November 2017 - Silicon Valley 
 
Evening House Volunteers
JW House
 
Date/Time: 4:30 - 7:30pm on a Friday or Saturday evening (every other week)
 
Location: 3850 Homestead Rd., Santa Clara

JW House is a home away from home for families of loved ones receiving treatment at nearby hospitals. We provide warm and comfortable overnight accommodations and day use facilities for families. We are located on the Kaiser Santa Clara Campus and are open 365 days a year. Volunteers will set up for dinner, provide warm food, greet guests and families, clean up/label left over food, refrigerate extra food and lock the House. Volunteers of JW House should mirror its compassion and dedication to helping families of hospitalized patients. If you are a family with children and want to do this evening shift please contact us.
 
Ages: All ages welcome with adult. Families encouraged.
 
Time Commitment: Three hours every other week. Six-month commitment preferred.
 
Contact: Nayna, [email protected]. Driver's License and background check required for adult volunteers in addition to one-time training.
 
 
Dinner is Served Program
JW House
 
Date/Time: Varies
 
Location: 3850 Homestead Road, Santa Clara

JW House is a home away from home for families of loved ones receiving treatment at nearby hospitals. We provide warm and comfortable overnight accommodations and day use facilities for families. We are located on the Kaiser Santa Clara Campus and are open 365 days a year. Dinner is Served one of the most popular volunteer opportunities at JW House. After a long day at the hospital, our guests look forward to coming "home" to find that someone has planned, purchased the ingredients, and prepared a delicious meal just for them. Groups who participate in "Dinner is Served" soon discover that their efforts go far beyond simply supplying a dinner. As families gather for dinner, a warm sense of community exists. It is a place where families can relax with one another and check in on how another's loved one is doing. Thank you for making a difference for these families. Dinners will be needed for both Halloween and Thanksgiving as well if there is a group of families interested in hosting a holiday! Click here to learn more about the Dinner is Served program.

Ages: All ages are welcome. Minors need to be supervised by an adult.
 
Time Commitment: Two and one-half to three hours
 
Contact: Laura Delgado, [email protected], 408.246.2224. Groups, businesses and individual families are ALL welcome to participate. The sign up calendar
shows available dates in RED - please click on a red date, then on "Click here to submit your information." Please complete the form to request that date. Someone from our office will contact you soon to confirm the date you request. 
www.jwhouse.org  
 
 
Holiday Shopping Spree
Sunday Friends
 
Date/Time:  Friday November 10 and/or Friday November 17.  Start times are 6:30pm, 7pm or 7:30pm.
 
Location: Target Store, 1811 Hillsdale Ave., San Jose. (Meet at front of store)

Sunday Friends empowers families to break the generational cycle of poverty by fostering positive development in children while educating and guiding parents to support their children's life success. This event is important because the gifts we gather during our shopping spree will make it possible for children and parents to earn, select and gift wrap presents for their loved ones in Sunday Friends' holiday programs. Join us to give the gift of giving this holiday season. We meet at the front of the store, split up into shopping teams and divide up the money collected. We assign each team a "mission" (girls' toys, teens' gifts, dads' gifts, warming presents, etc.). Each team searches the store for the best gifts. We meet back at the registers to check out and award prizes. Each shopper must bring $10 - $100 (or more).

Ages: All ages welcome
 
Time Commitment: Each shift will be one and one-half hours
 
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator, 408.217.9587, [email protected]
www.sundayfriends.org
 
 
Create the Change Day Bay Area 2017
Project Giving Kids
 
Date/Time: Sunday November 12, 1 - 3:30pm
 
Location: Mitchell Park Community Center, 3700 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto

Join Project Giving Kids for our first Create the Change Day Bay Area where we will have fun and make a difference all in the same afternoon. Join us to pack hygiene kits for people in need, assemble snack bags for families experiencing medical crises, craft holiday cards for the homebound and so much more. Whether 3, 13, or 30, help us spread messages of hope, and leave with a lot of ideas for how you can Create the Change every day. There will also be music, snacks, raffle prizes and more to keep the excitement going all afternoon!

