Families can volunteer together
The efforts of volunteers often go unnoticed, but the thoughtful men, women and children who give up their free time to support worthy causes do a lot to bolster their communities.
With so many benefits to volunteering, it’s no wonder that families often seek ways to volunteer together. Such efforts can be a great way to spend time together and give back to a community, all the while affording families a chance to reap the many rewards of volunteering. The following are a handful of potential volunteering opportunities that families can consider.
Clothing drives
Clothing drives not only benefit the homeless, but they also help people who simply don’t have the means to purchase new clothing. Families can donate their own slightly used clothing to nearby goodwill organizations and organize clothing drives through their schools and places of employment. Encourage neighbors to follow suit and donate their own slightly used items.
Litter cleanups
The National Park Service estimates that plastics account for up to 90 percent of the trash floating in the ocean and littering shores. Many national and local organizations aim to combat plastic pollution via beach cleanups, and these efforts welcome volunteers of all ages, making them ideal ways for families to give back together.
But litter is not just a problem for oceanfront communities. The organization Keep America Beautiful notes that 66 million pounds of litter and recyclables were collected in 2019. KAB hosts various litter cleanup programs in towns and cities across the country and encourages families to join their movement.
Combat homelessness
According to the 2019 “The State of Homelessness in America” report from The Council of Economic Advisers, in January 2018, more than a half a million people were counted as homeless in the United States. Statistics in Canada are not as recent as those in the United States, but estimates suggest as many as 235,000 Canadians are homeless in any given year. Volunteering at a nearby homeless shelter is a great way for families to help this often underserved segment of the population. Contact a local homeless shelter to learn about specific volunteering opportunities, which may involve preparing and serving meals; tutoring homeless men, women and children; and involvement in other services shelters offer.
Volunteering together is a great way for families to give back to their communities.
