The fourth Saturday of October is Make a Difference Day – for the 26th year, with the support of Points of Light, Arby’s Foundation and TENGA, individuals and groups will come together to volunteer and make a positive change in the world. There are millions of ways you could take part, here are our favorite ones.
Organize a food drive
Set up in a public space and collect extra food – dry products, canned foods and even bottled water. Let your neighbors know when and where you’ll be collecting the products so they know to help, too. You can even set up in or next to a supermarket so passersby can buy an extra product and donate it. When you’re done, donate the products to a soup kitchen, homeless shelter or relief team of your choice.
Organize a recycling event
Place separate, large bins at a communal area of your neighborhood, where everyone can throw recyclables – one for glass, one for plastic, etc., depending how much room you’ve got and how many boxes you want to place – you could have a smaller box for old batteries, too – the options are endless. Swing by the bins at the end of the day and take the trash to a recycling factory or reuse them yourself in an art project of your choice. If your municipality doesn’t have any, suggest leaving the bins and collecting the trash every week, to make your entire town a recycling community year-round.
Volunteer at an animal shelter
Animal shelters can always use an extra pair of hands, and they have many openings. You could do anything from taking out a few dogs for a walk around the block to organizing an adoption fair – depending on how much time you’ve got on your hands. This is a great activity to do together with a few friends who are also looking for a fun way to spend Make a Difference Day. At the end of the day, hopefully, many furry friends will find a forever-home, and you’ll have changed their and their new owner’s lives.
Clean up a local park
Grab a few friends and garbage bags and go clean up a public park or beach. By simply picking up trash for an hour or two, you’ll have made the day of so many people – the park rangers who will have a cleaner park; the visitors who will have a better experience strolling along a clean beach; and of course – yourselves – because you will have made a positive difference in your community.
Organize a blood drive
In cooperation with a local health organization (like Red Cross or a local blood bank) organize a blood drive. Invite friends and coworkers to donate blood and sign up to a bone marrow database. Promote the event in your community’s forums and around your neighborhood, to make sure you get as many donations as possible. If even one person donates – and that includes you – you could be saving somebody’s life.
Come together and volunteer on October 28th, Make a Difference Day. Doing something special? Share with us online using the hashtags #MDDAY and #GoodDeedsDay!
Ready to make a difference? Registration for Good Deeds Day is now open! Let us know what you’ll be doing to make the world a better place on April 15, 2018.
