WHAT YOU CAN DO TO . . . : . . . feed the hungry, help a child, inspire a teen-ager, cheer the lonely or befriend an old person.

As the holiday season continues with festive gatherings of families and friends, many Southern Californians would like to remember those less fortunate--people who are ill or shut in, families that cannot afford to celebrate. Local nonprofit organizations that serve those in need are grateful for volunteers and donations. We couldn’t print the names of every agency, so if you don’t see anything in your neighborhood or field of interest, contact your local county or city volunteer agencies.

BRIGHTEN CHILDREN’S LIVES

* Happy Hats for kids brings smiles to children with cancer or AIDS. The organization’s volunteers make and decorate hats for hospitalized children who have lost their hair during treatment. Needed also are people to serve on telephone committees and organize supplies and drivers. Work at home or have fun at a workshop. Information: Sheri Schrier, (310) 326-8409.

* On the wish list at Caring for Babies With AIDS are sing-along story tapes, musical instruments, educational books and videos, “Hooked on Phonics” (in English and Spanish), outdoor swing and play sets, pillows and all kinds of infant furniture. Also sought: clothing (newborn to 6x), diapers in all sizes, baby food and formula, toothbrushes, toothpaste and kitchen items. Gift certificates from Toys R Us, Lucky, Target and children’s shoe stores are also welcome. Information: (213) 931-9828.

* The Walking Shield American Indian Society will collect, wrap and ship 13,000 new toys to needy Native American children in California, Utah, Arizona and the Dakotas. There will be wrapping and packing parties in Los Angeles and Orange counties. The society also provides food, scholarships, computers and medical assistance to Native Americans on reservations and in urban areas. Information: (714) 573-1434.

* Among the needs at Great Beginnings for Black Babies are undershirts, gowns, pajamas, receiving blankets, crib blankets, towels and washcloths, baby lotion, oil and powder. Information: (213) 419-8272.

* Abused, abandoned and neglected children are helped at Five Acres in Altadena. The organization wants to provide them with ethnic Barbie dolls and clothing, jump ropes, skates, clocks, radios, basketballs, stuffed animals, footballs, knee pads, skateboards, in-line skates, baseballs, mitts and caps, backpacks, Ninja Turtle items, puzzles, board games, books and sweat shirts (all sizes). The center also appreciates gift certificates for grocery and clothing stores. Information: Jackie Geary, (213) 681-4827, Ext. 244.

* Children receiving residential treatment at Florence Crittenton Center would appreciate cloth books, clothing and furniture for infants and toddlers. For teens, welcome gifts are amusement-park passes, desk lamps, irons, jeans, pocket cameras, desk lamps, Nintendos and cartridges, books and games, sweat pants and sweat shirts, underwear, personal stereos, winter jackets, skates and gift certificates. Major items sought are bicycles, bookcases, a VCR, a stove and a microwave oven. Information: (213) 225-4211.

* Clothing and toys for infants, children and teens are on the holiday list at Orangewood Children’s Home in Orange. The home needs dress clothes, especially for boys; sporting equipment and kitchen items such as cookie sheets, cake pans, pot holders and utensils. Also on its list are gift certificates (Target, Mervyn’s, Kmart). Information: (714) 935-7584.

* Alkebu-Ian Cultural Center for at-risk children in northwest Pasadena offers after-school tutoring, a boys’ choir, drama and dance classes. It is seeking 100 stackable chairs for choir and performance arts programs, personal computers and English and math tutorial software. Also needed are sponsors for a boys music camp. Information: (818) 577-5556.

* First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood needs toys that its Christmas store can sell to needy neighborhood residents at a minimal cost. Proceeds go to the Hollywood Urban Project. Information: 463-7161, Ext. 241.

* Homeless teens and young adults get help at My Friend’s Place in Hollywood. The organization needs toothpaste and toothbrushes, deodorant, socks, T-shirts, jackets, sweat shirts, sleeping bags, blankets, bras, underwear, tennis shoes, first-aid supplies, McDonald’s gift certificates, recessed lighting units, a vacuum cleaner, a VCR, a remote-control gate unit, chain-link fence, toilet paper, paper towels, a van and an aquarium. Information: (800) 300-4493.

