SOCIAL JUSTICE and COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROJECTS
Community Outreach Co-Chairs
Debbie Gordon and
Gale Gradus
PURPOSE
Community Service is a fundamental part of the mission of BNC. Throughout the year, we collect items for various non-profit organizations in the greater Phoenix area, and your support is much appreciated. Additionally, our Mitzvah Mavens Study Group provides participatory activities for our members to volunteer directly with specific agencies.
This year, we will be focusing our main community support on collecting food and snacks for the new M.D. Hawkins Veterans Center in Phoenix.
We are still collecting travel-size personal items for families, seniors, and individuals in need.
It is our hope that at EACH event you attend, you will bring one or two items for this Community Outreach Program. We will have a donation box or table set up at every event.
We are very grateful for your kindness and compassion.
New Veterans Center
This year Community Outreach will be supporting the newly-created M.D. Hawkins Veterans Center in central Phoenix. The Center includes a small transitional housing unit, counseling services, day center activities, and food and snacks for drop-in vets. At this time, we will be focusing on helping to provide snacks for them. Next time you are at the grocery store, please consider picking up:
- Individually wrapped peanut butter crackers or Goldfish crackers
- Granola bars
- Individual cookie packages or pretzels or popcorn
- Any easy “Grab & Go” snack would be appreciated
For the Homeless: Travel-Size Personal Care Items
Empty, clean prescription bottles are still being collected and used by our friends at Nourish, along with your gifts of personal care items.
- When you travel, please consider taking the “freebies” at the hotels or onboard airlines/cruises to donate.
- When you visit a dentist, please ask for extra samples of toothbrushes/toothpaste/floss for donation.
Knit a Mitzvah
Do you Knit?
Do you Crochet?
Help us make Scarves,
Newborn Baby Caps,
Lap Blankets and Chemo Caps
We donate newborn baby caps and lap blankets to Honor Health Medical Center, scarves to Sojourner Center and chemo caps to Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center.
If you are experienced or just a novice and want to participate in these efforts, please contact: Ronee Siegel at ronees@aol.com or Joan Davis at davis6j@gmail.com for more information.
Mitzvah Mavens
Participants in this study group volunteer at a variety of Valley non-profit organizations. We meet at the specific locations of the organizations on various dates, lending helping hands as needed. If there are activities that can be done at home, participants will be notified.
See the Study Group Guide for more information about this and other study groups.
YOU CAN VOLUNTEER FROM HOME
Do you have time on your hands? One of the pillars of the BNC Mission Statement is Community Outreach. Members who are interested in doing volunteer work for various charities from home, can contact CommunityOutreachBrandeis@gmail.com.
