Ways to Care

What a delight, to look into the wide eyes of a child in the midst of expressing wonder, excitement, and the sheer appreciation that comes from experiencing the true joy of helping others. We’ve seen those eyes over and over again, and we’ve heard the genuine stories that kids of all ages share about their feelings of connection, accomplishment, and gratefulness when they see the world from the perspective of what they have to offer of themselves to others. Developing compassion and respect for the world empowers our children to act, individually and collectively.

Volunteerism teaches trustworthiness, respect, fairness, honesty, responsibility, citizenship, and caring. We know this is good stuff, and the kids who have volunteered will vouch for it. Kids quickly learn that the service they provide impacts real people, and they feel good about it.

Volunteerism becomes even more worthwhile when families serve together, because it brings family members closer to one another – to talk, to share, to care. Both kids and parents often tell us about their special family times – more meaningful than they ever expected. Whether we choose our local volunteer center, our schools, our places of worship, or Kids Korps as our venue for engaging in service, we are taking big steps toward raising kids to care and are preparing them to lead the way to a better, more tolerant, and more compassionate world.

We’ve split this brief web offering up in three areas:
1) Finding ways families can do something close to home
2) Information about how people give, how networks spread and how your money, ideas, and energy can go a long way
3) Global relief and people in great need

Close To Home

You can contact one of the following organizations to help your family get involved in giving and caring in your community, and of course there are many others. We list our organization, Kids Korps USA first because if we do not have a chapter in your area, we can help you find a way to engage in community service where you live.

Kids Korps USA: www.kidskorps.org

Kids Korps USA is a nonprofit youth volunteer organization that engages young people, ages five through eighteen, in community service. We instill in America’s youth the spirit of giving while providing valuable education in leadership and responsibility. We provide hands-on service to national and local nonprofits such as Special Olympics, women’s resource centers, homeless shelters, children’s hospitals, senior centers, and environmental projects.

America’s Promise: www.americaspromise.org

America’s Promise—The Alliance for Youth, led by General Colin Powell, is dedicated to mobilizing individuals, groups, and organizations from every part of American life to build and strengthen the character and competence of our youth.

Hands On Network: www.handsonnetwork.org

Hands On Network (formerly CityCares) is a growing, innovative alliance of volunteer mobilization and management organizations providing best practices, leading-edge programs, influence in national service policy, technology support, and leadership development. Hands On Network organizations around the world are transforming people and communities through volunteer service and civic engagement.

Points of Light Foundation: www.pointsoflight.org

The Points of Light Foundation is based in Washington DC, the Foundation advocates community service through a partnership with the Volunteer Center National Network. Together, they reach millions of people in thousands of communities to help mobilize people and resources that deliver solutions that address community problems. The Foundation’s mission is to engage more people and resources more effectively in volunteer service to help solve serious social problems.

Roots and Shoots: www.janegoodall.org

Roots and Shoots is a nationwide network of children working for environmental and humanitarian efforts. It is a project of the Jane Goodall Institute.

Youth Service America: www.ysa.org

Youth Service America works through an alliance of more than 300 organizations committed to increasing opportunities for young Americans to serve. Youth Service America’s SERVEnet is an online service and resource center that links volunteers of all ages to the appropriate causes in their communities. Users enter their zip code, city, skills, interests, and availability, to match up with organizations that need help from young people.

How People Give

As a family, you can take action in your community and for the world. You can rally your family, friends, or school to do something that reaches out and benefits others. The power of service comes from knowing that what you do matters.

Following are some organizations that can show you ways of giving or learning about how others are serving. As a family, you and your children can learn about how others are giving in the world, and how you can give too.

JustGive: www.justgive.org

Just Give is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect people with the charities and causes they care about and to increase overall giving. There is a coalition of leading nonprofits, foundations, and corporations encouraging us to “Give Five”—donate 5 percent of our income and/or volunteer five hours a week.

Charity Focus: www.charityfocus.org

Charity Focus is an experiment in the joy of giving. Their services enable inspired people to contribute in meaningful ways to the world around them. Together, they hope to "be the change we wish to see in the world."

Since its inception in 1999, CharityFocus has partnered with hundreds of small nonprofit organizations (NPOs) to build custom web-solutions. CharityFocus' unique model enables volunteers to deploy a broad array of expertise to help NPOs better deliver services to their beneficiaries and more effectively reach their target audience. CharityFocus is completely volunteer run, and the services of its volunteers are absolutely free.

City Year: www.cityyear.org

City Year's citizen service vision is that citizens of all ages and backgrounds will unite to serve their community, nation and world, and that one day the most commonly asked question of an eighteen year-old will be: "Where are you going to do your service year?" City Year's civic leadership vision is that one day every citizen will have the skills, values and inspiration to be a leader for the common good.

Global Relief and People In Need

It’s important for us, and for our children to understand there are children in the world that are born into poverty. It is also important to know there are people and children doing things to help. When we teach our kids to care, we start in our homes, move into our communities, then into our world. It is worth your time to take your children to both of these websites, they are inspiring. Certainly, nothing is too big for us to see…seeing opens our hearts.

Free the Children: www.freethechildren.org

Free The Children is the world's largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million youth involved in innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded in 1995 by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger.

The primary goals of the organization are to free children from poverty and exploitation and free young people from the notion that they are powerless to affect positive change in the world. Free The Children inspires young people to develop as socially conscious global citizens and become agents of change for their peers around the world.

Free the Slaves: www.freetheslaves.net

Free the Slaves mission is to end slavery worldwide. It’s hard to believe, but there are 27 million slaves in the world today. According to Free the Slaves, at least 14,500 slaves are trafficked into the US each year. Free the Slaves believes, if we all work together, it is possible to end slavery in the next 25 years.