I grew up in an old farmhouse surrounded by cornfields and dirt roads. My town was small and my dreams were big. I had this unbelievable ambition to change the world. So when I was 19 years old, I joined the AmeriCorp National Civilian Community Corp. My term ended with AmeriCorp in 1998; But one thing that has always stayed with me, was the promise that every member commits to.
“I will get things done for America – to make our people safer, smarter, and healthier. I will bring Americans together to strengthen our communities. Faced with apathy, I will take action. Faced with conflict, I will seek common ground. Faced with adversity, I will persevere. I will carry this commitment with me this year and beyond. I am an AmeriCorps member, and I will get things done.” ~AmeriCorp Pledge
Though I am far from 19 years young, that same vim and vigor to help the world has never wavered. And I have never forgotten my pledge to continue my commitment to community service. And that is how I came across the opportunity to work alongside Champions For Kids. Theirs is a mission is to encourage MILLIONS of people to help children by doing SIMPLE Service projects.
Every month they have partnered with amazing and generous brands in efforts to help children thrive. For October, the featured Project of the Month is “Dial Into Giving“. {And as you can probably guess, the generous brand is Dial.} For my project, I chose to donate the SOS Community Services center and gather the personal care items they share on the SOS Community Services Wish List.
An amazing local resource, the non-profit SOS Community Services provides Housing, Family, and Children’s services. Their fundraising and donation efforts are very well organized and it was easy to see exactly the ways I could donate. Needless to say, with the Wish List in hand; I headed to WalMart to see how I could get my SIMPLE Service Project started. And the first stop? Straight over to see what great Dial products I could donate!
I had a blast finding my way through a ton of amazing Dial products to choose from. From hand soaps to body washes there was a great selection at affordable prices. And I was really impressed to find Dial NutriSkin Glycerin Soap. Packaged in 8 individual boxes, this lightly scented Dial soap is the perfect multi-functioning product that can be utilized the most. Did you know that Glycerin soaps can be used to create homemade laundry detergent?
The first time I’d ever heard of Glycerin based soaps was when I volunteered in San Diego, CA with Stand Up For Kids. {Stand Up For Kids is an outreach program that supplies donated items to help homeless children and teens.} I went out in a team with a group Outreach Leader to hand out our supplies. Of one group of teens we interacted with, I met girl about 16. She was only a few years younger then me but just chatting with her changed my perspective of the world.
Jessica* was the only one that really stayed to chat besides picking up supplies. Living on the street, she took only what she could carry. And I remember her asking for Glycerin soap. She liked it as it could double as a soap to clean her clothes as well as herself. We actually didn’t have any; But her consolation was finding a sweet and flowery bar soap to take. Did you know that gender neutral or Mens products are the most donated items? She joked about being able to actually smell like a girl again.
She also inquired about toothbrush kits but we were all out. However we were stocked with feminine hygiene products. Hopeful those at least would help her, we were taken aback when she admitted that the best {and only} thing she was able to use were non-applicator tampons. Living on the street is a whole different world then the rest of our bulk-buying American lifestyles consider. You can find see more ideas for donating to your local homeless crisis center here {Fill An Empty Bowl: Homeless Shelter Donation Ideas #DialCFK}.
Will you volunteer to be one in a million that Champions For Kids will hope to mobilize by the year 2020? Make sure to head over and check out Champions For Kids website for the latest and greatest news on how we can all make a difference. I’ll be back to tell you all about how my personal service project turned out on Friday, October 12. Also, take a minute to check out the links below for more great ways to connect and help in your community.
Champions For Kids on Twitter & Facebook
Dial Brand on Twitter & Facebook
For more information on the Collective Bias Social Fabric Community click the link provided or the disclosure below.
*Names have been changed above to protect personal identity.
Alyssa McVey says
It’s wonderful that you were able to help those who needed it most. I love to hear when companies step up and give back to communities.