Please consider bringing any one (or more) of the following items to benefit some of our fantastic partners! Of course, bringing something is not required, but if you want to add to the impact of the day, we will be collecting the following:
  • New and/or gently used books for our friends at the African Library Project
  • (Unexpired) nonperishable food items for our partner, the Ecumenical Hunger Program
Project Giving Kids wants ALL kids, teens and families who want to make a difference to join us to #CreateTheChange! We have a small number of free tickets available for anyone for whom the ticket price is an issue. Just email us at  [email protected] and we'll give you all the details.

Ages: All ages are encouraged to attend.
 
Time Commitment: Two and one-half hours
 
Contact: Amy Johnson, Outreach and Marketing Manager, PGK - Bay Area, [email protected]. Registration is available online.  
www.projectgivingkids.org
 
 
Holiday Programs
Sacred Heart Community Services
 
Date/Time(s):
Holiday Food Packing Day:
Saturday, November 18, 8:30 - 11:30am or 1 - 4pm
Food Distribution for Thanksgiving boxes:
Monday, November 20, 8 -11am, 10:15am -1:30pm or 12:45 - 4pm
Tuesday, November 21, 9am - noon, 11:15am - 2:45pm, 2 - 4:30pm or 3:45 - 7pm
Wednesday, November 22, 8 - 11am, 10:15am - 1:30pm or 12:45 - 4pm
 
Location: 1381 South First Street, San Jose

We are people from all walks of life, united in our belief that everyone has the right to live a safe, healthy life, with adequate food and housing, and great schools and jobs. Our voices are loud, our actions are strong, and working together, we are building a stronger community. We are Sacred Heart - join our family! Our Holiday Program begins in November. Together, we'll brighten the season for thousands of families with 7,400-holiday food boxes and 18,600 toys, bikes, and books. Join us in celebrating this tradition by donating or volunteering. Join our family!
  • Make a financial donation to our Holiday program.
  • Donate turkeys and toys.
  • Give through our Amazon Wish List.
  • Organize a holiday drive at your work, place of worship, school, or service club.
  • Become a fundraiser and encourage your friends, family, and co-workers to join you in supporting Sacred Heart.
  • Volunteer and give your time to the food pantry, clothes closet or another program.
  • Help us on our holiday program, distribute food and Turkeys to our families.
Ages: For the onsite Holiday Food Drive program volunteers must be ages 9 or older for Food Packing and ages 15 or older for Food Distribution. Families with children of all ages are welcome to participate in the other volunteer activities.
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: Sergio Gonzalez, [email protected]. 408.278.2171
 
 
Help Foster Kids by Providing Duffel Bags for Their Belongings
The Lynch Family
 
Date/Time: Flexible, on your own time! Final deliveries are needed by December 1
 
Location: Los Gatos, please contact Krista Lynch to sign up and arrange delivery of items.

Imagine having no place to call home. Now, imagine that everything you own goes with you from place to place in nothing but a plastic garbage bag. How would that make you feel? This is what we saw being foster parents to several foster children. No person, let alone a child, should have to feel like that. Join us in purchasing and donating duffel bags of any size to these needy children so they can feel that they matter in the world.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate.
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: Krista Lynch, 831.818.9249, [email protected]  
 
 
Hellyer Park Weeding Party
Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful
 
Date/Time: Weekly, every Saturday through December 16 from 9 - 11am
 
Location: Hellyer Park Visitor Center, 985 Hellyer Avenue, San Jose

Come to the Helleyer Park Weeding Party to clean up your park while meeting new people. We have all the tools, we just need you. These events are a great way to meet new people and put some sweat equity back into your park. And, you get some time outdoors, which is good for your health! We'll be working in three zones: Velodrome, Dog Park, and east side of Cottonwood Lake. No special skills are required. Please wear long pants, a long sleeve shirt, and bring a water bottle and sunscreen. Work gloves and necessary tools are provided.
Refreshments will be available following the event. Sponsors are Santa Clara County Parks and Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful.

Ages: All ages welcome. Volunteers ages 15 and under must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the event. Volunteers age 16-17 may participate without parent/guardian supervision but only if they present a completed volunteer application including a parent or guardian's signature. Application forms are available at the event, but the parent or guardian must be present to sign.
 
