The Volunteer Center will once again host it’s annual one-day massive collection drive for nonprofits on Saturday, October 28, from 9 a.m. to noon. Make A Difference Day is a National Day of Service created in 1992 by The Points of Light Foundation and USA Weekend. Held each year on the fourth Saturday in October, individuals, families and groups participate in organized projects that benefit causes that include people who are suffering financial and emotional hardship or efforts to protect the environment. Since 2003, The Volunteer Center of N.E. Metro Chicago has donated goods for nonprofits who are present at the Indian Hill Train Station Parking Lot in Winnetka (corner of Green Bay and Winnetka Avenue). The reps receive gently used Items and nonperishable food for their clients in need from generous donors in the community. Groups and individuals are encouraged to recycle their goods with immediate results for people in need. This drive collects nearly 20,000 items annually for thousands who can really use them!
GET READY FOR WINTER. CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOSETS AND HELP SOMEONE IN NEED. From rescue animals and the homeless, to refugees who are settling here and will face Chicago winters, this is a perfect opportunity for North Shore residents and groups to make a difference for a wide variety of nonprofit organizations and their clients. Donors are invited to recycle their gently used clothing or add a few extra items to their grocery carts and drop it off on October 28th. This is a great project for families to do together. It’s a quick drive-thru and drop off. Volunteers will be waiting to unload cars and give the donations to the appropriate nonprofit representative.
Requested Items include:
Clothing, coats, shoes and boots for adults and children: Children’s items – school supplies, backpacks, books, toys and games; Sports equipment; Bicycles and bike parts, any condition; Prom dress and accessories; Purses of all kinds; Eyeglasses and cases; Non perishable food – NO BEANS please; Powdered infant formula, size 1 diapers; Household items: cleaning supplies, detergent, decorative items, glassware; Blankets, duffel and sleeping bags, small wheeled suitcases; Dog and cat food, pet toys, old towels and newspapers for animal rescues; Unused travel size toiletries.
The Volunteer Center donation day with Pam Elliott.
Recipient nonprofits include: Bernie’s Book Bank, Childcare Network of Evanston, Connections for the Homeless, Counseling Center of the North Shore, Gear 4 Goals, Glass Slipper Project, Goodwill, Hadley Institute for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Infant, Inc., Junior League of Evanston/NS, New Trier Township Food Pantry, Orphans of the Storm, Refugee One, Working Bikes, YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago.
In addition to donating clothes, the Volunteer Center is also in need of volunteers to help sort and distribute the items to the waiting nonprofit reps at the event on October 28th. Youth over the age of 10 and adults are welcome to volunteer with their friends and family to help out on the day. Please email Barb Tubekis at info@volunteercenterhelps.org
Make A Difference Day is an easy drive-thru that takes only a few minutes and makes such a large impact on so many lives. The Volunteer Center refers thousands of volunteers to over 150 nonprofit organizations in the New Trier Township and Northeast Metropolitan Chicago all year long. Since 1960 the VC has operated as a clearinghouse between volunteers and nonprofits with opportunities to serve. The VC also supports its nonprofit partners with best practice trainings so the experience is a positive one for the nonprofits and the volunteers who visit its website, www.VolunteerCenterHelps.org and its community Days of Service, which include Make a Difference Day, Thanksgiving Share Your Bounty, Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Kids Against Hunger, there’s plenty to do. For more information about the 2017 Make a Difference Day and additional ways to help, please visit our website www.VolunteerCenterHelps.org, or email us at info@volunteercenterhelps.org.
Submitted by The Volunteer Center