Family Fun & Activities

[afraser217]

I have been recently looking into ways in which my (almost) 3 year old daughter & I can volunteer within our community or with other organizations online.  Over the summer we donated old books to our local library and clothes that no longer fit her to a Church that gave them to homeless mothers.  I was wondering of any other opportunities in which we might be able to volunteer or donate?  If not directly within our Community (which is in the Boston area) but even on a larger level.  I know there is an organization that you can mail cards and letters to be sent to the Troops for the holidays which we will be participating in.  Any other ideas?

[theteachermom]

I think its so great that you are starting volunteer work with your daughter at such a young age! What a great way to instill helpfulness, compassion, social responsibility, and a sense of pride in contribution to the community!  

The holidays are a great time for volunteer opportunities. In Boston, I hear there is an annual food drive called Can Share that happens in November. My preschool classes used to participate in a similar drive in NYC called City Harvest. The kids loved bringing in their cans of food and helping other to have good things to eat. For more info on your Boston area food drive, here's the link:

http://www.cityofboston.gov/shelter/canshare/

Also for Christmas time there is Operation Christmas Child, which is run by an organization called Samaritan's Purse. It's cute because each family fills a shoebox for a child in need. The boxes are then sent to many different high need locations around the world, i.e.. Haiti, Afghanistan, Thailand, etc. A shoebox is such a small package, which makes it an easy thing to participate in for young kids.  It's also a neat activity to think up what gifts you can fit in a shoebox.  Here's a more info about Christmas Child:

http://issuu.com/samaritanspurse/docs/4282occspecialrpt?viewMode=presentation&mode=embed

And lastly a yearround volunteer activity that my daughter and I like to do is cooking for the neighbors. We bake usually every Friday and bring some of whatever we make to share with whoever comes to mind. We try to think of whoever needs "cheering up" or might want a treat to help them "feel loved". We have an elderly next door neighbor that usually gets our baked goods, but a family member who's not feeling well, a friend that just had a baby, sending a gift basket of cookies to a local senior center, etc are other options as well. 

Hope this helps!

[afraser217]

Thank you! Those are amazing ideas! I especially like the shoebox one   I just bought my daughter new sneakers & boots for fall/winter so we wil start filling those up instead of recycling the boxes!  Thank you!

[a13xandra]

There are lots of people in nursing homes that never get visitors and small kids light the place up!  My 19 month old daughter and I volunteer once a week on our schedule at a local facility through Friend to Friend America.