Volunteer Boot Camp, a Huge Success, Adds One More Program
More than 125 people off all ages participated in this summer’s eight Volunteer Boot Camp programs helping agencies throughout the community. Now we’re adding one more opportunity to lend a helping hand. So far this summer, thanks to the leadership of Volunteer Boot Camp chairs Lois Feinberg, Michelle Reback, and Gerri Rothfleisch, volunteers have:
- packed 150 Shabbat in a Box packages to deliver to families spending Shabbat in the hospital;
- spent time at the JCC MetroWest helping seniors record and share their memories or baking treats with adults with special needs;
- learned from Rachel Coalition about the experiences faced by victims of domestic violence and then packaged donated household items to be distributed to clients of the program;
- gathered at Shoprite in Clark for Supermarket Sweep to collect non-perishable food items and then at the JCC Central Kosher Food Pantry to sort and stock the shelves;
- harvested at the urban farm at the Greater Newark Conservancy and learned about the importance of making fresh produce available at affordable prices;
- gotten their hands dirty and picked and packed 90 pounds of vegetables at the JCC Central Community Garden;
- spent a morning being creative and inspired with clients at the Jewish Service for the Developmentally Disabled WAE Center;
- braided challah and schmoozed with Holocaust survivors at Café Europa.
Now, due to overwhelming success and interest in these programs, we are offering one more bonus volunteer opportunity to the summer calendar, in partnership with JTeen’s Mitzvah Mania program. You can lend a helping hand to those who are hungry on Wednesday, August 31 from 2 -3:30 p.m. Volunteers of all ages will make sandwiches with seniors at Westfield Senior Citizens Housing to distribute to those in need. Click here for more information or to register.