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Looking for some ways to help out this weekend? Here’s a roundup of some volunteer and fundraising opportunities in Erie County. If you have any suggestions for future posts, please send me an e-mail at fiona.branton@timesnews.com or drop off your announcement at the Erie Times-News, 205 W. 12th St.

1. Give blood. Memorial Day weekend is traditionally one of the three worst weekends of the year for blood usage, due to all the travel and activities, and it kicks off the unofficial blood shortage season. Help the Community Blood Bank go into the weekend with the blood supply at a high level by donating. The blood bank, at 2646 Peach St., is open Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.  A photo ID is required.

2. Bike Around the Bay. The 11th annual Bike Around the Bay benefiting Environment Erie’s education programs will take place Saturday. Riders can choose among 10-, 30- and 50-mile rides. The rides will begin at 8 and 9 a.m., starting and ending at the Pilot House, 1 Holland St., behind the Intermodal Transportation Center. Day-of-ride registration is $25 for an individual and $45 for families. Call 835-8069 or visit www.environmenterie.org to learn more.

3. Erie Animal Network’s Art for Animals. Have fun and purchase an original piece of art by local professional and amateur artists, Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m., at Performing Artists Collective Alliance, 1505 Peach St. Admission is free; proceeds from the sale help support the Erie Animal Network’s pet food bank and its mission of reuniting lost and found pets with their owners.

4. Rummage sale at Orphan Angels Cat Sanctuary. Find some great stuff — clothing, books, DVDs, knick-knacks, pet items, household goods and more — and help the cats at Orphan Angels. The sale will be held Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 3 p.m., in the shelter’s parking lot, 5439 West Lake Road.

Each week, 60 volunteers perform a variety of program-related roles, including teaching, reading, tutoring, and serving as a program or office aide. Others serve on standing committees, develop and assist at fundraisers, read during lunch time for a week in the summer or perform myriad other services.

If you are interested in volunteering, contact the program director at program@neighborhoodarthouse.org or 455-5508.

The Neighborhood Art House is also an approved site for placement of college students who qualify for the PHEAA Off-Campus Community Service Program. For information on this program, contact the executive director at NAH@neighborhoodarthouse.org or 455-5508.

Goodell Gardens & Homestead, 221 Waterford St., Edinboro, is seeking volunteers to work on May 18 as parking guides during the Downtown Edinboro Art & Music Festival, which runs May 16-18.

Goodell Gardens has changed its site layout since last year, and it wants to make sure that folks who come to the festival can find a place to park. The parking guide volunteers will also count visitors and collect donations for the festival.

Parking guides will work in teams of four (or more) for two-hour shifts. Volunteers are needed to work on Saturday, May 18, from 9 to 11 a.m., 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 to 3 p.m., 3 to 5 p.m., or 5 to 7 p.m. Goodell Gardens will provide walkie-talkies, bottled water, cold snacks and training. Volunteers will earn credit toward Goodell Gardens’ volunteer rewards program.

If you are interested, please contact Amber at 734-6699 or via e-mail at info@goodellgardens.org and let her know which hours you are available to help.

Help Erie celebrate its heritage by participating in “The Spirit of Erie,”  a community pageant that will pay tribute to Erie’s history as part of this summer’s Perry 200 Commemoration.

Auditions for the extravaganza, which will include singing, dancing, historical skits and more, are scheduled Monday and Tuesday, March 18 and 19, at 6 p.m. at the Erie Playhouse Rehearsal Hall, 1158 E. 12th St.

Participants will take part in eight performances between June 25 and June 30 at the Bayfront Convention Center.

Auditions are open to anyone age 7 or older; the show will include a large cast of children. No previous experience is necessary.

Singers should bring 16 bars of a song of their choice. Dancers should be ready to learn some steps and show off their skills; a combination will be taught at the auditions. Actors should prepare a short dramatic monologue.

For more information on the auditions or the pageant, call Richard Davis of the Erie Playhouse at 454-2852, Ext. 2 or e-mail him at richardd@erieplayhouse.org.

Area artists — here’s a chance to express yourself and help local pets in need at the same time.

The Erie Animal Network is a social networking project that helps connect lost and found cats and dogs with their owners and finds homes for stray and unwanted dogs and cats.

