Visit L.A. Works' calendar to learn of opportunities to volunteer. |
L.A. Works is the sole charitable partner for Hello Kitty's Three Apples, an exhibition and celebration taking place October 23 — November 15 in honor of SANRIO's Hello Kitty's 35th Anniversary. Visit the exhibition at the Royal-T coffee shop in Culver City. |
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Corporate sponsorship opportunities available for MLK Day 2010!
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Please consider making a gift to
L.A. Works |
Your contribution will
help support over 500 volunteer projects that L.A. Works organizes throughout
Los Angeles year round, including tutoring children in reading, feeding the
homeless, and spending quality time with seniors. Thank you for your
support!
For more information on how you can support L.A. Works and to
make a contribution, please click here. |
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PRIMED FOR A VOLUNTEER REVOLUTION
Volunteer Spotlight: Mandy Kahn
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From "hamburger, hamburger, hot dog" (a version of duck, duck, goose) to under-the-sea themed art projects with fun facts about fish, the activities that Mandy Kahn plans for the toddlers during her monthly project at the Sydney M. Irmas Transitional Living Facility are creative, interactive, and include some type of cognitive-development twist. As a volunteer project leader for L.A. Works, Mandy has logged over 165 hours of community service in the past six years.
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“Volunteering informs my politics, my work, what I buy, the discussions I have with friends,” Mandy shared in a recent conversation with the L.A. Works staff.
“I don’t think of volunteering as something I should do, I think of it as an integral part of a rich and joyful life,” she explained. And she can’t wait for the day that the collective majority joins her and her fellow volunteers in this thinking. She predicts this shift will come in the same way it did in the environmental revolution where, at some point, people moved from thinking that they should drive a hybrid to genuinely desiring to drive one -- so too will they move from “I should" to "I want to" volunteer.
Mandy believes that we are primed for this volunteer-revolution. That the Obamas are so pro-volunteering is an important first step. But for people to take action, she believes that they have to keep hearing from friends and family, from colleagues and from the media just how enjoyable a day of volunteering can be. To this end, Mandy strives to create projects that engage both volunteers and toddlers equally. She hopes a day of fun volunteering will be talked about in a way that will encourage others to sign up -- and that these new volunteers will find out firsthand how their "I should volunteer" can quickly become "I can't wait to volunteer."
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WIN FREE JETBLUE TICKETS WITH A CLICK!
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We have something new and exciting we'd like to share with you, and should you choose to participate, you could be entered to win free JetBlue tickets! It's the new L.A. Works toolbar. Simply add it to Internet Explorer or Firefox, and each time you search the Internet using its search field, about a penny is donated to L.A. Works.
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Also, a percentage of your purchases at more than 1,300 websites (from Amazon to Zazzle!) will be automatically donated to L.A. Works at no cost to you (and you may even save money as the toolbar provides coupons and deals as well!). To install the toolbar, go to: http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/l-a-works-la-works and be sure to select “L.A. Works – Los Angeles” as your designated charity.
How the contest works: L.A. Works’ goal is to have $5,000 donated to L.A. Works through GoodSearch/GoodShop by the end of this year. If L.A. Works reaches this goal, any individual who has committed to using the toolbar will be entered into a raffle to win free JetBlue tickets. So, install the bar, invite your friends and family, and spread the word – because your community wins when you search and shop (and maybe you’ll win too!!)! VISIT THIS LINK TO ENTER THE CONTEST & DOWNLOAD THE TOOLBAR |
GIVE A DAY TO L.A. WORKS, GET A DAY AT A DISNEY THEME PARK
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 Hundreds of L.A. Works' volunteer opportunities will be shared on Disney's website for volunteers to sign up to become eligible for a free pass to a Disney theme park after volunteering at a L.A. Works service project. Disney's exciting new promotion, "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day," was launched to inspire volunteerism. With only 1 million free tickets available, L.A. Works anticipates an outpouring of interest for service projects in the early part of the year and we have plans to increase the number of opportunities available to help satisfy this demand. |
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UBS DAY OF SERVICE @ 59TH ST. SCHOOL
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 More than 100 UBS employees and their families spent their Saturday at the 59 th Street Elementary School in Hyde Park on October 24, painting murals in the library and outdoor spaces, decorating piggy banks for the classrooms, building bench seating areas for the children to read in the shade, and adding a map of the United States to the blacktop.
One UBS employee shared their experience with L.A. Works, "I think it was so wonderful to see the children excited about the project. I saw the pride in their eyes and the joy in their hearts!! They painted (smiles on their faces), planted (seeds for learning), and they learned that one person can change anything, but many people can change everything !!!! I wish more people could see the impact it has on the children!!"
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A CALL FOR ACTION: VOLUNTEER OPPS!
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Martin Luther King Day of Service (January 18, 2010) is just around the corner and we are looking for volunteers: committee members to help plan the environmental-themed service event at a local school; project leaders to oversee the 500+ volunteers at the school; and task captains to manage a small group of volunteers of students and com munity members on the day of service. MLK Day of Service is a major
national service day and one of L.A. Works' most popular and moving service events.
You won't want to miss it. Email Gil@LAWorks.com for more information.
Holiday Fundraising Committee: Join a team of volunteers for a five-week commitment to raising funds to support L.A. Works and our community partners. This is a great way to take a leadership role in L.A. Works, make a difference, and get to know some of your fellow volunteers! Email Debbie@LAWorks.com for more information.
Project Leader training: Each L.A. Works project is organized and managed by a trained volunteer Project Leader. Project Leaders make a long-term commitment (ideally at least 6 months) to lead on a monthly, bi-weekly, or weekly basis depending on the program and their availability. By attending a brief training session, you will learn how easy it is to lead an L.A. Works project and make a difference in your community!
And don’t forget to check our monthly calendar for opportunities led by trained L.A. Works Project Leaders. |
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INTERESTING TID-BIT:
ONE-ON-ONE MENTORING IS ON THE RISE
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Approximately 3 million adult volunteers are involved in formal, one-on-one mentoring relationships with young people, an increase of 19% (500,000 mentors) since 2002. While a growing number of youth have mentors, an additional 14.6 million young people could benefit from having a mentoring relationship. This unmet need constitutes the“mentoring gap.” Volunteers who are engaged in mentoring serve a median of 80 hours annually, while volunteers who do not mentor serve a median of 40 hours annually. 96% of volunteers engaged in mentoring would recommend mentoring to others. Volunteers engaged in mentoring are motivated by a desire to help young people succeed (82%) and to make a difference in someone’s life (76%). For a greater look at the research on mentoring, visit the Corporation for National Service research and policy page. And to become a mentor yourself, join L.A. Works' Let's Read managed opportunities or visit L.A. Works' mentoring referral opportunities.
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Help L.A. Works populate our page on Facebook! Become a fan, share photos, post your thoughts on your service experiences, and more!
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