Volunteer Community Moderator | The AFK Cafe

Help Build a Community Where People Belong

Organization: AFK Cafe

Location: Remote (Virtual)

Commitment: Approximately 3–8 hours per week (Flexible)

Position Type: Volunteer

About AFK Cafe

AFK Cafe is a volunteer-led online community organization dedicated to creating meaningful opportunities for connection, learning, creativity, and play.

While Discord serves as our primary gathering place, AFK Cafe is much more than a Discord server. We're building a digital third space where adults can form genuine friendships, discover new hobbies, volunteer, lead community initiatives, and simply enjoy spending time together.

Our community hosts tabletop RPG campaigns, board game nights, gaming events, movie and anime nights, educational workshops, volunteer leadership programs, creative spaces, discussion groups, and seasonal community experiences. Whether someone joins to play games, learn something new, meet friends, or give back, our goal is the same: create a welcoming place where people feel they belong.

As our community continues to grow, we're looking for compassionate volunteers who want to help cultivate that experience for others.

About the Role

Our Community Moderators are community builders first.

Rather than simply enforcing rules, moderators help create the environment that keeps people coming back. They welcome new members, encourage conversations, answer questions, support events, model healthy communication, and help maintain a respectful, inclusive atmosphere throughout the community.

If you enjoy bringing people together and helping people feel seen, valued, and connected, we'd love to meet you.

What You'll Do

Community Moderators help:

• Welcome new members and help them get settled.
• Participate in conversations and encourage community engagement.
• Answer questions and guide members to the appropriate resources.
• Help maintain a respectful and inclusive environment.
• De-escalate conflicts calmly and professionally.
• Enforce community guidelines fairly and consistently.
• Escalate concerns to leadership when appropriate.
• Support community events and activities.
• Work collaboratively with fellow volunteers.
• Help preserve the culture and values that make AFK Cafe unique.

Our Volunteer Journey

We believe the best moderators are community members first.

Rather than assigning moderation responsibilities immediately, every volunteer follows the same onboarding journey designed to help them learn our culture and become confident in the role.

Community Member

Spend time getting to know AFK Cafe by participating in conversations, attending events, and experiencing the community firsthand.

Contributor Lobby

Learn about our mission, values, and community expectations by reviewing our orientation materials and completing our Community Foundations process.

Contributor Academy

Complete our volunteer training program, where you'll learn communication skills, moderation philosophy, conflict resolution, community safety, and the tools we use to support our members.

Mentorship & Shadowing

New moderators receive guidance from experienced team members, observe real moderation situations, and practice with feedback before taking on responsibilities independently.

Ongoing Growth

Once onboarded, moderators continue receiving mentorship, participate in team discussions, and have opportunities to grow into leadership and specialized volunteer roles within the organization.

We intentionally invest in our volunteers because we believe healthy communities are built by prepared, supported people.

Who We're Looking For

We're looking for volunteers who are:

• 21 years of age or older.
• Friendly, patient, and approachable.
• Comfortable communicating with people from diverse backgrounds.
• Reliable and able to check in consistently throughout the week.
• Calm under pressure and able to navigate conflict respectfully.
• Collaborative and open to feedback.
• Passionate about helping build healthy online communities.

Previous moderation experience is appreciated but not required. We provide structured training and mentorship through our Contributor Academy.

Time Commitment

• Remote / Virtual
• Approximately 3–8 hours per week
• Flexible schedule
• No fixed shifts required

Because our community spans multiple time zones, we're especially excited to welcome volunteers from around the world.

Why Volunteer With AFK Cafe?

As a Community Moderator, you'll have the opportunity to:

• Gain hands-on experience in community management.
• Develop leadership, communication, and conflict resolution skills.
• Receive mentorship and structured volunteer training.
• Help create meaningful experiences for hundreds of community members.
• Work alongside a supportive volunteer team.
• Make a lasting impact by helping people find connection and belonging.

This opportunity is especially valuable for individuals interested in community management, nonprofit leadership, psychology, education, mental health advocacy, gaming communities, volunteer management, or digital community building.

Our Values

Everything we do is guided by a few core principles:

• Connection over performance.
• Kindness over perfection.
• Curiosity over judgment.
• Sustainability over burnout.
• Community before titles.

We're not looking for people who simply want moderator permissions—we're looking for people who genuinely enjoy helping others feel welcome and connected.

If that sounds like you, we'd love to hear your story and welcome you into the AFK Cafe community.