and capital projects.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks (what must be completed to achieve the goals):

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge): ·        

Requirements:       

Time Commitment: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 10AM – 12PM; 2-6 hours weekly

The library seeks help editing and/or creating transcripts for oral history interviews and locally created digital content. Some tech savvy is encouraged. If you are detail oriented and want to help out, we will greatly appreciate it!

We are seeking passionate and dedicated individuals to join our team as Community Outreach Volunteers for the Friends of Mesa County Libraries!

In this role, you will help build relationships within the community, promote our organization’s mission, and engage with diverse groups to make a meaningful impact.

The purpose of this position is to support the efforts of the Friends of Mesa County Library by taking used and donated materials and redistributing them throughout the community into Little Free Library locations.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks:

To replenish stock, go to book drop location (1425 N 5th Street) and pick up prepared boxes with materials to replenish Little Free Library locations

Utilize list of Little Free Library locations to replenish materials

Communicate as needed with Book Sorting Volunteers

Report hours to Volunteer Coordinator using Galaxy (online portal) or log sheet by the 8th of each month  

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):      

Patience, courteousness, calm demeanor, friendliness, willingness to help others learn, and enthusiastic attitude.      

Reliability and dependability to attend assigned shifts and inform staff of inability to attend shifts.         

Passion for community engagement and a commitment to our mission.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills.         

Ability to work independently and as part of a team Requirements: ·        

Ability to lift up to 40 pounds   

Current driver’s license, auto insurance and ability to drive to locations across Mesa County

Must be at least 18 years old

Interview with Volunteer Coordinator, background check, signed waivers and 2-hour orientation         

Physical ability to push, bend, stretch, reach, lift and read book spines

Communicate with other book drop & bookstore volunteers as needed      

Time Commitment: 5-10 hours monthly , schedule is flexible

We are seeking passionate and dedicated individuals to join our team as Community Outreach Volunteers.

In this role, you will help build relationships within the community, promote our organization’s mission, and engage with diverse groups to make a meaningful impact.

The purpose of this position is to support the efforts of the Friends of Mesa County Library by taking used and donated materials and redistributing them throughout the community into various locations in need

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):

·         Ability to lift up to 40 lbs

·         Current driver’s license, auto insurance and ability to drive to locations across Mesa County

·         Must be at least 18 years old

·         Interview with Volunteer Coordinator, background check, signed waivers and 2-hour orientation

·         Physical ability to push, bend, stretch, reach, lift and read book spines

·         Communicate with other book drop & bookstore volunteers as needed

Time Commitment:

·         5-10 hours monthly , schedule is flexible

The Collections Materials Deselection Assistant supports the organization’s goal of maintaining a relevant, high-quality collection by removing outdated, damaged, or unnecessary materials. This role is crucial to ensuring that the collection remains accessible, organized, and aligned with current needs and standards.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks (what must be completed to achieve the goals):

·         Locate collection items from withdrawn lists

·         Remove RFDI tags from materials, and mark as withdrawn

·         Help maintain accurate records of removed items

·         Organize and prepare weeded materials for recycling, disposal, or donation to Friends of Mesa County Libraries book sales

·         Assist staff with reviewing materials in the collection for condition, and duplication

·         Report any anomalies or issues to the supervising staff member

·         Maintain confidentiality and respect for the collection and its users

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):

·         Attention to detail and ability to follow specific criteria and instructions

·         Interest in organization, collections management, libraries, or archives

·         Ability to work independently and reliably

·         Comfortable handling a variety of materials, sometimes dusty or fragile

·         Basic computer literacy (optional, but helpful)

Requirements:

·         Must be at least 14-years-old

·         Interview with Volunteer Coordinator, review of handbook, signed waivers

·         Train with Collection Management staff before first shift

Time Commitment:

·         Minimum of 1 - 2 hour shifts, once a week

We are looking for friendly, open-minded, and dependable volunteers to help support our Teen Time program—a welcoming, inclusive space where teens can be themselves, explore interests, and connect with others. Volunteers play a key role in creating a positive, safe environment for all teens, including those who identify as neurodiverse.

Teen Time happens every Tuesday from 4-5 PM

We are seeking dedicated and detail-oriented volunteers to help ensure the health and safety of our patrons by sanitizing toys and other high contact areas regularly. This role plays a critical part in maintaining a clean and hygienic environment, promoting overall well-being and safety for our patrons

The Fruita Branch is looking for enthusiastic and reliable volunteers to support our programs and resources through community outreach efforts.

As a Community Outreach Volunteer, you will help promote literacy and learning by distributing flyers throughout the local community and engaging with the public to raise awareness of our events and services.

Adult Learning Center (ALC) tutors enrich the lives of their community members by teaching adults that want to improve their English skills, complete their GED, or earn their citizenship. As an ALC instructor, expect to create lifelong relationships as you work to empower your students to reach their academic and workforce goals. 

