Project 15

BEGGING HIS BREAD

What We Did:

On the way home from the park we drove past a elderly man begging for money.  The man reminded us of Giovanni from The Clown of God and we felt like we could help, if only a little.  We drove home and filled a bag with some nurishment (oranges, almonds, raisins, rice milk and some cookie dough from the fridge) for this man.  Ruby and Max also wanted to include some money from their allowance.  I through in some toothpaste and floss but sheepishly pulled them out with the almonds and raisons when we realized he didn't have any teeth.

How Long it Took:
20 minute

How Much it Cost:
A few things from our cupboard and $3.25.


Would We Do It Again?
Yes, keeping in mind what we learned this time.


Next Time:
Many people begging do not have many teeth, so nuts and raisons are worthless to them.  In the future I'd love to have a few little kits already assembled in our car to hand out to people begging. 


References:

Project 14

RECYCLE KIDS ART PROJECTS

Recycle Kids Art Projects Into Children's Hospital Greeting Cards

What We Did:

Oh, what to do with those wonderfully artistic pictures that you don't want to throw away but --wow -- how many can you save?  With three little kids we have a large stash.  So this idea is one of my new favorites. We transformed 4 paintings into 10 colorful greeting cards for children in the hospital.  I wrote "inspiring" messages on the inside of the cards and the kids added some more color.  We followed the instructions on making approprate cards for patients at  the Los Angeles Children's Hospital and dropped them in the mail to hopefully brighten a child's day.

How Long it Took:
Maybe about an four five minutes with cutting included.

How Much it Cost:
$2.40 on postage

Would We Do It Again?
Yes! . . . I just love the idea of a young patient getting a little card sent up to their room with their meal.  It was supper easy, rewarding for all of us, inexpensive and it cuts down on clutter.  We took digital photos of their work just so it wasn't too hard to let go of.

Next Time:

References:
I'm sure that most Children' Hospitals have similar programs.  I have a fondness, for many reasons, to this one in L.A.
http://www.chla.org/site/c.ipINKTOAJsG/b.4952897/k.93A4/Greeting_Cards_for_Patients.htm

Project 13

TRAIL BEAUTIFICATION

What We Did:
We packed a plastic grocery sack in with our picnic and headed down the Bob Jones Bike Trail to pick up litter on the trail.  .The kids found plenty of litter along the path and had a nice trash bag for their own trash.

How Long it Took:

Well, the bike ride took about 2 hours but I can't say we spent more than 15 minutes picking up trash.

How Much it Cost:
$0

Would We Do It Again?
Yes . . .  It was so easy and at the end it felt good to put all that litter in a trash receptacle..

Next Time:
Bring along hand sanitizer!

Project 12

CARDS FOR THE CARDLESS

What We Did:
Here is a great project to tuck away for the holidays next year. 

You know how fun it is to get holiday cards in the mail?  Yeah, well some people don't.  So we printed 30 extra Holiday Cards to personalize and send to people in our community who need to be remembered during the season. Sadly, we just never got around to getting the cards out :( We learned again that the trick (as with all holiday cards) is to START EARLY!

How Long it Took:

It would've taken us about 45 minutes once we got all the addresses.

How Much it Cost:
About five dollars for printing and then stamps for 30 cards, about 15 dollars in all.

Would We Do It Again?
Yes . . . for the first time.  It's not much extra work if you're already writing up your holiday cards.

Next Time:
Start earlier -- like Thanksgiving!

References:
Community or church leaders seem to know those who tend to get overlooked.  Senior care facilities are a good bet too. 

Project 11

PLAYING SANTA

What We Did:

We let each child choose a new toy, walked it over to a Toys For Tots Drop Box and dropped the toys in.  Easy! The mission of the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community in which the campaign is conducted.

How Long it Took:
45 minutes
How Much it Cost:
The minimum toy value for this drive is $10 per gift.  We found a store that was having an amazing sale and just let the kids play santa and give what they most wanted.

Would We Do It Again?
Yes...It is just fun and easy.  In our town the drop off boxes are very conveniently located.  The kids loved  the idea of playing Santa and really enjoyed scouring over the toy store.  Jane rode the hobby horse she choose all the way to the drop-box, gave it a kiss and put it in.

Next Time:
We wouldn't chance much.

References:
To find a Drop-Off Box near you, http://www.toysfortots.org/donate/toys.asp
To learn more about the program, http://www.toysfortots.org/

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.