#la works

[jerseydeanne]

Meghan Markle and Just Harry make a *surprise* appearance in a mentoring session

Meghan Markle and Just Harry make a *surprise* appearance in a mentoring session

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[the-real-kiwins]

LA Works Swim Session

The Downey High School KIWIN’s collaborated with the Santa Fe KIWIN’s in another event near Los Angeles, where they swam and played around with young kids and adolescents with disabilities. It was a great way to beat the heat, and to see a smile on a young child’s face as they have a game of volleyball or shoot some hoops in the water.

Hosted and organized by President Priscilla Ayala, the Swim Session was a great way to spend the day. All of the kids were in a nice and inviting environment, and allowed them to learn more about each other and have an overall great time.

Executive Assistant Erik Solis hangs out with Bruce, a visitor for the Swim Session.

The KIWIN’s relaxed and had a few laughs in the day. It reminded everyone of how much we can really do even with obstacles blocking the way.

[shureiam]

We can all do something to help

I volunteered to help plant, paint and build at the historic Gates Elementary school campus in Los Angeles.  It was a thrill to give back to a city that has given me so much!

The project was organized by L.A. Works/RSVP. Take a little time to check out their Face Book page for upcoming events and/or make a donation to this wonderful group of people.

Working in conjunction with the students, parents, other volunteers and teachers, I felt a part of something greater than myself.  

Try it, your day will be brightened!

[youllneverknowalovelikemine-blog]

Me: *feels sick*

My parents: it's probably just your allergies. You should take your meds more.

My coworker(who likes to peer over my shoulder and make sure I'm doing it all right aka who breathes on me): *posts on Facebook about being sick*

So he sucks.

[thesuperorganizeruniverse]

Volunteering Can Sometimes Lead To A Paid Gig!

Volunteering Can Sometimes Lead To A Paid Gig!

  I believe that opportunities are EVERYWHERE! My last job before I started my own business, The Super Organizer, came about after I came on for a week to help a friend at a conference. I made a strong impact, i got along with the bosses and I was offered a job. I  turned 1 week into 7 years! Also I volunteer with several organizations like The Trevor Project. Connections are made and if you are…

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[bangtanosaur]

Fundraising for a nonprofit called LA Works. Any contribution is greatly appreciated! :)

[yams-y-blog]

If you want to find volunteering opportunities in LA, it is IMPERATIVE that you give the following link a click: www.laworks.com

At least once a month, a director from LA Works holds a Project Leader Training Seminar which you are eligible to attend once you've participated in at least 3 volunteer projects. This training makes you eligible to propose and run an original project, adopt a project that is losing its former leader, or resurrect a project that has lost its leader. Cool!

I've been leading a project at the Culver Village Assisted Living Center every 2nd and 4th Sunday for the past 3 months and it's been such a fun and edifying experience. I prepare a variety of games and interactions early on in the week and let the seniors pick and choose what they want to do on the day of our meting. Some days they like to play lots of BINGO; other days, they prefer to hear us volunteers sing Elvis Presley songs. They're always excited for something different so it's good to have lots of options! They consistently look forward to listening to Marlon playing little ditties on the piano during intermissions. Live music permeating the room just doesn't compare to the tinny sound of music played through speakers. 

In addition to leading the Culver Village project, I try to make it out to the Union Rescue Mission every Tuesday evening to help out in the kitchen. My friend Tammy leads this project--she's incredibly passionate about reaching out to the homeless community downtown where she also spent some time as a youth. Now, she is pursuing a business major in college and hopes to start up her own non-profit organization in the future. I love being in the presence of her boundless positive energy. Her belief that volunteering can and does makes a difference in the lives of socially disadvantaged individuals is contagious.  

For me, signing up with LA Works was the first step into getting more involved with Los Angeles, a city that had once seemed too large for a stranger to ever forge and enter into intimate community groups, let alone affect any kind of change for the better. LA Works "works" because of its devoted arsenal of over 900 trained volunteer leaders and even bigger following of volunteers. With these kinds of numbers, you know they are reaching out to a wide spectrum of needs.

At the most basic level, volunteers keep alive the idea that we are human beings, not automatons. We are motivated to action by things beyond the need to feed our own mouths. We are motivated by ideals and are capable of seeing beyond the conditions we've been handed to visualize and work towards a more perfect arrangement. All too often we are paralyzed by a sense of hopelessness and our own smallness in the context of our huge and complex world--heck, even in the context of our own communities. LA Works and other local volunteer centers empower you by providing a means for you to connect with others in a meaningful, productive way. And that's where it starts. Only when we are able to interact with people as human beings, not as instruments, a means to your personal goals, can we boldly and successfully address social issues. 

Sign up today. And if you aren't in LA, look up your local volunteer center. Challenge yourself. You can do more than you may have ever imagined.