The Magic House

Volunteering is a way for kids to spend their summer break, earn valuable service hours and experience first-hand the rewards that come with helping others. But finding the right volunteer opportunity is key.

St. Louis is a wonderful place to live, but there are a few drawbacks to living in the middle of the country. Like no beach. But you don’t need to go all the way to Florida to enjoy a little sun and sand. The Magic House is making all our dreams come true with Sandcastle Beach! Ten truckloads of sand are transforming the backyard of The Magic House into a beachfront park. Take a stroll along the boardwalk, cool off under an ocean mister or relax under a beach umbrella while the little ones search for hidden shells. A world-champion sand sculptor is building a gigantic 75-ton sandcastle along the beach’s shore. Don’t forget the sunscreen!

As a teen who wanted to spend her summers and free time volunteering for local organizations, Simone Bernstein found the most difficult part was locating volunteer opportunities for teens her age. From the age of 12 she spent time volunteering at her local library and The Magic House, and as she got older, the St. Louis Crisis Nursery and local hospitals. But she had to devote a significant amount of her time to approaching local organizations to ask them what volunteer opportunities were available. She decided that as her next project, she’d make finding volunteer opportunities easier for her and others her age.

“I was surprised at how few resources were available to search for local youth volunteer opportunities,” said Bernstein, a student at Clayton High School. “There are national Web sites that are geared toward ages 18 and older, but I could not find a local Web site for youth.”

So Bernstein launched www.stlouisvolunteen.com last year. The site lists volunteer opportunities for teens and tweens (and even some for adults) at more than 40 local organizations.