Volunteer Fort Bend is looking for people who are interested in helping local civic and nonprofit organizations. Here are some current needs:

Holiday cheer

Children of all ages from the Fort Bend area are invited to create homemade Christmas greeting cards to be distributed by volunteers visiting residents of nursing homes on Christmas Day. The Volunteer Fort Bend office will collect these homemade treasures through December 22, and will make sure they are delivered in time to brighten the holiday for nursing home residents in a very special way.

Volunteer “side walkers”

Fun and fresh air are in store for volunteers participating in a therapeutic horseback-riding program for children and adults with disabilities. Based at stables in Fort Bend, the program uses volunteers to accompany these folks while they enjoy the unique thrill of a quiet horseback stroll in a protected environment. Register today for training in January. During the next few months, this upbeat assignment will be available on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and Saturday mornings. Volunteers as young as 14 are invited to participate.

Hospital volunteers

A "people person" has a variety of volunteer opportunities from which to choose at either of two hospitals, one in Richmond and the other in Sugar Land. Assignments can include greeting patients and visitors at the information desk, serving as a liaison between staff and patients in the intensive care unit, or working in the gift shop. Weekly four-hour shifts are available mornings and afternoons, Mondays through Fridays.

Additional opportunities:

• Serve as literacy tutor to foreign-born persons residing in Fort Bend County.

• Groom, walk, and play with dogs and cats awaiting adoption at an animal shelter in Rosenberg.

• Lead arts and crafts activities for seniors at a health-care facility in Sugar Land.

• Assist a Fort Bend school district with cleaning, sorting, and folding clothing to be distributed to needy children.

• Serve on a care team that provides in-home support to elderly shut-ins and persons with disabilities in the Richmond area.

• Help a local housing program in Rosenberg with data entry and word processing.

For more information on volunteer opportunities, call Volunteer Fort Bend at 281-499-9102, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Information on additional opportunities is available at www.VolunteerFortBend.org