Ocala, Fla. (September 26, 2011) --- After receiving multiple requests to from parents looking for volunteer opportunities for their middle school students, United Way of Marion County has created a new volunteer program exclusively for middle school students (grades 6-8) called "Get in the Middle."

United Way will offer one monthly volunteer activity ...no fundraising...only volunteering from October 2011 through March 2012. Middle School students will be able to participate in one or all of the six volunteer opportunities.

"This age can sometimes be challenging to place due to agency regulations, state or federal laws," said Maureen Quinlan, president of United Way of Marion County. "We want our youth to get involved in the issues that face our community everyday and also help them get in the middle of finding solutions."

United Way's first middle school volunteer event will be Dust the Dead, on Thursday, October 13. United Way has proudly partnered with the City of Ocala to spruce up one of Ocala's historical cemeteries - Greenwood Cemetery located on NE 3rd Street.

For more information or to get involved, contact Chris Cotter at the United Way at 352-732-9696 or ccotter@uwmc.org.  

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