Friends,
Twenty years ago, USA WEEKEND magazine created Make A Difference Day, and since then Points of Light and its mobilizing arm HandsOn Network have partnered with it for this largest national day of community service. This unique day captures the amazing power of the circle of giving. Over the years, millions of volunteers have served millions of others and, in so doing, have transformed their own lives.
Circle of Giving
One of my favorite stories of last year’s Make A Difference Day is Olga El Sahamy, who read about the nation’s mayors calling for people to volunteer and about Make A Difference Day. She decided to help the homeless of New York City by providing hot meals. Olga, her husband, and teenage son stayed up until 2 am cooking 50 servings of rice and chicken and packaging them with fruit and dessert. Early the next morning they drove into Manhattan and distributed the food to those living on the streets of New York.
Their story reflects that circle of giving – when Olga’s huband Mostafa immigrated here from Egypt 32 years ago, he had very little money. He ended up homeless on the street for eight days, depending on the kindness of strangers.
Upcoming Highlights of This Year’s Make A Difference Day
This 20th anniversary of Make A Difference Day on October 23 will be an extraordinary day of service. Here are just a few highlights:
Points of Light Institute will launch generationOn, our new youth division, by celebrating the day with hundreds of youth volunteers of all ages at the Extra Mile – Points of Light Volunteer Pathway in Washington, DC. At this event, hosted by The Hasbro Children’s Fund, the philanthropic arm of Hasbro, Inc., and managed by our affiliate Greater DC Cares, kids will bring with them their personal commitments to service and participate in service learning activities inspired by the work of American volunteer pioneers. The Pathway honors service giants such as Cesar Chavez, Susan B. Anthony, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Also in DC, will join forces with White House staff, White House Fellows alumni and representatives from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to build a KaBOOM playground at the new home of the Hyde Leadership Public Charter School.
Citi is joining us as a Make A Difference Day sponsor and will engage an extraordinary 45,000 of its employees who will volunteer in 950 projects across 77 countries.
The NBA and NBA Players Association are promoting the Day through ESPN, ESPN.com, and individual players’ social media accounts. Shaquille O’Neal of the Boston Celtics said in USA WEEKEND, “My parents taught me: If you can help someone, do it. Why? Because it’s the thing to do.” Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns said earlier this month, “We all have the opportunity to take action in a way that shares our vision for a better world…Make A Difference Day is a chance for all of us–kids, teenagers, adults, even NBA players–to get started.”
More than 1,000 volunteers with the Volunteer Center of Greater Milwaukee will winterize the homes of several hundred older adults. HandsOn North Texas will host its second annual Volunteer Challenge, involving more than 700 volunteers in 25 projects across three counties.
New York Cares is mobilizing 700 volunteers to refurbish 100 public schools. Volunteers with HandsOn Central California are repairing the homes of low-income families and seniors.
Singer Melissa Etheridge, who teams with Hard Rock for its Pinktober breast cancer awareness campaign, will make her benefit concert available for download (taped last month) on Ustream on Make A Difference Day. The video includes a shout-out to Make A Difference Day volunteers.
To capture stories of service, Cisco Systems has donated 100 Flip Video cameras to project leaders, who will upload the videos to .
If you have not already done so, please join us in Making A Difference this Saturday. You can create a project or register for projects throughout the country by clicking here.
In Service,
Michelle Nunn
CEO, Points of Light Institute and Co-Founder, HandsOn Network
