We all want to make a difference in someone's life but we don't know where to start? Well there are a whole bunch of ways that you can give back. Just wanting to make a difference is a good start now you just need to find a cause or two or three or more that you are passionate about and then go from there. Here are a few ways that you can give back to your community.
1. Volunteer with a club or a group of friends!
There is always strength in numbers, when it comes to volunteering, if you are part of a club at school or an organization that does a lot of service work, go along with them to whichever charity you decide to volunteer at. One of my favorite places to volunteer at is Feed My Starving Children, it truly is an amazing organization, and I love all of the kids that we are impacting with volunteering! I often go with United Students of All Cultures at Elgin Community College. If there is a Feed My Starving Children in your area I would recommend volunteering!
2. Simply put smiles on peoples faces
I went to visit Northern Illinois University one weekend in April and my boyfriend Peter was hosting an event for Autism Awareness. One of the things we did was make a tree of puzzle pieces and popsicle sticks where we wrote nice stuff on them. It was all for the disability center at NIU, just to put smiles on their faces, and give them hope. Sometimes even the smallest thing can make all the difference.
3. Don't forget about local charities!
This picture below was from the PB & Jam where students and staff got to make a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the local Boys and Girls Club and the local homeless shelter as well. While the big organizations are great, don't forget that there are local charities that need help too. Don't forget about your community.
4. Get Creative.
Pictured here is some of the Valentines cards that were made for residents in nursing homes. Some of the residents in nursing homes sometimes have no family that come to see them, so it makes me smile knowing that we put a smile on those faces.
5. Participate in a campaign.
Last April Elgin Community College with the help of United Students of All Cultures and ASPIRE raised $21,398 for the United Way Campaign, we helped them out by selling raffle tickets for various prizes. I love what the United Way Campaign does for schools and thats why I wanted to participate in that campaign. If you know a campaign that means a lot to you, take some time a participate, even if its just for a little while.
6. Raise money.
This was for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I know raising money is the most typical thing to do but if there is a cause that you are very passionate about then you should raise money for it. You never know what difference that money will make.
7. Take a pledge.
This below was a pledge that we took on Spirit Day which is to pledge to never bully anyone because of their sexuality, also a pledge to never bully period. Small message here don't bully anyone, its not cool! Having been a victim of bullying I felt the need to take this pledge. No one deserves to be bullied for who they are. So I encourage all of you to take the pledge as well, or any pledge for that matter
