Volunteer Opportunites in Northern Virginia

“It’s not about you.” Living the first four words in Rick Warren’s book, “A Purpose Driven Life” is one of the most valuable lessons you could ever teach your children. One way to teach this lesson is to involve your kids in appropriate volunteer activities from an early age. By engaging in volunteer activities as a family, you can show by your actions that giving back to the community and helping those less fortunate is important to you.

What if your family picked one time a month to do some kind of outreach? To get things started, you could choose one of the activities below. After that you could put your older children in charge of researching the outreach for the following month. Let’s face it; the kids are more likely to buy in to the concept if they are allowed to choose. Here are just a few of the volunteer opportunities for families in Northern Virginia, and these are just the tip of the iceberg.

Prepare a meal for the families staying at Ronald McDonald House

This activity is especially fun and serves a dual purpose if you want to teach your children how to prepare a traditional family dish. Here are the rules: The kids have to be at least 14; all food has to be prepared at the Ronald McDonald House kitchen; you must call ahead of time to get a slot on their calendar, and you should call the day before to find out how many people to prepare for. The kitchen is ideally sized for a family of about five, and you can choose to do breakfast, lunch or dinner. Ronald McDonald House is on the campus of Fairfax Inova Hospital on Gallows Road. By taking your children to the grocery store to purchase all the needed ingredients, you’ll also have the opportunity to teach them grocery shopping tips. Call Ronald McDonald House at 703-698-7080 or visit their website to learn more. www.rmhc.greaterdc.org <http://www.rmhc.greaterdc.org/>

Help “Foster Care to Success” assemble care packages for college bound youth.

Foster Care to Success” sends care packages three times a year to college students who grew up in foster care. Your family can help assemble the packages, write notes of encouragement to go into the packages, or even get a list of 25 students and do your own mailing. Children raised in foster care have fewer opportunities to attend college and experience more roadblocks than your children. Those who do attend have overcome great obstacles, and receiving a package from someone who cares always provides a lift. You can reach Lynn Davis at FC2S by e-mail to learn more about the care package program: lda vis@fc2success.org There are no age restrictions for helping with the care package program. You can learn more about other volunteer opportunities available at www.fc2success.org.

Help disabled adults at the Northern Virginia Training Center.

The Northern Virginia Training Center is home to intellectually disabled adults, some of our most vulnerable citizens. Their campus is at 9901 Braddock Road in Fairfax. Have a green thumb? They can use help maintaining their beautiful grounds. Do you have a dog? As long as your pet is up to date on vaccinations and the staff is given a trial period with the dog, you, your kids and your dog can brighten someone’s day.

There are many activities on campus including dances, concerts, and holiday parties. Many residents are in wheel chairs and require an escort to attend the activity on campus. Here are the rules: Children have to be at least 11 to volunteer at NVTC, they require an orientation to learn the ropes, and a background check is required.

You can visit their website at http://www.nvtc.dbhds.virginia.gov/ and to receive e-mails about upcoming activities, you can contact Maureen.Andretta@dbhds.virginia.gov.

Host a party for the kids at Shelter House or the Katherine Hanley Family Shelter.

Shelter House has been serving homeless families in Fairfax County for over 30 years. Their longest-running program, the Patrick Henry Family Shelter in Seven Corners, has many volunteer opportunities. Monday through Thursday evenings are when resident parents attend classes so your family members can go for an hour or two to help supervise and play with the children who live there. The Katherine Hanley Family Shelter at 13000 Lee Highway in Fairfax is in need of families to help serve meals. Here are the rules: an orientation so you know what to expect, children should be age 5 and above for Shelter House, and age 14 and above for the Katherine Hanley Family Center; and, background checks are required for both facilities. You can e-mail Victor Dooley at the Patrick Henry Family Shelter at volunteer.henry@shelterhouse.org or John Callahan at the Katherine Hanley Shelter at volunteer.hanley@shelterhouse.org to get started. You can also visit the website to learn more www.shelterhouse.org.

Donate blood or platelets as a family.

There is a severe blood bank shortage in Northern Virginia. 38% of the US population is eligible to donate, yet less than 5% actually do. If only 1% more of the population would donate blood, the likelihood of shortages would be almost eliminated. Bring your children (can start as early as 16 year old with parental/guardian consent) with you and get them started early on being a regular blood donor. Inova has multiple locations in Northern Virginia so it couldn’t be more convenient. Call 1-800-BLOODSAVES or visit inova.org/donateblood for more information or to schedule an appointment. It is no stretch of the imagination to understand that when you donate blood you are saving a life. Who knows, if you can engage the upcoming generation to become regular blood donors, you might be saving your own life one day.

Feed the homeless.

Have you ever passed a homeless person at an intersection with your kids in the car? What to do, what to do? If you give cash, how can you be sure it will be used for a good purpose? If you give nothing, you risk behaving heartless to an obvious need. Here is one way to solve the problem. Prepare a few sack lunches with your kids. Include items that have a long shelf life, such as a couple of granola bars, fruit and pudding cups, and a juice box. Don’t forget the spoon! Have your kids write an encouraging note on a napkin to slip in the bag. Keep these in your car. You never again have to stare ahead and pretend you don’t see that person on the street corner holding a cardboard sign.

Double the recipe.

Let your children know that you will be doubling the recipe for a meal and ask them to help figure out where to take it. Involve them in cooking the food.

The benefits you receive by volunteering monthly as a family far outweighs the nominal sacrifice of your time. Kids who write letters to children raised in foster care appreciate their own families more. Kids who volunteer at the Northern Virginia Training Center learn to be grateful for their own capabilities and intelligence. Children who cook for families at Ronald McDonald House learn cooking skills they will use their whole lives. Children who donate blood perhaps become more mindful of their good health. Children who feed the homeless or donate time at Shelter House are happy to crawl into their warm bed at night. What greater gift can you give your own kids than by helping them help others?