All volunteer tutors will be required to shadow a current adult learning class as well as attend a Volunteer Orientation and a three-hour training before teaching. Tutors typically commit to one, 1.5-hour class session per week.

If this opportunity interests you, simply click "respond" in the upper right-hand corner. A staff member will reach out to you soon! 

Are you passionate about growing food and flowers?  About feeding the community?  Do you want to learn about special plants and flowers, building soil, about what permaculture is?  Volunteer in the Mesa County Libraries Discovery Garden, and help build connection in this full-community project.  We need volunteers to care for and manage the garden by helping us plant, weed, harvest, and water.

The Fruita Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

The Gateway Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

The Orchard Mesa Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

The Clifton Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

The purpose of this position is to add new Daily Sentinel obituary records to the Mesa County Libraries online catalog with the occasional task of updating records that already exist in the catalog. This project adds to the services that the library offers and is beneficial to library patrons who are doing genealogical and historical research.

Volunteers retype old interview transcripts from the Mesa County Oral History Project into MS Word documents. Entering the transcripts in MS Word makes them machine readable, and allows them to be uploaded into our online archive via Islandora.

The purpose of this position is to price and stock books and related media at the Friends of Mesa County Libraries Novel Idea Bookstore at the Central library. Funds raised by the Friends' book sales are distributed to a variety of MCL programs, events, and capital projects.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks (what must be completed to achieve the goals):

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):

·         Good organization skills and attention to detail

·         Customer service focus- capability to maintain a professional, courteous and friendly demeanor

·         Knowledge of popular books, genres, and authors is helpful

·         Excellent oral and written communication skills

·         Creative ideas for displaying materials are welcome

·         Physical ability to lift up to 40 pounds

·         Physical ability to push, bend, stretch, reach, lift and read book spines

·         Strong desire to work individually and as a team

Requirements:

·         Current driver’s license, auto insurance and ability to drive less than 1 mile

·         Must be at least 18 years old

·         Interview with Volunteer Coordinator, background check, signed waivers and 2-hour orientation

·         Communicate with other bookstore and kiosk clerks as needed

Time Commitment:

·         Minimum of 2-4 hours weekly, schedule is flexible

The Collbran Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

Currently looking for Thursday help!

The purpose of this position is to stock and maintain the Novel Idea Kiosk located in the Fruita Library. Books and media sold benefit the Friends of Mesa County Libraries, who distribute funds to a variety of Mesa County Library programs and events.

The purpose of this position is to stock and maintain the Novel Idea Kiosk located in the Clifton Library. Books and media sold benefit the Friends of Mesa County Libraries, who distribute funds to a variety of Mesa County Libraries programs and events.

Volunteers select books for homebound patrons receiving books from Words on Wheels. 

The purpose of this position is to price and stock books and related media at the Friends of Mesa County Libraries Novel Idea Bookstore at the Central library. Funds raised by the Friends' book sales are distributed to a variety of MCL programs, events, and capital projects. The Novel Idea Bookstore is located in the west entry way of the Central Library.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks (what must be completed to achieve the goals):

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):

·         Good organization skills and attention to detail

·         Customer service focus- capability to maintain a professional, courteous and friendly demeanor

·         Knowledge of popular books, genres, and authors is helpful

·         Excellent oral and written communication skills

·         Physical ability to lift up to 40 pounds

·         Physical ability to push, bend, stretch, reach, lift and read book spines

·         Strong desire to work individually and as a team

Requirements:

·         Current drivers license, auto insurance and ability to drive less than 1 mile

·         Must be at least 18 years old

·         Interview with Volunteer Coordinator, background check, signed waivers and 2-hour orientation

·         Communicate with other bookstore and kiosk clerks as needed

Time Commitment:

·         1 hours shifts available 9am-5pm, Monday – Saturday

The purpose of this position is to share computer skills with novice and intermediate computer users.  Many library patrons are learning to use a computer for the first time.  This position helps bridge the digital divide in our community.

The De Beque Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

The purpose of this position is to assist the Collection Management department in preparing library materials for public use, repairing items in the collection, and retiring them when their time is through.

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks

The Palisade Volunteer plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

Position Purpose: The purpose of this position is to organize and weed the Magazine Exchange, where patrons can donate and pick up free magazines. The main goal of the Exchange is to provide an unbiased selection of current magazines for patrons.

Supervisor: Public Services Coordinator

Responsibilities, Duties, Functions, Tasks (what must be completed to achieve the goals):

Qualifications (minimum experience, skills, education, knowledge):

Requirements:

Time Commitment:

The Shelving Assistant plays a vital role in maintaining an organized and accessible library collection. By accurately shelving books and media, this position ensures materials are easy to find and readily available for patrons. Volunteers also contribute to a welcoming and safe environment that supports the library’s mission of community engagement and lifelong learning.

Volunteers will sort book donations dropped at the Book Drop at First Congregational Church on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 10am-12pm.