The season’s festivities are starting on November 18th! I’m talking about National Family Volunteer Day, which is held the Saturday before Thanksgiving to kick off the holiday season with giving and service.
While volunteering has its own rewards, like being good for your health, volunteering as a family is even better. It teaches children the importance of helping others, teamwork, and generosity and builds stronger connections between family members and your community.
And now there’s another benefit to family volunteering: tickets to Disney! Starting on November 18th, Disney Parks and Points of Light are encouraging nonprofits and schools to plan family service projects, making them eligible for up to 20 Disney tickets per year.
Not sure where to get started? Your local United Way is a great place to look for family volunteer activities this weekend and throughout the year. United Way of Rhode Island is inviting families to create literacy kits of books, puppets, games, and other props that help make reading fun. Local nonprofit agencies distribute the finished kits to children to take home. Enthusiasm was so high after last year’s event that United Way organized another family volunteer day in the spring, and recently sent families out to glean the final crops of the season to go to food pantries.
In Provo, United Way of Utah County is mobilizing families to clean and beautify a community center, make Thanksgiving crafts with nursing home residents and compile activity kits that teach young children resiliency skills. About 100 volunteers will pack “Stockings of Joy” during United Way of Central Oklahoma’s first-ever Family Volunteer Day. Stockings for adults and children will contain hygiene items, school and art supplies, and playing cards or toys and be distributed to people in need by United Way’s partner agencies.
If you can’t participate in Family Volunteer Day this time, visit generationOn for ideas on how to engage kids and teens in service and volunteering throughout the year.