In case you missed it, here's one of our popular Smarty Sunday SHARE posts from March:
The greatest wealth is health. – Virgil
Hey Mom – are you taking care of yourself? Between carpool, groceries, work deadlines, the school play, paying bills and folding the laundry, are you watching your sodium intake, getting enough exercise and keeping your stress level down? Yeah, I thought so. Me neither.
It might be tough to get away from the office to volunteer as a team. But you can still rally around a cause, select a local nonprofit to support, and visit the Give Shop - all without leaving the office.
Here’s how it works.
- Go head to head with the department down the hall or challenge a friendly competitor to see who can do the best job getting needed items into the hands of local nonprofit organizations.
- Let your team decide which organization they’d like to support and agree on terms (will the winner be the most items? Or will the value of the items be the deciding factor?).
- Then visit the Give Shop to see a list of much-needed goods from 17 local nonprofit organizations. Shopping and shipping couldn’t be easier.
We’d love to hear who wins! Comment here or tell us about it on social.
In case you missed it, here's one of our popular Smarty Sunday SHARE posts from March:
“The object of teaching a child is to enable him to get along without a teacher.” ― Elbert Hubbard
Twenty sets of eyes watched me walk up the center of the classroom, clutching my Junior Achievement materials and wondering what I’d gotten myself into. My first few moments as a JA volunteer were, I’ll admit, a little scary. Why? Because I’d never done it before.
My company had committed two employees to teach a JA course to a local fifth grade class. I remember signing up enthusiastically, marking the dates on my calendar, being impressed with the materials and lessons plans JA provided, and then sitting in my car in the school parking lot for a full five minutes when it hit me that I was about to stand in front of a classroom of kids and try to hold their attention for 60 minutes. Yikes.
If you missed it, Charlotte Agenda recently had a fact-filled and frightening account of human trafficking statistics from right here in Charlotte. Written by Paula Broadwell and Grace Eberle, it includes startling info - like the fact that North Carolina is among the 10 states with the highest number of human trafficking violations.
Fortunately, there are local organizations working to fight this trend and advocate for victims. Read the article for an overview, then check out these SHARE nonprofits to learn more and see how you can get involved:
In case you missed it, here's one of our popular Smarty Sunday SHARE posts from March:
It’s difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato. ~Lewis Grizzard
I love hanging out at farmers markets, surrounded by fresh, locally grown produce and jostling elbows with people who no doubt are planning to turn the gorgeous greens in their baskets into something amazing for dinner. Although I’m fairly clueless about the art of cooking, I just feel healthier – and smarter – when I’m there.
That said, all that healthy goodness can be expensive. Too expensive, in fact, for many families to afford to include it in their weekly grocery trip.
In case you missed it, here's one of our popular Smarty Sunday SHARE posts from March:
You can only perceive real beauty in a person as they get older. — Anouk Aimee
If you (or your kids) have a special place in your heart for serving senior citizens, you’ll probably want to hear about the programs at Love INC.
Serving Charlotte’s seniors (and others) since 1992, Love INC operates multiple programs that touch over 1,500 people each year. Clients come to them by referral from over 100 social service agencies. Getting all of that good work done means they rely on (are you ready for this?) over 8,000 volunteers each year!
You can get more great info about them on SHARE Charlotte. To get involved right now, check out these opportunities:
Volunteering can happen even when you’re crazy busy! If you're looking for an easy way to explore a new cause or organization, why not attend one of their fundraising or "friendraising" events?
We're not kidding. There's something for every schedule and wardrobe, from the BIG READ on a Tuesday morning with Bethlehem Center of Charlotte where you'll be reading to pre-school kids, to the Under The Big Top Gala with Care Ring where it's black-tie optional and you'll find a live auction and dancing on a Saturday night.
There are lots of ways to plug in for a few hours and have some "good" fun. Get started with the Nonprofit Events Calendar.
Spring is here and summer is just around the corner. It's time to think about summer camps, sandals and...school supplies? Definitely. In fact, this is the time when the folks at Classroom Central need supplies most, as supplies run low even though students are still in school and still in need.
Here's the current wish list. If you'd like to help, visit the Classroom Central profile to get connected!
Looking for community service opportunities on SHARE? Here's how to find them quickly:
- Select "who" you would like to help. In the example above we've selected "Kids." (Tip: you can select multiple categories at the same time to search the entire Collection of Good for opportunities!)
- Select the type of community service you're looking for (either student or court-ordered).
- Click "Update"
That's it! A list of volunteer opportunities that our nonprofit partners have designated as eligible for community service hours will display. If you don't see what you need listed there, don't hesitate to contact a nonprofit directly (you can email them from their SHARE profile) to ask if they have anything available that they haven't had a chance to list yet.
We have so much great news to share from our nonprofit partners about their amazing work. But, we'd love to hear from you. Let us know if you have stories you'd like to tell and we'll make you a guest blogger!!
