Project 10

A CHRISTMAS TREE

What We Did:
We took a family trip to a Christmas Tree lot to choose a tree to give away. We called our local Women's Shelter in advance to see if they had a family in need of a Christmas Tree and to arrange a good drop off time. This is a time for developing  new holiday traditions for many of the families in this shelters and we hope that this tree will help.

How Long it Took:
We spent about an hour looking around the Christmas Tree lot and about 30 minutes to deliver the tree.

How Much it Cost:
$75 which included a "life-time" guarantee tree stand.

Would We Do It Again?
Yes . . . Of course the kids loved the complimentary popcorn and the experience of shopping around the Christmas Tree lot -- especially since we are restricted to an artificial tree due to allergies. 

Next Time:
I really wanted the have a homemade card on the tree and a box of homemade decorations to bring along with the tree but I just didn't get an early enough start on it. 
The trick with donating through a Women's Shelter is that you can not take things directly to the family.  The tree needs to be in water about an hour after being cut. With all of the tree transporting involved, it might be better next year to still have the experience of picking out a tree and then getting a gift certificate, or choosing a tree and having the family pick the tree up from the lot.

References:
http://www.womensshelterslo.org/ or search for one in your neighborhood.

Project 9

A GUEST AT YOUR TABLE

What We Did:

Through a local UU congregation, we decorated a donation box as our table centerpiece for the next four weeks. Everytime that we sit down for a meal we make a contribution and have a chance to reflect on the rich abundance of our lives.  Our donation goes to a set cause, but you can use this idea to come up with your own charity donation. 

How Long it Takes:
We are doing the project for four weeks.  It took us twenty minutes to decorate.

How Much it Cost:
The donation depends on your level of comfort. 

Would We Do It Again?
Yes!  It helps us to feel truly grateful at mealtime.

References:
We are doing this project with a local UU Congregation http://www.uusc.org/guest .  If done independently, you could donate to any organization you'd like.

Project 8

PUMPKIN BREAD FOR VETERANS- The Fisher House

Project sumbitted by the Goldblum family ---Florida

What We Did:

Supporting America's military in their time of need, a Fisher House is "a home away from home" that enables family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful time -- during hospitalization for an illness, disease or injury. A Fisher House offers dining and lodging facilities to families of veteran and military patients receiving medical care at major military and VA medical centers. We baked and delivered some Apple Pie and Pumpkin Bread to the Fisher House residents.

How Long it Took:
Cooking Prep-time & Clean-up (2 hours), Bake Time (1 hour). Delivery (We hand delivered the baked goods to a near by Fisher House)

How Much it Cost:
$20

Would We Do It Again?
Yes...This project was an introduction into the concept of military (those honorable persons that keep our home and America safe) to our four year old daughter. Her questions and our explanations both taught and reminded us of what these remarkable men and women in uniform do and why we owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

Next Time:
The Fisher House does seem to keep their kitchen stocked with coffee and snacks. Perhaps what the resident families may prefer is home-style meal, maybe some warm rotisserie chickens or even frozen lasagna dishes.

References:
Find one of the 43 Fisher House locations http://www.fisherhouse.org/.

Project 7

Feel Better Soon

What We Did:
We made some Feel Better Soon Cards.  During the Cold and Flu Season it isn't hard to find someone who is under the weather (school, park, neighbors, grandparents, church, community).  We just made a few cards to let the person we choose know that we were thinking of them and hoping that they'd get to feeling better.

How Long it Took:
30 minutes

How Much it Cost:
the cost of postage

Would We Do It Again?
Yes.  It is a super easy way to remind us of the value of caring about and taking that little extra step to connect to someone around us.

Next Time: x

References: x

Project 6

HALLOWEEN PARADE

Thanks to all of our friends who particpated--for taking time out of their busy lives to serve others.

What We Did:

With the kids dressed in their Halloween Costumes, we went to a local Senior Care Facility to spread some festive cheer.  I arranged a time with the facilities activities director in advance.  This allowed for a guided tour of the welcoming patients rooms and avoided any of the patients who wouldn't be interested in the activity.  We brought some little plastic Halloween trinkets for the children to hand to the seniors as a way to bring them together.  We followed up our parade with a Halloween party at one of the participating families homes -- which was not servicey at all but sure added to the day's memorability!

How Long it Took:
45 minutes to an hour to interact with all of the interested patients.

How Much it Cost:
$6 on plastic trinkets (very optional, see next time).

Would We Do It Again?
Yes!  Most of the children were very engaged and felt good about the service that they were providing.  Some of the kids were over it sooner than others depending on their age and social skills. I think the activity accomplished what we hoped it would,  a small chance to bring children and seniors in our community together and  for both to enjoy each other.

Next Time:
ohh... lots of next times. 

1. Prepare better emotionally.  The activity wears on your heart and brings up lots of questions, not so much for the kids as for the adults.
2. Don't give out small plastic objects that can be put mouths.  One of the seniors with dementia thought it was candy.  Maybe candy next time.
3. Show up on time :)

References:
I just searched on line for Senior Care Facility and found http://www.seniorcareconnection.com/.  They directed me to a few good places.

Project 5

GIVING BACK

Project sumbitted by the Goldblum family ---Florida

What We Did:
A nearby arts museum has a children's library which hosts story-times, cooking classes and crafting lessons. In addition to the well stocked book shelves, the library has set out an assortment of toys and puzzles to entertain\educate the smaller children. We made a thank you card for the staff and donated some new educational toys for their collection.

How Long it Took:
Shopping (30 minutes), Assembly (15 minutes). Delivery (we gave the gift to the librarians while attending story time)

How Much it Cost:
$20

Would We Do It Again?
Yes...Our 3 and 4 year olds are very fond of this particular library and the kind, enthusiastic librarians. They did grasp that they were giving a gift of appreciation and support.

Next Time:
The library would, I'm sure, also appreciate gifts of new children's books or dvds.

References:
Find a local library at IES National Center for Education Statistics (http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/libraries/librarysearch)

Project 4

COILED CATERPILLAR CRAFT FOR KIDS

What We Did:
We assembled little individual craft projects for children at our local Women's Shelter. We bought a couple of boxes of pencils and a few bags of multi-colored pipe-cleaners. We layed out the pencils (15 at a time) and then added to each pencil one of every colored pipe-cleaner. We bundled the kits together by bending the pipe-cleaners in half and attaching them to the pencil with one small (hair-tie) rubber band. We attached a copy of the instructions (I'll get the instructions attached soon) to each bundle. Then we dropped the kits off at the shelter's main office (the locations of the shelter are kept confidential).

How Long it Took:

Shopping (15 minutes), Assembly (30 minutes). The Drop off depends on how far you live from a shelter. The kits are pretty light weight and would be fairly inexpensive to mail.

How Much it Cost:

$8 for 50 kits

Would We Do It Again?
Yes...Our 3 and 5 yr. old really had fun counting the pencils and sorting the pipe-cleaners. Educational :) I was surprised by our 5 yr old's ability to bundle and rubber-band the kits together.

Next Time:

I'd like to try this with another craft. Please let me know if know of a craft that could be assembled into individual kits. Maybe a Holiday Decoration craft?

References:

Just type in your zip-code and "women's shelter" into your favorite search engine to find a shelter in your area.