Volunteer Information

Are you looking for a practical way to make abortion available to every woman who needs one? The Haven Coalition, an all-volunteer organization, could use your help.

The Haven Coalition is a network of volunteers who help women having abortions in New York City with two essential needs:

• Hosts provide out-of-town patients and those accompanying them with a safe place to stay, dinner, and transportation to and from clinics. To host, you need to live in one of the five boroughs or nearby New Jersey, have a place a guest can sleep (a couch or blow up mattress is fine), and be able to arrive at the clinic by 5:30 p.m. on the days you are on call.
• Escorts meet patients at clinics or hospitals after their appointments and accompany them to their homes within the five boroughs. Escorts do not need a car; we use subways and buses to take patients home. Escorts must be able to arrive at the clinic by 5:30 p.m. on the days they are on call, but a flexible schedule helps as patients are often ready in the early afternoon.

Both men and women can serve as escorts and hosts, although certain patients will not be placed with a male host due to their comfort and personal history.

Most patients Haven assists are referred to us through three clinics with which Haven has longtime relationships: Choices Women’s Medical Center in Jamaica, Queens; Planned Parenthood clinics in the East Village (and occasionally at the South Bronx and Long Island City, Queens locations); and Parkmed NYC in East Midtown.

Each month, volunteers sign up for days to be on call. This does not mean that you WILL host or escort a patient, but that you are ready to do so if the need arises. If a patient requires Haven’s help the volunteer on call will receive a phone call with the relevant information (patient’s name, pick-up location, drop-off location, and so forth).


If you are ready to sign up, please contact Haven at 917-371-2035 or havencoalition@gmail.com with the following information:

Your name
Your email and phone number
The neighborhood in which you live (if you’d like to host)