Three ways you and your kids can volunteer from home
In-person Global Days of Service volunteer sites have been canceled. However, there are still plenty of opportunities for you and your kids to get involved remotely.
Make cards for people in need
Have cardstock paper, markers, and stickers? Then you’re all set! Set up a table for your kid(s) to get creative and write cards to be sent to a handful of organizations.
Cards for Hospitalized Kids is an internationally recognized charitable organization that spreads hope, joy, and magic to hospitalized kids across the United States through uplifting, handmade cards. Anyone can get involved—just donate a few minutes of your day to make a handmade card for a child in need. Cards for Hospitalized Kids will distribute your card(s) to hospitals and Ronald McDonald Houses across the nation.
Love for the Elderly collects cards from around the world and mails them to elders in senior communities like nursing homes, assisted living facilities, hospices, and senior centers. As a volunteer, you’ll take a few minutes to write a letter to a stranger to tell them about yourself, maybe say a joke or a riddle and let them know that they are loved. Making a difference can be so simple, yet it can be incredibly impactful!
RAICES is a nonprofit agency that provides free and low-cost legal services to underserved immigrant children, families, and refugees. Giving cards to people is one way we can show support to individuals and families migrating to the United States. These cards will go to families and individuals to ensure they have a positive first experience in the United States.
Donate unwanted or unused items
Make finding old, unwanted, and unused items in your house a fun scavenger hunt for your kids. There are plenty of organizations who are still accepting donations.
Project Beauty Share provides personal hygiene, cosmetics, and beauty products to non-profit organizations that serve women and families overcoming abuse, addiction, homelessness, and poverty. Their goal is to help restore hope and dignity in their lives. Take a look at your toiletry bags to see there’s something you could donate. Ideas include makeup you’ve never used because it just “wasn’t quite right”, shampoo and conditioner bottles from the last hotel you visited, or a bottle of perfume that you purchased by mistake.
Catie’s Closet accepts new and gently used clothing, undergarments, and outerwear for youth and teens. You can request a prepaid shipping label to mail your package to Catie’s Closet’s distribution centers. However, if you live near the distribution centers in Hyde Park or Dracut, MA you can also drop off your donations in a secure and safe way. Drop-off bins are kept within the social distancing guidelines.
Activate your little scientists & scholars
Looking for a way to engage your teen? Take a look at the projects below.
SciStarter: A collaboration between scientists and those of us who are curious and motivated to make a difference. Collect data by taking photos of clouds or streams, document changes in nature using smartphone sensors, or playing games to advance health and medical research.
The Smithsonian Transcription Center seeks to engage the public in making collections more accessible. As a volunteer, your teen can help transcribe records to facilitate research and historic documents for future generations.
Citizen Archivist Program is looking for volunteers to tag, transcribe and add comments to their records, making them more accessible and searchable. Your teen can pick from a variety of topics, such as Registered Product Labels, Amnesty Papers, Iran, Valentine’s Day, and more.