Retirement Volunteering: Making Your Golden Years Gleam Brighter (Updated 2025)
- Leading Contributors: Canadian seniors over 65 contribute 42% of all charitable donations (over $4 billion) and volunteer 214 hours annually—well above the national average of 154 hours—making them more likely to be considered “top volunteers”
- Strong Commitment: 89% of Canadian seniors believe they can play a significant role in working towards solutions to world issues, with 82% donating money and 37% volunteering their time to causes important to them
- Current Challenges: Despite their dedication, 67% of organizations report facing volunteer shortages and 51% struggle with retention, making senior volunteers increasingly valuable to communities
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Retirement is indeed golden. But you can make it gleam more brightly by volunteering your free time to make your community a better place to live. Seniors are an integral part of the volunteer force.
According to the latest research from the Revera Report on Aging: Living a Life of Purpose, Canadian seniors are leaders when it comes to giving both time and money to the causes that matter most to them. Canadians over the age of 65 volunteer more hours and donate more money to the causes that are important to them than any other age group.
Key findings show that:
- Canadians over 65 contributed 42% of all donations, equaling more than $4 billion, with an average donation of $2,500—exceeding the national average by 40%
- Volunteers over 65 contribute on average 214 volunteer hours annually, well above the national average of 154 hours per volunteer
- 89% of Canadian seniors believe they can play a significant role in working towards solutions to world issues
- 82% donate money and 37% volunteer their time to causes important to them
In addition to supporting a specific cause, seniors volunteer their time for added benefits such as socialization, purpose, keeping mind and mood sharp, keeping physically able, learning opportunities and deterring boredom.
Volunteer Ideas for Seniors
- Food Bank or Care Home – Collecting, serving, preparing, or distributing food
- Fundraising or selling items to raise money
- Tutoring or teaching – online or in-person
- Mentoring the youth
- Collecting, making, or distributing clothing
- Assisting in political campaigns
- Light clean-ups of parks and public spaces
- Community centre help
- Virtual volunteering – administrative work, writing, social media, telephone reassurance for isolated seniors
Finding Volunteer Opportunities in 2025
Canadian Resources:
- Volunteer Canada – National organization working to remove barriers to participation and build connected communities
- Government of Canada Volunteer Portal – Official government resource for senior volunteers
Provincial/Local Resources:
- Go Volunteer BC – Platform for B.C. not-for-profit organizations to post volunteer positions
- Volunteer Ottawa – Over 20,000 engaged volunteers with 400 new volunteers signing up monthly
- Volunteer Toronto
- Volunteer Manitoba
- iVolunteer BC – Filter by ‘Virtual Opportunity’
- Volunteer Connector (Alberta and Saskatchewan)
Virtual Opportunities:
Virtual volunteering platforms across Canada offer opportunities like telephone reassurance, writing, social media management, and tutoring that can be done from home.
Current State of Senior Volunteering
The latest research demonstrates the incredible impact Canadian seniors continue to make. Nine in ten Canadian seniors say they do something to support the charities or causes that are important to them, with many considered “top volunteers”—those in the top 25% in terms of hours volunteered.
Popular volunteer areas for seniors include:
- Religious organizations (one-third of senior volunteers)
- Health charities (24% of senior volunteers)
- Informal helping of relatives, friends, and neighbours
The volunteer landscape has evolved significantly since the pandemic. Results from the 2023 Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participating (SGVP) are tentatively slated for release in June 2025, which will provide the most current data on volunteering trends post-pandemic.
The pandemic has posed tremendous challenges to volunteer organizations, with seniors—Canada’s most dedicated volunteers in terms of hours committed—also being among the most vulnerable to COVID-19. However, many organizations have adapted by offering virtual volunteering opportunities, removing previous geographic and physical barriers.
Benefits of Senior Volunteering: As noted in the Revera report, volunteering provides seniors with opportunities to maintain social connections, find outlets for their skills and abilities, and make tangible contributions to their communities. As one resident noted: “When you retire, you’re not giving up. You’re simply changing direction.”
If you’re looking for volunteer opportunities, these resources offer both in-person and virtual volunteer positions. If you’re not sure if volunteering is for you, ask a fellow senior you know who is a volunteer, and ask questions! Whatever you end up volunteering as, your community will thank you 💗