* Free Arts for Abused Children provides creative arts activities and special friends to victims of child abuse in Los Angeles and Orange counties. New gift items, especially for teen-agers, are needed. Suggestions include games, art supplies, stuffed animals, T-shirts, gift certificates to record stores, Nintendo games, hand-held video games, watches, new white T-shirts (all sizes) and art supplies. Also needed are office equipment and supplies and a van or truck. Information: (310) 479-1212.

* Interactive arts programs help the children of single and divorced parents learn to express themselves in the Dramatic Results program. Volunteer artists are sought to work with 9- to 12-year-olds to create projects such as mobiles, dream boxes and masks. Also welcome are volunteer calligraphers, photographers and editors for the group’s newsletter. Information: Dee Weder or Christi Wilkins, (310) 437-6328.

* Office equipment is among the needs of the L.A. County branch of the Orton Dyslexia Society. File cabinets, spiral notebooks, pens and pencils, pencil sharpeners, a 19-inch television and VCR are on the list for its Ryan Dyslexia Reading Center at Ella Esperanza Adult Education Center, 255 E. 28th. St. Cash donations are also welcome; $60 provides one student with textbooks. Information: (213) 748-9596

A HAND TO THE NEEDY

* People are needed to deliver hot midday meals to the homebound for Helping Hands, an AIDS-HIV service project in Long Beach. Deliveries are made Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers must have their own vehicles and are reimbursed for mileage. Information: Tod Spence, (310) 436-4717.

* West Hollywood Homeless Organization, an around-the-clock shelter that aids 60 men and women, needs people to help with food drives, Christmas meals, gifts and other holiday programs. Information: William B. Otto, (213) 850-4063.

* Volunteer Center South Bay-Harbor-Long Beach is sponsoring an adopt-a-family program. Individuals, employee groups and families can help by providing a family with financial aid, food, clothing, toys, gift certificates and grooming aids. Information: Sherry Saacke, (310) 212-5009.

* School and employee groups can help out the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank by setting up barrels for holiday giving. Needed are canned goods, peanut butter in plastic containers and other non-perishable items. Volunteers are needed to sort food. Information: (213) 234-3030, Ext. 144.

* A donation of $15.71 to Los Angeles Mission can buy dinner for 10 needy people. Also needed are white cotton socks and packaged underwear for men and women. Information: (213) 629-1227. Checks may be mailed to Los Angeles Mission, P.O. Box 21448, Department BTDOA, Los Angeles, Calif. 90021.

* North Hollywood Interfaith Food Pantry collects and provides food to needy families. Donations of non-perishable foods are needed. Information: (818) 980-1657.

* On Dec. 19 and 20, the Salvation Army, Southern California Division, will be at the Los Angeles Convention Center packing Christmas boxes for families in the Downtown area. The boxes will be distributed there Dec. 21. Volunteers, especially bilingual people, are needed to staff phones and distribute food and toys. Information: Toni Short, (213) 627-5571, Ext. 270.

* Santa Monica’s Ocean Park Community Center offers a network of emergency shelters and services to the homeless, runaway and abused youth, battered women and children, and others. Its Homeless Drop-In Center for adults and families needs new toys, clothing for adults and children, underwear, diapers, toiletries, tote bags, kitchen appliances, grocery certificates, non-perishable canned food and blankets. Information: (310) 450-4050. Another center facility, Sojourn Shelter for Battered Women and Their Children, seeks diapers, washcloths and towels, toothbrushes, toothpaste, radios, detergent, cassette players, and pots and pans with lids. Information: (310) 399-9232.

* Haven House, a shelter for battered women and children, would be grateful for a frost-free refrigerator, gas stove, a 19-inch television set, women’s and children’s clothing and shoes, and new toys for children of all ages. Information: Sheila Halfon, (818) 564-8880.

* There will be dinner served to 5,000 people on Dec. 16 at the New Olivett Mission’s 13-acre facility in Rancho Dominguez/Compton. The nonprofit organization provides food, shelter and medical care. The dinner is set for 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 3200 Susana Road. Needs include food, clothing, new toys, grocery certificates and volunteers. Information: Sally Moss, (310)-635-8238.

* Public Guardian volunteers are advocates for the elderly in nursing homes and boarding facilities. Participants can bring holiday cheer to the elderly, disabled and bedridden who are alone, by volunteering to distribute more than 2,300 wrapped gifts to seniors. Information: Joan Vitale or Chris Marshall, (213) 974-0400 or (213) 974-0543.

