Category «MADD»

Socktober Collection in Conjunction with ILHS InterAct Club

Meredith Altrusa helped in the collection of socks during the month of October in honor of Make A Difference Day. A variety of socks for all ages were donated to the Community focused InterAct Club at Inter-Lakes High School, who in turn, provide to those in need. This is both a service project in response to a need in the Lakes Region, but also working to assist another Community Club comprised of our own local high schoolers…a joint effort within Meredith.

Books for Prison’s Library

The Bermuda Club purchased and donated $300.00 worth of books to assist in furnishing the library of Bermuda’s prison for our 2020 ‘Make a Difference Day”.

The books were selected by a representative of the prison and focused mainly on “self help” type reading material. As an example, there were books on anger management, how to start and run a business, how to effectively communicate with others and other similar titles. In this assortment of books, there were also some very interesting fiction titles by a popular author which seemed to be very popular with the prisoners.

The books were collected by a representative of the prison and subsequently the Club received a letter of appreciation and thanks from the head of the prison’s education department.

Ables Fable Book Donation (Make A Difference Day/Literacy)

The Evansville Altrusans, Make a Difference Day Community Service Project was a WIN-Win in many ways! The Club donated 50 copies of Gary’s Gigantic Dream for distribution to kindergarten, first grade, and special education classrooms in the Evansville area in support of literacy and inclusion. The book is fun, bright, colorful and educational. It takes you on Gary’s journey of being evaluated for his very first wheelchair. Upon receiving his chair, Gary discovers newfound independence and zest for life and a gigantic dream of his own. Dr. Nicole Julia, the book’s author, donated 20% of the book’s sales during August and September to the Evansville Stop Light City Playground. This is an inclusive playground for children with disabilities being constructed in phases on the Westside of Evansville. The Club also purchased copies of the book to be placed in rotation with our books for the Trail with a Tale.

United Methodist Youth Home (Make a Difference Day/Literacy

The Evansville Altrusans supported the United Methodist Youth Home through a Literacy/Make a Difference Day Project.

The Club provided a set of World Book Encyclopedias, Merriam-Webster’s Dictionaries, and books for residents’ leisure reading. The UMYH helps at-risk youth, ages 13 – 18, become productive and responsible members of the community. An emphasis is placed on educational achievement. Residents attending public schools receive daily monitoring of grades and attendance, study skills, and up to five hours per week of after school tutoring. The club also received a $200 grant from District Six to use for this project. The encyclopedias and dictionaries will aid in accomplishing education support for the residents. A difference is made in the lives of the youth through encouragement and guidance. The Club members also provided a “pitch-in” meal for the residents which included BBQ, side dishes, and Girl Scout S’mores cookies for dessert. Who doesn’t love a home cooked meal!

Memory Care “Sing Along”

Three members, representing our club visited two local memory care facilities. Due to Covid 19, our traditional group “sing along” turned into delivering a Karaoke style Christmas DVD. While missing the interaction with the residents, we were able to keep bringing the joy of singing and music by giving an opportunity to enjoy a special “sing along” for the holidays. Experts have confirmed that music–especially singing is really helpful to those suffering with Alzheimer’s or related dementia.
Treat bags with chocolate candy were also delivered to each facility for residents and staff members to enjoy.
A special request for materials for a group Fall craft project was also honored at one of the facilities.
Additionally, a few members raked leaves for a grateful Mobile Meals recipient in celebration of our club’s 50 Years of Altrusa Mobile Meals and Make A Difference Day.

You are not alone, for Altrusa you are important.

Altrusa of San Sebastián established a special committee to coordinate the Make a Difference Day activity. The committee identified a great need to support seniors who live alone. In pandemic, seniors have suffered very much due to the lack of interaction with others, because of the physical distancing.

With the motto “You are not alone, for Altrusa you are important” we brought joy and love to the residents of Hacienda el Jibarito Elderly Home in San Sebastian, PR. After coordinating the activity with the administrators of the housing complex, the interaction with the residents was safely handled.

In the morning, a sound system with music and messages of encouragement entertained everyone from their balconies, while a group of altrusans left a package full of protective items on each resident’s door. Items included: face masks, alcohol, hand sanitizer, wet towels, and hygiene items, as well. A beautiful postcard with a special message of support and solidarity was also included. A total of 150 families were impacted on this day. During the afternoon, each resident received a nutritional box of food.

Seeing their smiles was a gratifying experience. We will certainly continue to make a difference by supporting older citizens.

Books & Ice Cream for Make a Difference Day

Altrusa International of Hermiston, Oregon has placed three Little Free Libraries in our community. We celebrated Make a Difference Day on October 24 at all three sites with a book and ice cream give away. We used children’s and young adult books from our existing inventory, and also received a generous donation of gently used books from the Friends of the Hermiston Library. The ice cream bars were donated by Meadow Gold. Our teams were at the libraries from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Twelve members participated, and supplied tables for the books and coolers for the ice cream. The children choosing books were asked to wear a mask. At one site, families could simply park at the curb, and we delivered to the vehicle.
The event was publicized in the newspaper, the radio station and on Facebook. If we repeat the event, we will have posters at nearby intersections so families can find us more easily.
Sue Daggett, Literacy Chairman
donsuedaggett@charter.net

Make-A-Difference Day 2020 – Gateway Education Center

The 2020 Make-A-Difference Day is October 24th. For this year’s Make-A-Difference Day project, the Altrusa Club of Warsaw, Indiana partnered with Gateway Education Center to provide snacks for the students. Gateway provides various educational opportunities like Alternative Instructional Methods. This program provides an adult-like atmosphere where students are expected to develop self-control and maintain adult behavior. Half of their school week is an academic setting and half of the week provides work experience. Credits earned lead to high school diplomas.

Another program, Rebound, is a half-day program aimed at assisting students who have dropped out of school and want to return, or students who have served an expulsion and would benefit from learning in a smaller setting before transitioning to the general school setting full-time.
The Center’s Middle School Alternative Learning Program is designed for students experiencing difficulty in the general school setting and need a smaller environment to work on academic, social, behavioral or mental health issues. Gateway also provides Adult Education classes to serve non-traditional students.

The Altrusa Club members learned that students enjoy receiving snack awards for their academic accomplishments. Members donated seven big baskets of various snack foods for the Gateway classes. The Club also donated cards of appreciation plus a $10 restaurant gift cards to Gateway’s 23-member staff. Members wanted to partner with Gateway to help make a difference in the students’ lives, and to show appreciation to the staff for all they do to make a difference in the lives of some of our community’s future adult citizens.

Make A Difference Day 2020

Club members are each preparing 4 or 5 “Thinking of You” cards, with the member’s name and the Altrusa name, to be delivered to an assisted living facility in Rapid City, SD.

OPAPA- Organization in Pro of Attention of Patients with Alzheimer

OPAPA is a non-profit organization who works with those people with Alzheimer’s Disease and their caretaker. Is the only entity that works with Non-pharmacological therapy to delay the degenerative progress of this condition who, not only affect the patients, but also their entire family. In Puerto Rico, there is no legislation in favor for the people who take care of these patients and every day there is more people who are diagnosed with it. Every year, we see how this disease is affecting even younger people, and there is no available cure. This organization needs funds to maintain their qualified personnel and some improvements in order to provide specialized therapy that are proven to improve their social and mental behavior.