08/21/2026
Meet Margaret, one of our longtime shift volunteers and a current Dorothy Day House board member! Margaret has supported the House for more than a decade and shares more about her experience with DDH below. Look for additional posts celebrating our phenomenal volunteers over the coming months.
Interested in learning more about the House? We need additional shift volunteers! Reach out to [email protected] to learn more.
1. Years of service: 11
2. Why I volunteer at the House: Eleven years ago, it was nearly impossible to walk around downtown Rochester and not notice people sleeping in the skyways, parking ramps, park benches, etc. Although I contributed monetarily to charitable organizations, I felt the need to help in a more direct way. After seeing a notice in my church bulletin about the need for volunteers and learning more about the philosophy of the Dorothy Day House, I reached out and shadowed a few volunteers during their shifts at the House. I found it to be a good fit. Albeit in a small way, I finally felt like I was helping.
3. Favorite thing about the House: By far my favorite thing is the people I meet (both guests and fellow volunteers) — many of whom I wouldn’t have met any other way.
4. Anything you want people to know about the House? For the past 40+ years, the Dorothy Day House has been run entirely by volunteers and relies totally on private donations to keep it running. We are fortunate to be located in a generous community.
