Volunteerism

"You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give."
--Winston Churchill   

The challenges America faces are unprecedented. We need to build a new foundation for economic growth in America. The Administration has made dramatic new investments in education, health care, and clean energy, but Washington cannot do this alone.

Here are some helpful ways you can get started:

EDUCATION     |     HEALTH     |     COMMUNITY RENEWAL

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT     |     CREATE YOUR OWN PROJECT

 

E D U C A T I O N

Read with Children

Children who are not engaged in learning between school years suffer from "summer learning loss." Many of the achievement gaps that continue to exist for disadvantaged students today result not from students falling behind during the school year but rather losing out on chances to learn over the summer.

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help young people close the summer learning gap by joining United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to start a reading program from scratch, recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Organize a Book Drive

Commit yourself and a team of your friends and neighbors to help increase reading achievement and literacy by joining United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to run a book drive, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

What will you do to help increase reading and literacy?

H E A L T H

Support Community Gardens

This summer, as President Obama and Congress work together to enact health reform that reduces health care costs for families, businesses, and government; guarantees choice of doctors, hospitals, and insurance plans; and assures quality affordable health care for all Americans, we hope that you will participate by promoting healthy lifestyles in your community - a key to avoiding costly disease and improving the nation's health.

In 2007, only 21.4% of high school students reported eating fruits and vegetables five or more times daily during the past 7 days.

Community gardens provide access to traditional produce or nutritionally rich foods that may otherwise be unavailable to low-income families and individuals.

Community gardens allow families and individuals, without land of their own, the opportunity to produce food. Oftentimes gardeners take advantage of the experiential knowledge of elders to produce a significant amount of food for the household.

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help increase healthy eating choices for Americans and be part of United We Serve This tool kit will give you the basics to plan a community garden activity, recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Starting a Walking Team

A brisk, half-hour walk five or more days a week can reduce the risk of developing:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Osteoporosis
• Arthritis
• Some cancers

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help increase healthy exercise habits and join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Promote Back to School Health

This summer, as President Obama and Congress work together to enact health reform that reduces health care costs for families, businesses, and government; protects a patient's choice of doctors, hospitals, and insurance plans; and assures quality affordable health care for all Americans, we hope that you will participate by promoting healthy lifestyles in your community - a key to avoiding costly disease and improving the nation's health.

The prevalence of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 has more than doubled in the past 26ars, going from 6.5% in 1980 to 17.0% in 2006. The rate among adolescents aged 12 to 19 more than tripled, increasing from 5% to 17.6%.¹

Overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults. Obesity in adulthood increases the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma, arthritis, and a general poor health status.²

According to a 2006 CDC survey, 23% of black children and 20% of Hispanic children had not received the recommended five-vaccine series by the age of 35 months.³

Thirty-two percent of low income children ages 2-17 had not visited a dentist in the last year according to the same 2006 study. This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help improve children's health and join United We Stand. This tool kit will give you the basics to plan your activity, recruit a team, organize your own service project, and make an impact this summer.

Footnotes:

1. Obesity Prevalence, CDC, accessed 2009
2. The Surgeon General's Call To Action To Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity.
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics (2006).

C O M M U N I T Y   R E N E W A L

Support Local Food Banks

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends and neighbors to help feed America's hungry. This tool kit will give you the basics to volunteer at a food bank, start of food drive, recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Many people are turning to food banks for the first time because of the economic climate. 99.4% of food banks and distribution agencies reported seeing more first time users in the last year. 74% reported seeing more newly unemployed persons. 48% of food banks and distribution agencies reported seeing a greater number of children in their food lines.

Seventy-two percent of food banks do not feel as though they are able to adequately meet the needs of their communities without adjusting the amount of food distributed.

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help alleviate hunger and join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to run a food drive, recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Organize a Clothing Drive

In the face of a national economic and housing crisis, it is crucial for all citizens to participate in rebuilding their communities and helping to bolster families and neighborhoods struck by adversity. Whether chronically homeless, recently homeless, facing a home foreclosure, or struggling in the aftermath of disasters that have damaged or destroyed their homes, many families across the country find themselves in transition and could use your help to meet their most immediate needs.

Commit yourself and a team of your friends and neighbors to help serve those most in need and join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to run a clothing drive, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

E N E R G Y   A N D   E N V I R O N M E N T

Audit Your Home

Every year, more than $13 billion worth of energy leaks from houses through small holes and cracks. That's more than $150 per family!

A compact fluorescent light bulb uses 75 percent less energy than a regular bulb - and it can last up to four years.

Across America, home refrigerators use the electricity of 25 large power plants every year.

Some new refrigerators are so energy-smart they use less electricity than a light bulb!

A hot water faucet that leaks one drop per second can add up to 165 gallons a month. That's more than one person uses in two weeks.

An energy-smart clothes washer can save more water in one year than one person drinks in an entire lifetime!

A crack as small as 1/16th of an inch around a window frame can let in as much cold air as leaving the window open three inches!

An automatic dishwasher uses less hot water than doing dishes by hand - an average of six gallons less, or more than 2,000 gallons per year.

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help save energy in your home and to help others do so, too. Join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to start reducing your carbon footprint, recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

Maintain Public Lands

Hiking trails across the nation are in constant need of attention from causes both natural and man-made. They are commonly damaged by erosion, foliage, litter and wildlife.

Water is a trail's worst enemy. Storms can wash out trails and sever tree limbs, blocking a trail or making it unsafe for hikers. Even normal levels of rainfall can cause erosion and have long term effects on a trail. Aside from erosion, wildlife is known to burrow into trails. Human traffic will litter and deteriorate trail boundaries, and the surrounding foliage will inevitably create obstacles.

With thousands of trails to maintain, volunteers are a necessary component of their creation and preservation. Volunteer groups around the country routinely repair damaged trails and create new ones for the nation to enjoy. It takes time and training to become an effective trail maintenance volunteer, but the payoff is worth the effort.

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to help restore America's park trails and join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to recruit a team, organize your group, and make an impact this summer.

C R E A T E   Y O U R   O W N   P R O J E C T

This summer, commit yourself and a team of your friends, family, and neighbors to join United We Serve. This tool kit will give you the basics to recruit a team, organize your own service project, and make an impact in your community this summer.