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WORLD REPORT EDITION
April 11, 2003 Vol. 8 No. 23
Building a Better World
Millions of kids dig in to improve their communities
Camille Mahlknecht, 9, has some big fun planned for this weekend.
She and other
residents of Agoura Hills, California, plan to pick up
trash during their city's annual
cleanup. Okay, gathering garbage
may not sound like a good time to you--but it
does to Camille. "It
makes me feel terrific inside to help out and make the community
clean," she says.
At the same time, Wissam Raed, 12, will be busy volunteering too.
Thousands of
miles away in Hasbaya, Lebanon, Wissam plans to help
put on a play at an
orphanage and bring potted plants to elderly
people at a senior citizen center.
More than 3 million young Americans and millions of kids from 127
other countries
will join Camille and Wissam in lending a hand to
their communities, starting April
11, for National and Global Youth
Service Day. Kids will take part in activities that
range from
planting trees in deforested valleys to making movies that encourage
others to help children in need.
WHY KIDS PITCH IN
It's not surprising that millions of kids plan to participate in
this weekend's event,
which is run by Youth Service America (YSA)
with the Global Youth Action
Network. Community service has become
hugely popular. Zoom, a television show
on PBS, conducted a survey
this winter of almost 10,000 U.S. kids. Nearly 80%
said that they
volunteer.
School is a big reason that kids are so involved in volunteer
work. According to the
most recent statistics, about two-thirds of
all U.S. public schools offer community
service activities. In a
third of all schools, teachers combine volunteer work with
classroom
lessons. In many schools and clubs, service work is a requirement.
Almost every student at Oakley Park Elementary School in Walled
Lake, Michigan,
helps protect children around the world by raising
money for "Trick-or-Treat for
UNICEF." Last year, the school
collected more than $10,000--more than any other
school!
Dave DeCicco, a YSA spokesperson, says that parents can also take
credit for the
dramatic rise in youth service. "Parents are
encouraging their kids to volunteer and
doing it with them," says DeCicco.
Some kids like Nathan W., 10, of Lake Zurich, Illinois, have
personal reasons for
volunteering. Nate's grandmother died of a
heart attack. To help raise awareness of
heart disease and money for
medical research, Nate participated in Jump Rope for
Heart last
month. He and five other boys took turns jumping rope for 2 1/2
hours.
He collected more than $1,200 in donations for the American
Heart Association.
LIFELONG LESSONS
According to a report issued last November by YSA and a research
group called
Independent Sector, kids who start volunteering are
twice as likely to continue doing
good deeds when they are adults.
It's never too early to start. "Volunteers can be
any age," says
Camille, who has done community service since she was 5.
So grab a paintbrush, trash bag, shovel or whatever you need to
help your
community. If you're like Camille, Wissam and Nate, you'll
love how you feel after
helping others. Even dirty work can be lots
of fun, if it's for a good cause. --By
Elizabeth Winchester
GET TO WORK!
There are many ways that kids can help others. Here are a few
projects suggested
by Youth Service America. To find a project in
your community for National and
Global Youth Service Day, visit www.ysa.org/nysd
Help the hungry and homeless. Cook or serve a meal at a shelter.
Donate clothing,
combs, toothbrushes and other supplies for people
who are homeless.
Stay after school. Get permission to paint a mural over graffiti
on a school building.
Tutor a student who needs extra help.
Seek out seniors. Get a group together to put on a play at a
nursing home. Offer to
rake leaves or wash windows for a senior
citizen. Teach an elderly friend to use the
Internet.
Help people with special needs. Volunteer to help at a Special
Olympics event.
Read to people who are blind. Bring books and toys
to kids at local hospitals.
Spiff up your community. Plant flowers or trees in public areas.
Clean up trash along
a river or in a park. Monitor water quality in
local lakes, rivers or streams.
Get involved in government. Find out what you can do to encourage
people to
register to vote. Identify a local problem and write to
officials with ideas for how to
solve it.
Elizabeth Winchester
Used with permission from TIME for Kids magazine, c 2003 |