CHEERING THE SICK

* There are a number of opportunities to bring holiday cheer to patients of County-USC Medical Center. Women’s and Children’s Hospital seeks new layettes, robes, toiletries, slippers, afghans and sweaters, and new toys. Information: Kristina Stewart, (213) 226-3698. General Hospital needs toys and children’s clothing for the families of impoverished patients. People may also donate food certificates through the hospital. The 5P21 Rand Schrader AIDS Clinic’s adopt-a-family program collects donated gifts so needy parents can be Santa to their children. Names and ages of children and their gift requests are available. Food certificates are also available. Information: Margie Dolinski, (213) 266-6945.

* The Mental Health Assn., Los Angeles, a private nonprofit agency serving adults with psychiatric disorders, needs volunteer telephone staff to solicit donations and gifts for its “Gifts for Giving” program. The annual holiday program collects new, unused articles--personal, household or recreational items--that low-income people with mental illnesses can give to friends and family. Gifts are distributed at regional holiday parties hosted by Project Return: The Next Step. Information: (213) 413-1130.

* The nonprofit Frank D. Lanterman Regional Center, for clients with developmental disabilities, is looking for volunteers and contributions of new toys, food certificates and personal care products for the “Holidays Are for Sharing” program. This project provides families with meals and gifts in December. Information: (213) 383-1300, Ext. 404.

* Lions Clubs International and LensCrafters allow you to help others to see by donating old eyeglasses. Under the Gift of Sight program, glasses are cleaned, repaired, classified by prescription and distributed to needy people in developing countries. Information: (800) 541-LENS.

* Food and new toys are needed at the Minority AIDS Project, a full-service nonprofit organization that serves people of all races. Information: (213) 936-4949.

* Volunteers are sought at A Window Between Worlds, which serves battered women throughout Los Angeles. Participants perform general office work. Day, evening and weekend hours are available. Information: (310) 396-0317.

* AIDS Service Center is seeking donations of canned, dry and prepackaged foods for holiday food baskets for individuals and families living with HIV and AIDS. The center plans to provide more than 1,000 gift baskets. Donations may be dropped off at AIDS Service Center, 126 W. Del Mar Blvd., Pasadena, or Robinsons-May, 9900 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills. Information: (800) 543-8272.

* A van (and insurance) to be used in a teen-abuse-prevention program is among the needs of the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women. The commission also is seeking two Macintosh computers, a Macintosh-compatible laser printer, new sweat shirts and socks, and other clothing for clients, a paper shredder, printing/copying services, paper and other office supplies. Information: (213) 462-1281.

* Disabled adults receive training at Tierra del Sol in Sunland, Van Nuys and Claremont. The agency could use art supplies, workout equipment, pagers, contemporary music tapes and volunteers to maintain vehicles. Information: Vicki Nadsady, (818) 352-1419.

GIFTS THAT GIVE

* Remember the lonely during the holiday season by becoming a Card Santa. This national project distributes cards to the elderly and others in shelters, homes and hospitals. Write a note in a cheerful holiday card, and seal it in an envelope with a single piece of tape. Mail cards to Card Santa, 4301 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 190, Arlington, Va. 22203. Deadline is Dec. 21. Information: Joan Porte, (703) 522-2002.

* A card and ornament are $10 at Caring for Babies With AIDS, with proceeds benefiting the charity. Or, provide an address list, and the organization will send your cards for you. Information: (213) 931-9828.

* PAWS/LA (Pets Are Wonderful Support) helps people living with HIV and AIDS to care for their pets. It raises funds with cards for all occasions. Cards are $10 each, and will note that a donation has been made. Information: (213) 876-PAWS.

* Los Angeles-area artists created the holiday cards sold to raise funds for Venice Family Clinic. Prices vary. Also, for $25 you can sponsor a child for a day of fun and snacks at the movies. Information: (310) 392-8630, Ext. 388.

* Los Angeles Free Clinic has holiday cards designed by homeless and runaway youths in its Project Step program. The cost is $10 for three cards. All may be hand-addressed from your mailing list. Information: LAFC Holiday Cards, 8405 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles 90048.