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City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and ParksVolunteer with LA Rec & Parks

Volunteering with RAP

Volunteering for the City of Los Angeles, Department of Recreation and Parks is a great way to create community. Recreation and Parks administers a City-wide volunteer program that facilitates citizen involvement, provides challenging volunteer opportunities, and ensures a safe and healthy work environment for volunteers and patrons who participate at its facilities.

Before you volunteer

All Volunteer Program participants must complete an application and Live Scan fingerprinting for Recreation and Parks, and receive clearance from Human Resources, before beginning any volunteer work.

Volunteer roles

Administrative & clerical

Support offices at Recreation and Parks headquarters, the Regions, and local recreation centers with paperwork, phones, filing, flyers, email reminders, meeting organization, and other program tasks.

Day camp & after-school

Serve as mentors, role models, tutors, teachers, coaches, snack servers, field trip chaperones, and other support for after-school programs and summer day camps.

Instructors

Help with or lead classes in dance, fitness, cooking, and other skills and interests.

Museum support

Volunteer as docents, researchers, and event planners at the Los Angeles Maritime Museum, Drum Barracks, Fort McArthur Military Museum, Banning Residence Museum, Travel Town Museum, and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium.

Park maintenance

Assist with clean-ups, tree planting, and pulling weeds and mustard seed.

Senior programs

Provide companionship and program support for senior activities and events.

Special events

Help plan and produce Recreation and Parks events and festivals, or participate in community events produced by outside organizations with department permission.

Sports

Coach, manage, keep score, or officiate leagues, tournaments, and clinics for sports including baseball, softball, basketball, golf, skateboarding, soccer, swimming, flag football, boxing, and volleyball.

Group clean-ups

Community groups can schedule time to visit and clean up parks. Contact a local park to ask about scheduling.

Advisory boards

Park Advisory Boards (PAB)

Community residents, business members, and people who work or spend time in a community serve as volunteer board members. Each board works to strengthen its facility’s recreation programs and services.

Volunteer Neighborhood Oversight Committee (VNOC)

A VNOC member advises and assists the department in allocating and assigning resources for a specific Proposition K project during its design phase.

How to apply

Start an application here. You can also contact the RAP facility, park, or program where you want to volunteer to ask whether an opportunity is available.

Start your application

Frequently asked questions

Volunteer documents

Source: recreation.parks.lacity.gov (as of 2026-10-09)