December 5, 1999
Dear Readers,
Welcome back and Happy Hanukkah! Have you Gazooba’d yet?
Surfing the Net has made it even MORE fun to tell a
friend about this newsletter. We are now
awarding TEN (10) Gazooba points for every
referral that visits our site. If you like
this newsletter, and want to tell a friend (and
earn 10 points toward fun goodies such as
American Express Gift Cheques at the same time)
try the Gazooba button or the Tell a Friend tab at the top of the page.
|
|
Today’s newsletter is made possible by:
A Helping Hand
Margaret Mead once said “Never doubt that a small group of concerned
citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever
has.” Citizens, by the way, come in all ages and there are many ways that
kids and teens can volunteer and make a difference. Here are some sites
to get your family started on sharing the warmth of the holidays by lending
a helping hand.
“Have you have always wanted to ‘Do Something’ but never knew what to
do or how to go about it? Then this is the place for you. Care Girl can
help you to turn your ideas into reality.” Care Girl features interviews,
links to organizations and real-life stories from the trenches: “Nadine had
really been looking forward to working with cute little babies, and the
idea of spending ten hours with the elderly didn’t exactly thrill her at
first.” Want to share your volunteer story? Look for the bulletin board
link in the middle of the She Cares page.
“Inspiring kids to end hunger and poverty in their communities, their
country and their world.” Highlights of this site designed for middle- and
high-school students are the Hunger Facts, Hunger Quiz, and an archive of
the Kids Can Make a Difference print newsletter (don’t miss the wonderful
student stories). The best click, however, is the What Kids Can Do page.
Teachers wanting to incorporate the program into their classrooms can order
a printed Teachers Guide for $26.
“Our mission is to develop the spirit of compassion and volunteerism in
children. To that end, we provide children, families, schools and religious
groups with meaningful opportunities to help others in their local and
global communities.” Great ideas to be found here include starting a Kids
Care Club at your school, making a Holiday Hope Chest and dropping it off
at a Toys for Tots receptacle, or filling a brand new backpack with school
supplies for Kosovo refugee children being resettled in Portland, Maine.
Nickelodeon holds their Big Help-a-thon in April, when thousands kids from
all across the country call in to pledge community service hours to
projects such as “Make your mark. Help your park.” But there is plenty of
material here that is useful year round. What I like best are the
step-by-step instructions on choosing an undertaking, getting help from
grown-ups, and spreading the word about your project. Click on How to Help
Toolkit. You’ll see the clickable list of seven steps on the left-hand
side.
Youth Service America sponsors National Youth Service Day each year in
April “to empower young people, highlighting their ongoing contributions to
their communities and mobilizing their energy, commitment, and idealism
through sustainable service.” This project page simply lists dozens of
great ideas (“Collect grocery coupons to give a local food bank .” “Paint a
mural over graffiti.” “Pick up medicine for an elderly person.” ) for
anyone, young or old, looking to make a difference.
|
This mailing is best viewed through Netscape
Communicator.
- You
are currently subscribed as
- You can unsubscribe by sending
an email.
- Subscribe to this free HTML newsletter via email.
- More on the two versions of this list is found
here.
Copyright © 1999 Barbara J.
Feldman |
|
{ 0 comments… add one now }