The group is collecting donations of artwork (from everyone from novice to professional) for the Art for Animals show, a fundraiser scheduled for Sunday, May 19, 1 to 5 p.m., at PACA, 1505 State St.

If you’d like to donate a piece of art, or otherwise help with the event, send a note to EAN’s Facebook site.

Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park, known as L.E.A.F., needs help from the community to help maintain the park and to organize and present the park’s public events.

Volunteers are needed for educational events, including developing and presenting programs for students and adults; performing tree maintenance, such as minor tree pruning and mulching; conducting the twice-a-year park cleanups in the spring and fall; helping with newsletter layout and mailing; fundraising; public relations; and helping to organize and staff special events, including the annual L.E.A.F. festival held the second Saturday in September, the Arbor Day celebration on the last Friday in April, and the Arts at the Arboretum series, which takes place on six Thursdays in July and August.

To volunteer your talents, or for more information, send an e-mail to LEAF@velocity.net. Find out more about L.E.A.F. by visiting www.leaferie.org.

Mercyhurst University and the House of Mercy will host a global gifts fair on March 21, from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., in the university’s Carolyn Herrmann Student Union.

The fair will showcase handcrafted original works of art, including jewelry, woodcarvings and knitted and woven items, made by area refugees from Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Proceeds will benefit the artists and their families.

Mercyhurst social work major Sister Kade Browne of Liberia, pictured above, recently began working with refugees in Erie as part of her Social Work Practice III course. According to Sister Kade, who is working on this project with Mercyhurst senior Brittany Miklos, many of the area’s refugees are unemployed and need help providing for their families.

Mercyhurst officials and the Sisters of Mercy are seeking craft donations to support the participating artists. Crafting materials such as fabrics, beads, buttons, yarn, thread, ribbon, clay, paper and paint will be accepted.

Donations of nonperishable food items and toiletries will also be collected before and during the gifts fair to benefit refugees. Collection boxes are available around the university’s Erie campus, including the lobby of Old Main, the Student Union and Egan Dining Hall.

Donations can also be made at the House of Mercy, 2005 Woodlawn Ave., and the Sisters of Mercy Mother House, 444 E. Grandview Blvd. For more information, contact Sister Kade at 824-3314, or Sister Michelle at 898-0167.

Photo by Jack Hanrahan/ Erie Times-News.

Like the Erie Philharmonic, the Erie Playhouse depends on volunteers to help their performances go off without a hitch.

Have a stunning voice? Play an instrument? Enjoy fundraising? All of those skills can be put to use at the Erie Playhouse.

In fact, on its website, the Erie Playhouse calls volunteers the “backbone” of their operation.

Here’s how you can get involved:

Take the stage

Auditions for Erie Playhouse productions are usually four to six weeks before opening night. Check out Showcase for current listings.

Play a tune

Musicians are encouraged to try out for the playhouse’s pit band. According to the Erie Playhouse website, “the volunteer pit musicians have played everything from Gershwin to Sondheim as well as Hammerstein, Elton John, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Bernstein, Menken, Yeston and many others.”

If you are interested in lending your musical talents, call 814-454-2852, ext. 6 or e-mail Andrew.

Usher in patrons

The Erie Playhouse says that ushering is their most popular volunteer opportunity. Ushers seat patrons, collect tickets and sell 50/50 raffle tickets.

Ushers are needed for Mainstage productions, concerts and special events.

If you are interested in ushering at the Playhouse, email or call 814-454-2852 ext. 0.

Volunteer behind the scenes

“The Wing,” as the playhouse calls it, is a group of volunteers who work to  support the playhouse. Their tasks range from fundraising to selling gifts to operating the concession stand.

Members of the Wing meet the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Erie Playhouse.

To join the Wing, contact Danielle Dickson, Wing President, or visit the box office.

Join the board

The Erie Playhouse Board of Directors is actively looking for new members. Board members use their professional skills to help advance this nonprofit.

The Erie Playhouse prefers potential board members to have experience in one of these fields: Legal, accounting, marketing, strategic planning, financial, human resource, community relations or production-related experience.

A board position requires a 5 to 10 hour monthly commitment. Board members serve three-year terms.

To apply, fill out this online form.

Whatever your skillset, the Erie Playhouse will find a way to put it to use.

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I’m always looking for more volunteer opportunities to feature on Volunteer Erie. Let me know about your organization at catherine.cloutier@timesnews.com.