500 Volunteers stepped up for our community on Good Deeds Day
Good Deeds Day: Powered by generosity and volunteerism, our community makes a world of difference.
We had an outstanding turnout of more than 500 volunteers from Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County’s Jewish Volunteer Center (JVC) and Palm Beach Atlantic University for the global day of service known as Good Deeds Day on Sunday, April 16. Now in its 7th year, the social action event continues to grow, with community members of all ages coming together to support those who need it most.
“We continue to see our positive impact expand, with inspiring numbers of volunteers – including those of all faiths and backgrounds, as well as more and more intergenerational families – eager to give back and be a positive influence on the world,” said Jonathan Chane, Chair, Jewish Volunteer Center. “On Good Deeds Day they showed up and made a difference for so many in our community and beyond.”
Highlights from Good Deeds Day this year included the following:
- Meal packing: A remarkable 300 volunteers packed a record 50,000 meals, which were provided to the Alpert Jewish Family Service Food Pantry and Palm Beach County Food Bank. An estimated one in six people are struggling to put food on the table in Palm Beach County.
- Collecting produce from a local farm (Gleaning): In partnership with Cros Ministries, 100 volunteers gleaned 8,000 pounds of cucumbers from a local farm and donated to the Palm Beach County Food Bank.
- Community clean up: Local volunteers joined the City of West Palm Beach and students from Palm Beach Atlantic University to cleanup two local communities as part of the Great American Cleanup. More than 200 pounds of garbage was collected from a Palm Beach County park and neighborhood.
- Supply drive for infants: Community members donated diapers to Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies, a local nonprofit organization that provides an emergency pantry called Basics4Babies with free baby essentials to families in need in Palm Beach County.
- Art project for seniors: Children in our community volunteered to spend a fun day with residents at Sunrise Senior Living during an intergenerational art project. Everyone created colorful, hand-printed canvases to take home to preserve the special time together.
- Feeding the homeless: Volunteers distributed dozens of burritos to the homeless community in Lake Worth in partnership with The Give Back Community.
- Blood Donation: Several community members stepped up to donate blood on the Big Red Bus and also become potential donors with the Gift of Life Marrow Registry to help those who suffer from rare blood cancers.
Click here to see photo albums of the extraordinary work our amazing volunteers accomplished.
Good Deeds Day, created in 2007 in Israel, is a worldwide event that unites millions of volunteers from 108 countries for service opportunities that benefit others and the planet. Locally, it is supported by the Alloy Family Foundation and the OneWorld: Davis Family Tolerance Project.
For more information about the Jewish Volunteer Center and upcoming service projects, visit jewishvolunteer.org or call 561.242.6653.
