Honolulan Dean Uyeda is a good cook, so he wasn't surprised when a friend suggested he make dinner for "the crowd." He just didn't know it would be the crowd at River of Life Mission in Chinatown, which serves 28,000 meals a month.

Uyeda joined a team from a friend's church that cooks there once a month, and he's found lasting satisfaction in pitching in.

"It's fun for us," Uyeda said. "And I talked to this one guy, when he told me how he ended up homeless, it could have been me."

Motivated by the holidays' emphasis on giving and sharing to help out in the community? Aiding an organization that serves the community is one way to do so. Just remember that help is needed at other times of the year, as well.

River of Life's needs are posted on its Web site, www.riveroflife.org. Groups can pick their choice of projects, from napkin-rolling to painting, or organize a team to collect donations and walk in their annual Walk for Hunger on Sept. 25. Call 524-7656.

The Institute for Human Services has similar needs. Make contact at www.ihshawaii.org, or call the volunteer coordinator at 447-2811.

Look for even more volunteer opportunities at www.volunteerhawaii.org.

There are many ways you can help your community, and the need is year-round

BEGIN AT HOME

What is it that your spouse, your parent, your roommate has been after you to do, or needs you to do around the house? Do it. And here's the really hard part: Ask for direction and perform the task the way they'd like it done. If it's beyond your abilities, get skilled help (and pay for it, if necessary). Commit to doing this at least once a month all year. It's good for your soul (and your relationship).

BE A CLEARINGHOUSE

Pick a project — collecting food for a food bank, gathering socks and other warm gear for the homeless, supplying wrapped gifts for Toys for Tots or the Lokahi Giving Project, giving cards and small gifts to elders in care facilities. Check with the organization so you're sure to gather the right stuff and know when they most need it. Arrange a holding place (an office storeroom, a corner of your garage). Set a deadline day. Send fliers to neighboring workplaces or an e-mail alert. Recruit some heavy lifters. Amass and deliver. Warm hearts.

SUPPLY A SCHOOL

Lani Nixon, of Kalihi, ran into a friend at Fisher Hawaii, loaded down with school supplies. "Wot? You wen have plenny kids wen I wasn't lookin'?" she asked. No, her friend said, she was shopping for teachers who would otherwise pay out of their own pockets. Nixon, who is "childless but hopeful," now not only donates goods but volunteers in a third-grade classroom when she can. "It makes my day," she said. Go to www.adoptateacher.org to find ways to help.

HELP A NEIGHBOR

Emptying the trash in the dark one very early morning, Janet C., a Makiki resident who shyly asked that her last name not be revealed, saw an elderly condo neighbor, bundled in sweaters, waiting for the Handi-Van. The widow had a 9 a.m. doctor's visit, but the only pickup she'd been able to get was before 6 a.m. Since then, Janet, a sales representative with a flexible schedule, helps two elders from her building get to doctors' appointments and do their errands. Her advice: "Look around your own neighborhood, your own life; there are people in need of simple things you can provide."

Reach Wanda A. Adams at wadams@honoluluadvertiser.com.