Youth Volunteers

Nova’s Ark welcomes the passion, dedication, knowledge and skills of Youth Volunteers 15 years of age (as of July 1st, 2023) and older. Any time that you are able to donate to us is a gift! We have two streams of Youth Volunteers; Youth Animal Care and Youth Buddy Volunteers. Keep reading to learn more!

Youth Volunteers are the future leaders of our community. Nova’s Ark believes that by investing in our youth we are influencing efforts of inclusion and meaningful opportunity for all. The dedication and passion continuously shown by our youth volunteers have a lifelong impact on the guests and families who come to Nova’s Ark.

Youth Animal Care Volunteer

Our Youth Animal Care Volunteers Program, ages 15 (as of July 1st, 2024) and older, will be available for scheduled sessions that may occur on weekends from 8 a.m. – 12 p.m., as well as PA Days and school breaks/holidays. You will be gaining a ton of hands-on experience from our Animal Care team mentors and working directly with our therapy animals to clean, feed, cut fruit, push wheelbarrows and more.

Youth Buddy Volunteer

Our Youth Buddy Volunteers are a wonderful part of our mentorship team. Our Youth Buddy Volunteer Program will be available for scheduled sessions that may occur during PA Days and school breaks/holidays from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. By creating trusting relationships with individuals with varied abilities, you will inspire social interactions, explore new activities and foster independence and confidence in preferred activities. You may also have the opportunity to work in collaboration with our animal care mentors during animal interactions with our participants or support a variety of animal care tasks.

Becoming a Nova’s Ark Youth Animal Care Volunteer

• Please complete the application form below and email it to us at  volunteers.novasark@bell.net with the subject line “Youth Animal Care Volunteer” or “Youth Buddy Volunteer, depending on which role you are applying for.
• Please be patient as we arrange a 4-hour (Animal Care) or 6-hour (Youth Buddy) on-site visit to complete your face-to-face interview, hands-on interview and basic orientation.
• Once your first visit is complete, we will connect with you to arrange your upcoming volunteer schedule.

If you have any questions, please give Mary-Ann a call at (905) 706-1009 or contact our Volunteer Co-ordinator at volunteers.novasark@bell.net .