Time Commitment: Two hours
 
Contact:  Deb Kramer, [email protected], 408.372.7053. To register, RSVP at https://17fall-kpweeding.eventbrite.com and choose the date from the drop-down menu.
www.keepcoyotecreekbeautiful.com

 
 
Bring Joy through Flowers
Random Acts of Flowers
 
Date/Time: Varies. The normal volunteer schedule is Monday through Thursday, with most shifts during daytime hours. Evening and weekend shifts are scheduled occasionally.
 
Location: Varies depending on delivery area and/or volunteer assignment.

Random Acts of Flowers recycles flowers from the floral industry, as well as local companies, florists, grocery stores, funeral homes, and events like weddings. We turn these flowers into beautiful bouquets and deliver them to those struggling with injury, illness and the aging process every week in neighborhoods all over the country. Random Acts of Flowers improves the emotional health and wellbeing of individuals in health care facilities by delivering recycled flowers, encouragement, and personal moments of kindness. Volunteering at Random Acts of Flowers helps us spread joy and allows people to nurture a culture of compassion and care. Volunteers range in age from elementary students to retirees. Individuals and groups - including schools, church groups, civic groups, businesses and even sports teams - make up the more than 2,000 people who share their time and talent to bring flowers and moments of joy to those in area hospitals, hospices, and health care facilities.

Ages:  Ages seven and up with adult present. Most volunteer opportunities are best suited for children 12 and older but younger children can attend with an adult. An adult must accompany all children under 16. Every child must have a signed Youth Waiver before volunteering. We ask that anyone interested in volunteering attend an orientation. During orientation, new volunteers will meet our team, learn about volunteer opportunities, and have hands-on training working with the flowers.
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: AnneLynn Fairclough, Program Coordinator, [email protected], 650.852.1450 
 
 
No Sew Blankets for Children in Need
Project Linus
 
Date/Time: Flexible
 
Location: Click here for a list off drop-off locations for completed blankets

Project Linus provides homemade blankets to children in need. Our blankets are lovingly made by adults and children from all walks of life and many different sources. Volunteer blanket makers help provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans. You and your family can make easy, warm, cozy, no sew blankets to donate to children in need. Click here for blanket making instructions. Though most 'blanketeers' choose to work on their own, some organizations have hosted their own "Make A Blanket Day"' for their group.  It can be a fun team-building event and Project Linus can help you with planning and preparation.

Ages: Everyone is welcome to participate
 
Time Commitment: Varies
 
Contact: Sharon Lee, [email protected], 408.252.1858 or Barbara Ross, [email protected], 408.295.2287. Please respect our family time, as we do our Project Linus volunteering between 9am and 5pm, Monday thru Friday.  We will reply to your emails and phone calls during those days & times.
 
 
Cook a Meal at a Shelter
Doing Good Together

Date/Time: Flexible

Location: A homeless shelter or soup kitchen in your community.

Many homeless shelters and soup kitchens rely on volunteers to provide meals for their guests. You and your family can help by providing a meal or meals. To find a local shelter or soup kitchen, Google homeless shelters along with your city name. Once you find a shelter, contact their volunteer coordinator to see if they are looking for volunteers and check for any age requirements. The shelter will help you schedule a date and provide you with any specific instructions. Find more information and ideas on the Doing Good Together Cook a Meal at a Shelter Project page.

Ages: Everyone can participate

Time Commitment: Varies

 

In this month of gratitude and giving, Minnesota holds its traditional "Give to the Max Day" on November 16th, and the global effort "Giving Tuesday" donation day takes place this year on November 28th. Kindly consider a gift to DGT to help us grow more kindness among more big-hearted families. We appreciate your support
!
 

 

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This list was compiled by Doing Good Together™ (www.doinggoodtogether.org)
 When calling to volunteer for any of the opportunities listed above, please let the coordinator know you found it through this listing. You are encouraged to ask any questions you may have of the sponsoring organization before committing to a project.
Disclaimer: This list is provided as a service to families. Inclusion of organizations in this listing does not imply affiliation, endorsement or quality assurance on the part of Doing Good Together.™ Doing Good Together™ bears no responsibility whatsoever for the activities and actions of the listed organizations. 
                                                                            

                                                                                                     © 2017 Doing Good Together™